You’ve got a lot of full time and part time staff.
But, you don’t have all the time in the world to train them.
Yes, your veteran staff is always around and experts at what they do. But, things change.
You’re probably overwhelmed with the task of training all your part-time and temporary employees because policies change often.
You know, every time they work again there’s a new policy to follow.
Training is ongoing and regardless of how busy you and your full-time team are – staff needs to be trained on how to communicate with guests.
It needs to be done according to your standards too.
Your frontline staff interacts with your guests the most. With that said, even though many of them are on your property the least often, they’re the ones who need the most training.
Do you agree?
Not to mention…
When they underperform, it has an adverse effect on all areas of your operation.
We get it; it’s tough.
Keep reading, though. We’re going to share with you how to solve this potential guest services nightmare.
Can you agree with this?
- You have workers from all walks of life
- Each employee comes with different skill sets and training experiences
- Some are more seasoned than others
- Others have been exposed to more training and development
- Some are brand new
At the end of the day, everyone needs to be on the same level – your level.
So, how do you empower them to engage with your guests effectively? What do you do to ensure they can make guests happy on game day?
We’re glad you asked.
Below is an outline of several useful techniques for communicating with guests. It’ll help you deliver an exceptional experience at all times.
Give Your Best G.U.E.S.T. Services
Have high expectations. But, also empower your team to provide the best guest services experience.
Train them how to deliver first-class service that guests deserve at every point of contact on game day.
- Greet sincerely with eye contact
- Understand the guest’s needs
- Engage yourself in helping guests promptly
- Smile and be positive throughout
- Thank guests all the time
Your employees must give their best effort before, during, and after the game.
Are you ready to show them the ways?
8 Touchpoints for First-Class Service With a Smile
It’s time to make your guests happy. It’s time to make memories!
We’ve outlined eight touchpoints for exceeding the expectations of your guests.
You can immediately begin to teach your staff how to communicate effectively with guests using these strategies.
Put these strategies in place and enjoy all the resulting praises.
1. Guest Arrival & Parking Lot Operations
- Communicate effectively with guests through your radio partners (e.g. local radio stations) to deliver traffic routes and patterns allowing for a more enjoyable commute. Give your guests parking lot updates (e.g. when lots are full or whether lot closures take place). We recommend notifying guests when lots are about two-thirds full.
- Use signage in the parking lot to display your text communication information so that your guests can use it when they need to.
- Have your season ticket holders’ opt-in to receive game day notifications and send group notifications via text communication software. Communicate weather updates, traffic patterns, and parking lot information.
- Deploy alcohol management teams to identify and mitigate potential hazards as a result of intoxicated persons. This also provides assurance to guests that guest services is under control, and is dedicated to their experience and safety. 30 minutes prior to game start, move your alcohol management and rapid response teams to entry gates. This will allow them to monitor and identify intoxicated persons and mitigate any incidents before they occur.
2. The Stadium Access
- Run the math and use your analytics to employ appropriate staffing in order to cut line times to between approximately two and three minutes.
3. Movement of Guests
- Perform tabletop exercises with your staff using the G.U.E.S.T. acronym we provide above and put it into place in order to prevent any guest services nightmare.
- Empower staff to acknowledge all guests they make eye contact with. This lets the guest know your team is there for them. It gives them the peace of mind you’re in control and ready to provide them with a safe and secure environment for that memorable experience they came to your facility for.
- By doing all of this, you’re demonstrating the fact you hire and train staff that wants to help guests and are there when they need them.
4. The Stadium Concourses
- Mount signage that displays your fan code of conduct and text communication information throughout your concourses and every concession point. This makes the fan code of conduct clear to guests – it makes it real.
- No one likes it when they lose something and the time it can take to report a lost item can feel like salt in a wound. Implement a lost and found solution letting your guests report their lost items directly at your guest services locations. This is an inexpensive way to enhance the guest experience and build guest loyalty.
- Signage displayed in the concourses also acts as a deterrent for intoxicated persons. If they’re not in the right state of mind, clear signage might help put them back in line.
- Use your analytics to understand the point of sale metrics to best determine your staffing needs against the fan base for specific areas in the stadium.
5. The Stadium Bowl Entry
- All employees need to be at their post and ready to wow your guests. It’s game time!
- Having all staff trained on hotspots and protocols is important.
- Train staff on how to effectively communicate incidents to the command post.
- Always mount signage that displays your fan code of conduct and text communication information – make it prominent upon entry into the stadium bowl.
6. The Stadium Bowl
- Communicate to your guests on a massive scale! Deliver light-hearted public service announcements (PSA) at specific times during the game explaining your fan code of conduct and ways to communicate with staff in the event of an incident.
- Prominently display visible static signage throughout the bowl inclusive of the fan code of conduct and text communication information. That way, when you’re not on the loud speaker, everyone knows you’re still in control and focused on their safety at all times.
- Being able to exceed fan expectations is a key ingredient to a successful game day. Implement a guest request tracker to increase staff efficiency and enhance performance. Never overlook a wheelchair request again.
7. The Stadium Exit
- Re-deploy your rapid response team to the parking lot anywhere from 10 minutes before the end of the game to the end of the game, depending on activity in the bowl.
- Re-deploy your police force to the parking lot complete with patrol cars and lights flashing, along with officers on foot. This is a useful deterrent for potential hazards. To your guests, it also provides assurance that they will experience a safe and smooth exit from the stadium property.
- Let your guests report lost items to the lost and found manager through your website if they missed guest services in the concourses.
8. The Parking Exodus
- The party’s over, but that doesn’t mean guest services stop! Your employees should be waving goodbye and thanking your guests for attending the event.
- Use variable message (VM) boards with thank you messages to supplement your staff’s sendoff.
- Depending on the location of your stadium, re-route traffic patterns for an easy exit too. It’s one more shot to wow your guests on game day.
Over to You
Use these methods to make your guests happy, but also use them to keep everyone safe. You keep things running smoothly and your employees on track when you execute a seamless operation with defined policies for customer service.
Leave the happiness of your guests in the capable hands of your employees, not because you have to, but because you’ve trained them on how to communicate with guests effectively.
We’re happy just thinking about your success.
