The customer is always right… but only in matters of taste. This doesn’t give any guests the excuse to manipulate and strong-arm hotel staff. Politeness and humility are two of those essential things that people sometimes forget. If you act entitled all the time, constantly badgering them for a good deal, you’ll find that some folks push back. Hard.
Hotelier u/phil_mckraken went on the ‘Stories’ subreddit to share how they got back at an incredibly egocentric lawyer, who reserved rooms for his daughter’s wedding. However, after months of being harassed by the man and his family, the hotel owner decided that enough was enough. Scroll down for the full story about hotel revenge. The author of the story was kind enough to answer Bored Panda’s questions about rude customers, and you’ll find their thoughts below.
No, the customer isn’t always right. If you constantly act entitled and harass the hotel staff, you’ll have a bad time
Image credits: freepik (not the actual image)
A hotel owner revealed how a particularly ego-centric guest, who reserved rooms for his daughter’s wedding, finally went beyond all bounds of decency
Image credits: dragonimages (not the actual image)
Image credits: rawpixel.com (not the actual image)
Image credits: New Africa (not the actual image)
Image credits: phil_mckraken
“My regret was not ending the ordeal sooner”
The author of the post told Bored Panda that they’re actually no longer working in the hotel business right now.
We asked them how common it was to deal with overly entitled customers in their (former) line of work.
“I served many thousands of people, but this kind of thing was very rare,” u/phil_mckraken shared with us.
“I don’t know why people behave this way. Some people just lie, cheat, and steal.”
Bored Panda was also curious about some of the potential red flags to look out for in prospective customers. “In this case, persistence was the early and constant clue. Asking for the same thing, over and over, is a red flag,” u/phil_mckraken said.
“One thing I didn’t mention in the piece was that the contract was never in force since the deposit was never mailed in,” they added.
“My regret was not ending the ordeal sooner. Butt being a proud creature of the service industry before I was in business, I was in the habit of serving first and thinking later.”
Professionalism and politeness are some of your greatest weapons as a hotel worker
There’s no job, no company, and no industry where it’s smooth sailing all the time. No matter your line of work, it’s very likely that you’ll face some serious challenges during your career. In customer-facing businesses, these problems often arise in the form of problematic people.
So, you have to find a way to be resilient so these issues don’t rattle you while also looking for creative ways to solve them. A lot of good customer service is rooted in genuine empathy and professionalism.
To put it simply, you want to solve people’s problems while also respecting your boundaries, as well as those of your colleagues and the hotel itself. Try to stay calm, cool, and collected. Don’t rise to the bait. Get your superiors involved if the issue is getting out of hand. And always remember that outright rudeness and harassment have no place in the hotel industry: if your ‘customer’ isn’t willing to behave like a civilized human being, you don’t need their business.
According to the Landmark Hotel Group, dealing with difficult customers is an essential part of any hospitality career. Especially if you’re working front desk jobs, which are very stressful and require good conflict resolution skills.
Active listening is one of the most powerful tools in your arsenal when working at hotel front desks. “Customers want to feel heard and understood, and actively listening to them can help defuse the situation. When a customer is venting their frustrations, let them speak without interrupting and show that you are paying attention by nodding or making eye contact. This will help establish a rapport and let the customer know you take their concerns seriously.”
This means being patient, empathetic, maintaining eye contact, and displaying attentive body language. On the flip side, you want to avoid getting angry or defensive or escalating the situation.
A dash of genuine empathy can go a long way when handling especially difficult guests
Meanwhile, Little Hotelier stresses the importance of business owners and managers supporting their staff when dealing with challenging guests.
“When necessary, have a senior staff member step in, give the affected employee a short break, and follow up afterward. Ensure that staff feel supported, as this boosts their confidence and helps with employee retention.”
It’s also important to have a strategy in place for dealing with particularly difficult, aggressive customers. A core part of that means remaining as calm and polite as possible, no matter the complaints. This includes avoiding visual triggers like rolling your eyes or verbal triggers like interrupting or blaming your guest.
“In most cases, an upset guest simply wants you to recognize that they are angry about a situation and acknowledge that they have the right to feel this way. When you respectfully acknowledge the fact that the guest is upset, but then redirect the conversation toward the solution, you will most likely quickly defuse the situation,” Little Hotelier explains.
“Once the guest feels that their voice has been heard and knows that you are going to provide them with a resolution that will improve their stay, they will begin to feel calm again.”
What’s your take on the entire hotel drama, dear Pandas? How would you have reacted to the problematic, ego-tastic customer if you were in the hotel owner’s shoes? Have you ever worked in the hospitality industry before and had to deal with similar issues? We’d love to hear your perspective. You can share your thoughts in the comments below!
People applauded the hotelier’s way of handling the problematic customer. Here’s what they told them
