Reputation Management pt. 2: How to Maintain and Improve a Good Reputation

Last week we discussed how to repair a damaged reputation. But what if you already have a good reputation? 

If your reputation is good you don’t want to get complacent. Regardless of what kind of reputation you currently have among past guests and interested travelers, more work can and should be done in order to ensure the future success of your business.

Even during times when business is good, it’s still important that you work proactively to continue maintaining and improving your reputation. 

Tip # 1: Talk with Guests

As a property manager, you should always be making time to talk with guests, even when everything seems to be going great. It only takes one bad experience and one bad review to damage your reputation and the perception that people have of your business and team.

To be proactive about talking to guests, you could:

• Use automated Text Messaging to check in with guests at least once during their stay to ensure that they have everything they need.
• Check in with guests at checkout to learn more about their experience at your property.
• Send a follow-up email a few days after your guests leave asking them to fill out a short survey about their experience staying with you.
• Always encourage guests to contact you about any concerns they have while staying at your property. You could either give them your personal email, direct them to an online form, or have them talk to a designated individual on your leadership or management team.

The feedback you get will allow you to give praise to your employees, and address any concerns that could evolve into bigger problems if they continue to go unchecked.

Tip # 2: Collect and Leverage Testimonials

If your guests are happy with the experience and customer service you’re providing to them, make sure to use it to your advantage! Ask guests to leave testimonials at the front desk before they check out, or invite them to leave a review on your website, Facebook page, or online listing directory page.

You can use the kind words you get from happy guests to build trust with new leads by including it in blog posts, Facebook ads, email marketing campaigns, website landing pages, videos, and anywhere else you think it could make an impact.

Tip # 3: Standardize Training and Processes

When things are going well, you want to make sure to take the time to standardize training and processes for your team. As your business scales and ages, employees will come and go. As a property manager, it’s your job to ensure that new employees understand how to keep the machine running and your reputation intact. That means working with your current employees to document expectations, job duties, and guest interaction best practices.

Standardizing training in this way will allow you to onboard new employees much faster, and will help prevent any reputation degradation from happening as a result of inexperience on your team.

Tip # 4: Don’t Get Too Comfortable

When business is good, it’s crucial that you don’t let yourself or your employees get too comfortable. Remember: your reputation can be damaged overnight. When you’re too comfortable, you let things slide that you didn’t use to, and you don’t pay as close attention to the details. To ensure that you’re proactively thinking about your reputation, keep your expectations high, set audacious goals for your team to work toward, and be obsessed with the idea that there is always room for improvement.

Tip # 5: Take Time to Appreciate Your Team

If you’re lucky enough to have a good reputation among your guests and followers, it likely means you have a strong, supportive, and passionate team behind you. To keep your reputation intact going forward, you have to keep your employees motivated and happy. Take time to appreciate them and give them praise for their hard work. Here are a few ways you can show your employees that you care:

• Cater in lunch for the team once a month.
• Plan a fun off-site outing to strengthen the bond that exists between your team members.
• Offer annual bonuses to show your appreciation for a year’s worth of hard work.
• Occasionally write and hand-deliver personalized thank you cards for each of your employees that explain why you’re grateful to have them on the team.

Simple acts of kindness like the examples outlined above can go a long way when you’re trying to show your team that you care. As I mentioned earlier, when your employees are happy and feel appreciated by you, they are more loyal, more productive, and more committed to helping you make your business a success.

Tip # 6: Serve and Delight Your Guests

Finally, make sure to always focus on serving and delighting your customers. If you and your employees are constantly going out of your way to wow your guests and create amazing experiences for them, you’ll never have to worry about having to fix a damaged reputation.

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