Begging for scores at Hilton

I have been staying at a number of Hilton Hotels around the country, and in various forms, there seems to be a consistent pattern related to customer feedback:  All their hotels seem to be working on improving their SCORES.  It is possible they may also be working on improving the EXPERIENCE, but it isn't apparent to me.  In the meantime, these misguided efforts to get the guests to give a particular score on a survey are a huge distraction and a major mistake.

A few examples:

Hilton Garden Inn, Phoenix (click to enlarge)

At the Hilton Garden Inn, Phoenix, a note was slipped under my door on the night before check-out proclaiming that "we pride ourselves on being a '10'hotel" and letting the guest know that "Hilton considers anything less than a score of nine to be unacceptable so it is very important that every aspect of your stay be a '10.'"

Front desk clerk, Doubletree Hotel, Norwalk, CT (click to enlarge)At the Doubletree Hotel in Norwalk, CT, employees wear colorful lapel pins that read "10."  On my last day there, I noticed the pin on the front desk clerk's lapel and asked about it.  "What does that pin mean?" I asked.

"Oh.  We wear these because you're going to get a survey from Hilton, and we are supposed to ask you for a 10 on that survey," she replied innocently.

"Hmm.  Why would you ask me for a 10, rather than earning a 10?"

"That's a good point," she said.  "I didn't really think of that.  We're just supposed to tell all the guests that we want a 10 on the survey."

At the the Embassy Suites in lower Manhattan. the management team begs customers for 10s using tent cards, neon envelope stickers and stamps on the face of customers' bills.  It's a bold, in your face sort of begging, with a thinly veiled "tell us how to improve" message.  Some photos:

Embassy Suites tent card (click to enlarge)Sticker on bill envelope (click to enlarge)Sticker on the bill (click to enlarge)

Note that the tent card, which is in a prominent location on the desk near the phone focuses on the score.  The stickers on the bill envelope and the bill face are only available at the very end of a guest's stay.  Their demand that the guest contact someone to make it all right comes off as disingenuous, at best.  Why link such a statement to the survey score?  Why not simply declare that you want every guest to be fully satisfied and that the manager is available to help you achieve that?  This doesn't fool anyone.

A modest recommendation

So, if you're listening, Hilton, some constructive advice, now that I've experienced hotels and employees begging for higher scores several times:

1. Goal your hotel properties on their business results, not their scores
2. Provide the verbatim feedback and scores from guests to your hotel staff as a tool for improving their business results
3. Give them the training, infrastructure, process and motivational tools they need to improve and stay focused on improvement (not just scores)
4. Help them learn by getting them to engage your Detractors with follow-up calls.  Do the same with a sample of Promoters

Stop begging your customers for better scores.  Start EARNING them. 

Comments

[Candy]

Great idea! However, we area always striving to find out what our customers feel would be a "10" for service. Until I began working at a popular hotel brand, I never realized the importance of these scoring surveys the the BIG company puts into the results. What does it take to be a "10"? I've stayed at Hilton brands many of times, most are very pleasant, pleasant personable employees however, don't we expect that? So when the surveys do come I used to score "8" thinking "10" was for WAY ABOVE my expectations. Now...we look at it that in fact most hotel workers are payed only minimum wages, standing for their entire 8-10 hour shifts and still I'm greeted with a smile and friendliness almost everytime...my room is almost alway perrfect...and still I receive good service? Please, next time remember these facts and think about that "10" a little more. They don't get recognition unless YOU give it.