The power of the Internet – by Simon Soar, CEO of the Jersey Hospitality Association
“We live in a time where technology is becoming obsolete the minute its created. 10 years ago, you wouldn’t have predicted that ¾ of the UK population would have smart phones and access the internet wherever they are. They are predicting that th65% of the jobs our children will do don’t exist now.
As connectivity increases, so does the way we use it. We want everything at our fingertips, and we want it now. This has both great benefits, and some damning consequences too.
Travel and holidays are changing. In years gone by, a hotel would have its rooms booked up for the season before it had opened in spring, these days, last minute travel seems to be more popular, as well as more frequent, shorter breaks. This is mostly down to simplicity and ease of access. At our fingertips, we can browse the world, see places, see photos and find out what’s going on there. We can find our perfect holiday.
And we can find reviews . . .
These can be great for giving us a feel for how a place can be, or any issues we may be likely to face. The biggest problem is consumers who become empowered by the ability to leave poor reviews. I have all too frequently heard the horror stories of people demanding against the threat of poor reviews. For me this isn’t acceptable. While I agree, if a business is not performing to standard consistently, a person has the right to share that with others, but it shouldn’t be a tool to destroy a venues hard work because something may not have been to your own personal taste.
We are struggling to attract strong candidates to our industry now, and this fact compounds the issue further. The other part that frustrates me, and I will quickly base this on a recent story I heard. A customer leaves a one-star review stating ‘worst cheese board he’s ever had’ he then goes on to say how he’s eaten there for years and never had a problem before. The manager chose to reply to this, and it really struck a chord with me. It was the customers first review. In years of loving the venue, it takes one cheese board not up to his standard, and that’s the moment he chooses to comment. If we all commented positively on the good experiences we had, venues would probably feel a lot better about what they do. Praise form our customers is why we do our job (in part) and what we strive to achieve. A happy customer is a clear indication that we are performing to our standards.
I’m not saying people should accept bad service or poor food. I would strongly suggest speaking to the management who are always keen to improve areas they haven’t met the standards expected. For consumers, remember that a good review and praise for something enjoyed goes a very long way. If people took to their keyboards over a good experience with the same vigour, they do for a bad one, the internet would be a very different place. Like dealing with people in your personal and professional life, positive reinforcement works a lot better than putting them down.”
