Please don’t mistake service for guest experience
I’ve lost count of how many times someone has said, “The service was great!”
Usually, they mean:
- The team was polite
- Orders were correct
- Check-in was smooth
- No one had a reason to complain, pretty much.
But these instances are really just service. Transactions. Getting the job done.
Think of it this way: you visit the post office. The clerk scans your parcel, prints the label and hands over the receipt. All smooth, all polite. But would you bring it up at dinner? Something to write home about? “You won’t believe what the post office lady did today!” I thought so.
Service is expected. Guest experience is remembered.
Guest experience drives outcomes
Service is transactional and it is what guests expect. It’s the minimum they’re paying for.
Guest experience is what makes them stay longer, spend more, leave enthusiastic reviews, recommend you to others and come back without shopping around.
It’s not created by chance. It comes from structure, clarity and shared intent across your team — not just good intentions or a friendly tone.
Small signals that guest experience is missing
People often ask how I can tell when a property lacks real guest experience. The truth is, it’s rarely about dramatic mistakes.
What stands out most are the things that don’t happen. The quiet gaps and missed moments that never make it into feedback forms, but shape how a guest feels and what they remember.
A family arrives with tired, annoying kids. Check-in is efficient, but no one offers water or adjusts the room drop timing. That’s a missed opportunity for empathy.
A returning guest is treated like a first-timer. No mention of their previous stay, no preference recall. That’s a gap in personalisation.
At dinner, the table is cleared quickly, but when the guest hesitates over wine, the waiter doesn’t lean in to guide. That’s lost revenue.
A complaint is handled at reception, but there is no follow-up. The issue may be technically resolved, but service recovery requires more: reassurance, acknowledgement and closure. That’s a failure to professionally fix things when they go wrong.
Each of these moments seems minor on its own. None of these show up in reviews. But together, they shape the guest’s emotional takeaway.
My role: closing the gap
If your guest experience doesn’t fully reflect the quality of your offer, I can help.
My work starts with a structured evaluation — not just touchpoints, but how the guest actually feels at each stage. I spot gaps, blind spots and missed opportunities that busy teams often overlook.
From there, I help you turn insight into action:
→ Internal clarity.
→ Targeted training.
→ Tools that create consistency.
→ And ultimately, a guest experience that lives up to the product you’ve already built.
Explore how I work or get in touch if you’re ready to move beyond good service — and deliver something guests actually talk about.
