Good customer service is essential to success in any industry, but it is particularly important in the service and hospitality sector. “Hospitality” means treating guests well; and here, we’re talking specifically about hotels. Because service is so vital to hospitality, hotels are a good place to look for excellent service practices.
So today we’ll be listening in on a phone call from an angry customer at the Majestic, a five-star hotel in Shanghai. By listening to a bad example and a good example of service practice, we’ll be studying skills that are useful in any industry, no matter whether you are dealing with internal or external customers.
We’ll see that a very important part of handling angry customers is showing empathy: Empathy is similar to sympathy – it means showing that you understand the customer’s pain.
リスニングの質問
悪い例: 1) How does the customer, Steve, learn the service associate’s name? 2) What is Steve’s problem? 3) How could Jenna have handled the complaint better?
良い手本: 1) When Steve says, “I’m at the end of my rope,” what does he mean? 2) What does Sandy do to calm Steve down?
This is the second in our two-part Business English Pod series on strategically using vague language. Last time we covered being vague to make a polite excuse or to avoid sounding arrogant. We saw how you can use vague language to create flexibility.
Today we’ll work on referring to vague numbers and learn language you can use when you don’t remember the name of someone or something. You’ll also practice some more strategic uses of vague language, such as avoiding socially inappropriate or impolite topics.
リスニングの質問
1) Why doesn’t Mike want to come to the party if Tracy is there? 2) When should Mike show up at the party?
