Learning From The Ritz-Carlton Customer Service Philosophy

We can learn much from the Ritz-Carlton Gold Standards and their philosophy of exceptional customer service and guidance. "Putting on the Ritz" has always been synonymous with high quality, the best of the best. Where did they acquire this reputation? From their customers - and is well deserved.

The Ritz-Carlton focuses on the care of its customers and employees, which creates an amazing level of customer service. In a recent independent survey, 99 percent of guests said they were satisfied with their Ritz-Carlton hotel and more than 80 percent said very satisfied. The key for the awesome customer service is to create loyal customers. Loyal customers return again and again to spend money and there are less price sensitive. Satisfied customers may return, but they are as likely to go elsewhere and look for the lowest price. Therefore, the satisfaction is virtually meaningless and customer loyalty only really matters.

The Ritz-Carlton approach to employee and customer relationships can teach us a lot of excellent customer service. How could you apply these within your company?

Ritz-Carlton, or allows customers to know they are valued and encouraged them to make the client and customer service their priority. Coaches and managers are focused to ensure that the staff is well versed in the Ritz-Carlton gold standard. For the Ritz-Carlton these are not a gold standard procedure, the philosophy and lifestyle.

or The Ritz Carlton offers managers and employees with 250 to 300 hours of training in first year

or The Ritz-Carlton philosophy is that every employee who receives a complaint from a guest owns that complaint. Frontline employees, such as receptionists, porters, and the rulers have the power to spend up to $ 2000 to handle any customer complaints and managers can spend up to $ 5,000 without further authorization.

o The Ritz-Carlton is a manual for quality improvement and problem-solving procedures. The manual contains approximately 1000 potential problems that a client may have during their stay and the appropriate procedure (s) to deal with each of these challenges so that the client is extremely happy with the result.

With companies typically lose 20% of their customers each year, should be clearly spending more time, money and energy on customer service and loyalty to us about marketing to new customers. The typical business spends 90% or more of their funding and focus on marketing to new customers and 10% or less to keep existing customers. These numbers point of view of profit should look much more like 50-50 if you want to have the best reputation and the greatest increase in customers and profits year on year.

Recommendations:

- Ensure that managers and executives are teaching, practicing, and promoting a lifestyle oriented customer service philosophy /.

- Clearly define your standards of customer service and training employees to follow through at the highest level

- Make exceptional customer service, an important point on the evaluations of employees.

- Ensure that the staff has the ability to resolve customer complaints small / challenges on their own - and teach them to do well.

- Identify specific problem areas that you are having in your business, brainstorm solutions and then provide additional training and support.

- Edward Deming once said: "What is not measured, do not get done." How do you measure your results?

- Questionnaires and surveys of the customers are fundamental. Make sure that you are asking open-ended questions that focus on customer loyalty - not satisfaction.

The Ritz-Carlton senior management team knows that when employees are well trained they do a great job. And when employees feel they are doing a great job - you feel very much at their work. This results in lower staff turnover, creates a positive environment and is a win-win for employees, management, customers, and keep profits up. The Ritz-Carlton is a wonderful example of what a well-managed customer oriented service organization can do when creating a customer service mindset and win-win philosophy to all levels of the organization .......