GREAT CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
In what has been a rewarding two months for the GCE program, we have been out in industry supporting venues as they prepare for a busy summer. Some key stats for GCE this financial year include: • Over 700 Venue engagements • 178 Business Health Checks conducted • 43 Seals of Approval handed out • 62 Venue Awareness Sessions conducted A huge part of this has been providing venues with Business Health Checks. The Business Health Check is designed togive theoperatoranobjective view of their business and help identify areas they would benefit from improving to elevate the customer experience in their venue. The Business Health Check assesses venue performance across three key areas: staffing, customer service and business practices. After the Business Health Check is completed, the venue is given a report which provides targeted strategies to improve the venue across those three key areas, an analysis of their social media channels and whether they have achieved a Seal of Approval. Venues that don’t reach the benchmark for a Seal of Approval are given advice and strategies to identify areas they could improve before their revaluation in three months. Once a venue has attained their Seal of Approval, they will be re-assessed two years from the date of eligibility.
A proven method of elevating staff engagement in the business and in the customer has been the provision of a GCE Venue Awareness Session. Venues have reported these sessions as pivotal moments highlighting to each of their staff the importance of their role in ensuring a great customer experience and the success of the business. We continue to work to ensure industry, tourists and patrons are aware that a Seal of Approval means the venue is not only passionate about creating a great customer experience, but they are also committed to their staff and great Tasmanian hospitality. Bakers Lane in Launceston completed their Business Health Check back in April, but with the busy season approaching, requested a revisit from the GCE team. Deb took the Bakers Lane crew through a Venue Awareness Workshop session – one owner Stella Thomson said was hugely beneficial. Formally a bar, restaurant and late night venue, Bakers Lane has turned its attention solely as a nightclub due to impacts of Covid-19. “I organised a time for Deb to come in and train some of the newer staff, I guess we are very bar based now and I think it was nice for everyone to get a basic understanding of hospitality business,” Thomson said. I could see the benefit it would have on staff learning why we are doing what we do.” One of the most important aspects of the GCE session for Thomson was having hospitality information provided from a different voice. It has also had an immediate impact on the output of her staff. “It was very helpful for a lot of them, I’ve been in the industry fora lot of years, soa lot of information they were receiving in the training was a lot of stuff I had kind of taken for granted as common knowledge.
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