Best new customer service tool

Customer Service by Text
We are not sure yet whether this is the best new customer service tool or the worst? But we do think it is cool! We stay at a lot of hotels (about 100 nights a year) and we use several of the hotel specific branded apps to book or change a reservation. But the new app feature from Marriott Hotels takes it one step further letting users communicate with the front desk directly in a text like setting.

Chat with the front desk
Marriott allows app users to choose a simple request from one of seven categories – such as towels or luggage assistance. They also have a two-way chat feature for specific guest to staff communication. The service is available 72 hours in advance of your booking so you can make requests prior to your arrival or communicate during your stay. You can chat with the front desk from anywhere. You do not need to be inside the hotel.

The future of chat
So the question is… will golf courses, or should golf courses open up a chat based communication channel to their golfers?

The first question that comes to mind is who will monitor the conversations? As we all know most golf facilities are run with the bare minimum staffing levels. But we do think that larger facilities (those that we know of with a concierge desk or a dedicated reservations line) could provide another way for their customers to engage. The golf model could not be the same as in the hotel industry that offers 24/7 support, but perhaps the future of chat for golf lies in a ‘text to order’ system to encourage sales from the ninth tee.

 

 

“Wine and jet (golf cart) for the back 9 please”

We, Jeff & Tara Ciecko of CK Golf Solutions write two blogs, one is our 19th Hole Blog where we share personal experiences and the other a Biz Blog where we comment on business best practices and give golf industry related opinions. We do not get paid for any of the blogs on our website. We are affiliates of a select few products listed on our resources page. Our 19th hole blog is the places we visit and the things we do because we want to. When we say that we like or dislike something or have a good or bad experience this is our opinion and the truth as we see it. If you have any questions or comments feel free to contact us anytime.