Fáilte Ireland commissioned research last year which examined customer service expectations among overseas and domestic holidaymakers. The results prove worthy of contemplation.
According to Fáilte Ireland’s analysis, “Ireland has a sufficiently developed reputation as a holiday destination to lead most holidaymakers to expect that customer service standards will be at a generally good level.
“Expectations can differ depending on location within Ireland with expectations of Dublin as a modern European city likely to be framed by experiences in other Euorpean capitals wereas expectations around customer service can be more constrained for those areas outside Dublin.”
Typically, these expectations focus around a customer service presentation that will be homely, clean and welcoming rather than pristine and professional. But there’s a strong sense that values around care and local pride will infuse that customer service.
However as Fáilte Ireland points out, “The ultimate customer experience can be diluted somewhat by the growing predominance of customer-facing foreign staff who can lack the commitment, depth of local knowledge and fundamental wherewithal to deliver the ulitmate customer service expereince. A clear need exists for appropriate and formal training progammes for foreign nationals entering the Irish service sector, to incorporate a basic language coaching module”.
As Aidan Pender, Fáilte Ireland’s Director of Policy & Industry Development, points out, the trends indicated in the research point to a worrying disjoint between the expectations of customer service on the part of visitor as they anticipate their holiday break in Ireland and the reality of that customer service as those same vistors reflect on their experience at the end of their holiday.
“This disjoint is most acute among overseas visitors for whom an expectation of an authentic interaction with local Irish people remains a central element in their holiday planning”.
He also alludes to “an apparent reluctance on the part of front-line staff to open up to vistors in a warm and friendly way that enriches the customer service experience”.
The report leaves one wondering just how much things have changed in Ireland over the past 20 years - and to what extent the ‘old’ Ireland has become a real thing of the past outside the major conurbations which do not appear to qualify in the first place?
But this is not to say that the situation cannot be taken in hand and improved. The ‘real’ Ireland is still there for visitors enquiring in the right local pubs and hotels. The problem is that the new generation of staff - both national and non-national - are not ‘naturally’ aware of it. They were not brought up around it.
And so in order to meet this need, Fáilte Ireland has developed a new customer care programme for frontline staff. It can be delivered on-site. It’s short and to-the-point.
A pilot schme run in Shannon hotels last year demonstrated that the course is meeting a real industry need. Encouraged by that result, Fáilte Ireland is now developing further training initiatives to promote and support the quality of the customer experience.
While it may appear sad that such ‘local knowledge’ and ‘local welcome’ has to be ‘taught’, it’s a sign of the international times we live in that such knowledge is no longer ‘naturally’ acquired. But this is no reason for proprietors not to ensure that their staff - national or non-national - are not made aware of the reasons why tourists choose Ireland as a holiday destination and to have them adapt their ‘welcome’ accordingly.
