Thank you for your loyalty (& identity)

A great quote from a colleague’s recent post;

“In 2019, though, I’m being a bit more pragmatic, taking heed of Stoic advice to focus on the things that you can change.

Chiefly, that’s your own perceptions about the world. I can’t change the fact that, despite the Snowden revelations and everything that has come afterward, most people don’t care one bit that they’re trading privacy for convenience.” — @dajbelshaw

This data visualization should make all consumers carefully consider what personal information they are willing to provide when taking a survey, signing up for an app or loyalty program. Sunscreen for digital exposure does not exist.

The perceived value (i.e. convenience) obtained vs. the risk exposed by providing personal information must be weighed, carefully.

In theory, the concept is simple, the more you give the more you get — if only the organization acquiring your data could guarantee that. Sadly they may be a direct conduit to the vast ecosystem of personal identity databases that exist.

2018 Black Hat USA Research: While consumers and businesses expand their use of social media and electronic services to record levels, many of America’s most knowledgeable security professionals don’t believe that individuals will be able to protect their privacy and online identity, even with preventive measures and new regulations such as GDPR.

Additionally, when completing a survey or registering for an app, consider you’re paying the brand with your valuable time. Once submitted, congratulations 👏 you’re digital profile was just updated in the Cloud and exposed to the world.

Ever wonder why when you purchase a product from one brand you receive a catalog in the mail or email from another brand — out of the blue? Easy, they have access to the demographic profile you’ve helped build.

This brings me to Tapyness.

At Tapyness we take two things very seriously; the need to help organizations understand their customers while not compromising their identity. Organizations deploy Tapyness to show they care, while not jeopardizing the individual. The empathy shown builds trust. 🤝

The message here is not to be afraid to live in a digitally connected world, it is to be cognizant of the ramifications of it. Ensure personal information is only provided when absolutely required.

When an organization requests your — name, address, phone, email, birthdate, etc., remember they should be earning your loyalty — or asking for your honest opinion — not bribing you to participate.

Tapyness believes in assisting organizations — from brick-and-mortar retail to restaurants to theaters to healthcare to libraries, schools, and beyond — to understand their customers, patients, or students without compromising their identities.

When asked for personal information — ask yourself — is the reward worth the risk of being added to the great database in the sky?

"Rambling Roads" - Jim Rae Ph.D. (LodgeTender)

While Serving as a Staff Member in a Hotel, Notice How You Are Always Being Watched!

Before I joined LodgeTender, I taught communication and team/leadership courses

at several universities in Colorado, and for the past thirty years I have consulted with government and private corporations worldwide.With my communication background in mind, I would like to share with you some of my more interesting communication observations and lessons from my travels across the rambling roads of Colorado and Wyoming.

Whether you are working the front desk, performing housekeeping responsibilities,serving meals or bar tending, you are always being watched. Now granted some people pay closer attention than others, but most people quickly survey their environment for safety, cleanliness, and friendliness. Whenever I enter a hotel lobby or restaurant, I first notice how many people are present, and what energy I feel the instant I walk through the doorway. Whether you know it or not you play a vital role in creating a positive or negative impression and experience for your guests.

With most hotel properties I have visited, I typically find young well-dressed employees, many from other countries, standing behind a front desk reception kiosk. In one hotel, there were five nicely uniformed personnel standing behind a long counter top, talking and laughing with one another. I wondered if they were working or playing? I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say they were having some fun while working on becoming abetter “team.” I feel great empathy for anyone who must stand the entire time they work. I can only imagine how difficult it is to stay engaged, act cheerful, interested and ready for action when you have been on your feet for several hours.When guests walk through your doorway, they will instantly notice who is on deck and the“vibes” you are giving off. Whether you work in a hotel or restaurant, the way you smile, speak,offer eye contact, and the way you display confidence or lack thereof speaks volumes about you and the establishment you represent.

Something to practice: When you interact with others, pay attention to how you “think” you are showing up. Try to imagine what others might be noticing about you when they are in your presence?

Do we really know what our guests think?

Do we really know what our guests think? Do significant blind spots exist?

Our industry has always looked for and deployed various tools for taking the pulse of our guests. We know it is beneficial to our business to know as much as possible about what they think of the service and offerings we provide. Were we memorable? In a good way? More concerning perhaps is, were we forgettable? Thus, we continue to seek ways to acquire feedback about our performance.

Guest experience acquisition tools, usually surveys, provide minimal feedback and are too late to act upon. By too late I mean we find out how we may have failed to meet expectations after they are gone, and they post a negative review on social media or Trip Adviser. The opportunity to address the issue is lost and may not be resolvable by then. In other words, our brand reputation in the market is damaged, possibly without our knowledge.

Speaking of surveys, survey fatigue is real. Asking “How did we do?” is either a guest’s favorite thing to ignore or is only used to angrily rant if they had a very bad experience. Our guests deserve to know when we have failed them, but we know there is more to learn than just incidents like a lack of hot water in the shower. Another reason for the broad disapproval of the survey companies we use is the concern for their need to invade our guests’ personal privacy.

Would it really help to know a guest's name, address, birth date, dog's name, etc., if he or she takes the time to scroll through page after page and then is unable to submit the answers without sharing all that information? No, it does not.

Is there a better solution available to learn what we really want to know about the guest experience? Fortunately, today there are much-improved options, and the one I am most impressed with is Tapyness. This amazing guest experience capture solution provides exactly what I need to know, and the guest maintains total anonymity. Even more remarkable, the guest can provide me with their feedback in a hassle-free fashion in seconds. You read that correctly. Only seconds! As a result, I have access to more useful data than I've ever seen anywhere else.

I can totally customize what our guests are asked to share, so the questions they answer are precisely relevant to my property. There are no generalities here, just facts about how I can improve what I provide to my guests.

Tapyness is not my company or platform, but I believe I am doing the hospitality business a huge favor by informing people who truly care about their guests' experience. Please open www.tapyness.com and then let me know what you think!