Front Office Operation Tutorial Notes

31. How to Handle Walk in Guests in HotelAs you know hospitality sector, awalk-in guest refers to that personwho has come to hotel without anyprior reservation. Hotels do not haveany sorts of obligation to provideproper accommodation to walk-inguests if there is no available room.On the other hand, accommodatingwalk-in guest can enhance sales anddaily occupancy if it is managedproperly. If the agent cannotaccommodate a guest then he should refer him to the other hotel of that hotelgroup or any nearby hotel. By this way, if hotels of a locality maintain goodrelationship with each other then high percentage of such guests can beaccommodated.If you are a front desk agent then follow this guideline to deal withwalk-in guests: 1. Treat the guest warmly with ready smile as like as registered guest. 2. Create such situation so that the guest does not feel hesitated. 3. Ask his desire length of stay and room preference. 4. Check whether such room is available or not in those days. 5. If not then offer other room. 6. Quote the room rate and room facilities. 7. If guest agrees then proceed for reservation otherwise if guest want then send him to another hotel. 97

32. Smooth Guest Check out ProcedureA front desk agent needs to know how toprovide smooth check out service to hisguest. A smooth check out operationrepresent standard of a hotel. There aresome basic steps you should know andfollow and some points you should becareful on. Let’s learn how to providesmooth check out service in hotel with hundred percent accuracy and highest levelof professionalism.1: All the front desk staff should be careful about when each guest will possiblecheck out. So, in every shift search folios of that guest who will check out on thenext day and arrange all the documents so that upon guest’s request each can bepresented. In some hotel, express check out form envelop has been sent withupdated bill so that guest may get prior idea on his bill. Here is a back cover of asample Express check out envelop: 98

2. You should know which guest will possible check out. So when a guestcomes to the Front Desk to Check Out, you should call his name and ask“Good morning Mr. X! Will you be checking out?” If guest agree then theagent should opens his/her cashiering, inquire about the guests stay. Thensay “Hope you enjoyed your stay with us, “Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms X””. You mustCheck if there is any Mini bar consumption. You should say “Is there anyMini bar consumption?” Check if guest has emptied his/her Safe. So ask him“May I ask if you have taken your valuables from your safe?”” or “Have youemptied your safe?”3. Always try to sell your service. So check if the guest is going to the airportand if s/he requires to use the hotel transport for the Airport Drop. “Wouldyou like us to arrange for a drop to the Airport?” If s/he says yes, inform him 99

about the procedure and charges and also inform your transport departmentto make the necessary arrangements. If the charge has not been postedalready, do it before the bill is closed.4. While chatting with the guest, print a copy of the folio for the guest toreview and inquire if the account is accurate. You should say “Here is a copyfor you to review.” Sometimes it may happen that the account is not accurateor guest is not satisfied with the figure mentioned there so try to resolve theinaccuracy by determining if the 100% guest satisfaction action is necessary.You should ask this way, “Which item did you have a question about? I’ll lookinto it immediately.” If you feel you did mistake then apologize for theinconvenience by saying“I apologize for the inconvenience“Mr/Mrs/Miss/Ms X”.5. Now it is important to know the method of the payment.6. Now ask about his method of payment. You can say “Will you be using yourCredit card to settle the account? “ If guest agrees then proceed, check outthe folio and present the guest with his bill copy and say “Here is a copy ofyour receipt.” If the guest changes the method of payment, enter the new onein the system “I’ll enter the new method of payment for your records.”7. Ask the guest if they have vacated the room and if so, request for the roomkey. If not, let them know they can drop it off at the Front Desk. You shouldask “Would you be going back to your room?” If yes then say “When you areready to vacate the room, please let us know and drop your key off at theFront Desk.” If not then say “May I please have your room key?”8. Enquire if the guest needs any luggage assistance by saying “Will you needany assistance with your luggage? If yes then say “Please allow me to get aBell Person to assist you.” Thank the guest for his or her support and politelyrequest him to return again in future. You should wish good luck to him witha smile. “Thank you for staying with us. Have a safe flight or hope to welcomeyou back again soon”. 100

33. How to Introduce a Room to Your GuestIn one of my earlier writing I discussed on howto rooming a guest properly. Today, we will tryto learn how to introduce a room or show roomfacilities and room amenities to your guest.Generally it is the duty of a bell person orbellaman or bellhop or hotel porter tocarry luggage, escort guest to the room and thenintroduce the guest with the amenities andservices of the hotel and the room. Being ahotelier it is his duty to provide all necessaryinformation to the guest to make him feel comfortable and relaxed. Here aresome step by step procedures you should follow.How to Introduce a Room or Show room Facilities to Guest1. Always be careful about the safety and security. So, while escorting pointout on fire emergency exit and fire extinguisher on the floor.2. Before entering room you should let your guest know how to use roomkey card to open the door. From your guest part, this may be his very firstarrival in any hotel, so he or she may not know how to use room key card. Sobetter ask him or her first and if he agrees then show the way by this way:“So, Mr. Robin, Should I show you how to use your room key card”If he says yes then guide him this way:“First please insert your key card from the bottom to upwards and continueuntil you see the green light on. Green light means it is ok. So, now proceedto the room as the door is open now”3. After his entrance to the room open the window and switch on the lightsand give him or her some time to settle down little bit. 101

4. Then politely seek his permission to make him familiarize with thefacilities of the room. You can say “Sir/Madam can I take some time tointroduce features of this room”.5. If your guest agrees then give him information on following facilities:  Air Condition/Heater Controls  Bathroom with feature of rainforest shower head  BOSE radio wave CD player  Broadband Data Port for high speed Internet access  Butler Service Brochure with Guest Preference Slip  Coffee/tea making facility  DND/Makeup room light switch  Personal Bar  Safe Deposit & Lobby Safe location  Telephone and Butler Service Button  Television and Remote Control Location6. You can instruct your guest in this way:  Your in room safety box is located here. It functions with 4-digit password, self-programmed, very convenient to use. May I show you how to use it?  This is a Make-up Room & Do Not Disturb lights switch. Please do not switch on both lights at the same time because it will only show Do Not Disturb light from outside.  This is Air-con Control Panel. You may adjust your room temperature with the switch here. Is your room temperature comfortable to you now?  Your TV Remote Control is located here. We have 25 channels for your selection.  This is your Personal Bar and Butlers will replenish drinks here every day.  Here are coffee and tea making facilities.  One of the most useful features is our broadband data port, which provides you with complimentary high-speed Internet access.  Here is your BOSE radio wave CD player. You may enjoy CD & radio music any time. 102

 Here is your Bathroom, which has both bathtub and shower stall, which features with rainforest showerhead.7.You should give your business card or tell him the way to contact you ifneeded.8. Wish your guest to have a pleasant stay upon leaving the room.9. If guest wish not to have room introduction at the moment, only pointout In Room Safe’s location & Butler Service Button before executinghimself.10. For return or regular guest, just highlight any new services andfacilities if any. 103

34. Ultimate Guide on Telephone Call Receiving Procedure1: You Should Know:  Your system first. You should be able to identify what is external & what is internal call.  How to transfer a call.  Some frequently use telephone code.  Country code for outbound calls.  How to put your caller in hold.  How to use different phrase while talking.  How to receive other’s call in your phone, etc.2: You should always have pen or penciland small note books to write down message or notes.3: Answer a telephone call within 3 rings.4: If you receive an internal call then you should start with a greeting thenyour department name then your name and then ask how you can assist him.For example: Good Evening, Front Desk, Tanji speaking, how may i helpyou?5: For an external call follow this procedure: Greeting then your hotel’s nameand then ask how you can assist him. For example: Good Morning, AbcHotel, How may i help you?Professional Telephone Etiquette:A: During Call:  People easily become friendly and feel happy if you call him by his name. So, first ensure how should you address him and then call him by his name.  While talking for quite a long time shows your caller that you are eagerly listening to him. So sometimes making noises like “hmm”, “yes”, “ok”, “I understand” can make the conversation spontaneous. 104

Otherwise in middle of a long discussing if you keep silent for the whole time your caller may be confused whether you are listing or whether you are still on line or not. So, don’t make your caller confused.  Receiving call demands deep attention. If you talking over telephone and at the same time doing other business then you cannot concentrate on anything. So, if you really have to finish another job then it is better to hold the caller or tell him that you will call him after a certain period of time.  Make your tone as friendly as possible. Try to smile while talking. The way you talk reflects in your tone.  Don’t neglect any call. Take it as a business opportunity for your organization.  If you or the caller cannot listen to other then offer him to call back.B: Other People’s Call:  Don’t say you don’t know the person whom the caller is looking for. Tell him that you will call him back after locating him.  If you can’t find that person then offer the caller to receive any message on behalf of that person.  If you know when the person will be available then suggest the caller to call him.  Don’t share any personal contact address as long you are not sure enough about the caller.Widely Used Phrases:Now we will learn some most common widely used phrases and expressionsused while handling calls: 1. Sometimes by hearing the tone you may not identify whether your caller is male or female. It is better to ask “How should I address you?” or “May I have your name please?” 2. If you need to transfer any call then say “Please allow me to transfer your call to Mr. X. Could you please hold down for a minute?” After that if the caller allows you and says Yes or Ok then transfer the call. 3. If you found the extension is not reachable or dead then say “Thanks for holding. But I am afraid Mr. Y is not available. Would you like to leave a message for him or call back later?” 105

4. If you found the extension is busy then say “Thanks for holding. Mr. Y is busy and still on line. Would you like to leave a message for him or call back later?”5. While finishing a conversation say “Thank you Mr. X for calling. Have a nice day.”6. Some common phrases are: “May I have your name please”, “May I have your contact number please”, “Mr. X please let me repeat the message…..Is that all right?”, “Mr. X could you please hold down for a minute?”Taking Message:Always keep pad, pen or pencil to receive any message. When you take anymessage try to write down these points of information in clear handwritingso that you can understand next time:  Date & Time of the message  Callers name  Reason of Calling  Message he left to deliver  Name of the Guest, caller calls  Guest’s room number  Callers telephone number, etcGood & Bad Practices:Bad Practice Good PracticeJust start a conversation with Start with greeting and thenonly “Hello” or “Department follow the procedure weName” or “Hotel’s Name” discussed at the beginning.Avoid taking responsibility in If you are not the personthe way like “I am not working whom caller need thenin HR department”. transfer to the appropriate person.Requesting to hold down as You should always keep yourbecause you don’t find you pen Pen, pad or pencil.or pad. 106

Being silent while talking for a Must make some noises likelong time. “Hmm”, “Ok”, “Yes”, “I Understand” etc.Use plain language Use some Magic words like “Certainly”, “You are right”, “I do understand”, “Thank you” etcTaking wrong or incomplete Pay deep attention whilemessage talking message and then repeat and be sure you have taken proper message.Don’t take follow up While transferring any call or message be careful to take follow ups.Give personal information You can’t share guestabout guest information or room number to any unknown person. You should only transfer a call or take message on behalf of himLast Words:Dear Reader have you enjoyed this tutorial? If yes then please leave acomment. I believe this tutorial will be most helpful for you in order tohandle any telephone call. 107

35. Rooming a GuestThere are some special procedures for rooming a guest from front desk toroom for the first time. Here are some steps to follow while rooming a guest.1: Greeting at the elevator:  Bellpe  Guest Relation Officer (GRO) handover the room key to the bellperson.  rson address the guest and welcome him to the hotel.  Then he show the way to the elevator.  Bellperson should offer to carry guest’s coat or luggage as he escorts him or her to room.2: Showing the Room:  Open the guestroom door with the guest key (making sure it works before the guest arrives), hold the door open and insert the key into the master switch.  Let your guest settle down little bit.3: Present Room facilities:  Generally guests remain very tired while they come. So don’t expect they will allow you to give your full presentation. It is better to cordially ask in this way “May I take a few moments to explain the features of your room?”  Briefly explain the light switches to the guest including the standing lamp switch and the bed side lamp switches. They may tilt beside lamp shades for extra light.  Let the guest be aware of the location of the hair drier, laundry bags and dockets located in the top drawer underneath the TV.  Guests may listen to the TV or radio in the bathroom by switching on the “Radio” switch above the tissue box located on the wall.  Be sure that you don’t miss to explain following points of information: 1. Temperature control 2. Emergency exits 3. Technology information regarding internet access 108

4. Power supply 5. Introduce Restaurants and Bar 6. Introduce Hotel services and facilities4: Offer Services:  Ice will be offered to all guests or pre-set in room.  Whilst greeting arriving guests, offer complimentary pressing and shoeshine service.  Offer to take coats and hang them in the closet.  Explain the operation of the Instant Service Button.  Offer unpacking services.  Offer complimentary coffee, tea, or soft drinks.5: Leave & Follow Up:  Be sure you fulfill all guest queries.  Tell him how to contact to you if he or she needs your assistance.  Wish him happy staying and leave the room. 109

36. Collection of Guest Data on ArrivalWhen a guest first enters the hotel then he needs to fill up guest registration card. Hotelcollects data from guests for security concern. Also such specific data is further used formaking guest history and doing marketing research. So, collecting data from guest on hisfirst arrival is very important.Here are some basic points of information a hotel collects from his guest:  Full Name  Address and Country of Residence  Type of Travel Document and Serial Number  Validity of Endorsement for arrivals  Type of Visa and its expiry date  Validity of Document of Overseas  Date of Entry  Purpose of Stay  Birth date  Date of arrival and departureSteps to Follow:Now here are some step by step instructions for front desk personals on how to collectdata from a guest from his first arrival in your hotel: 1. After a guest’s check-in, collect his passport and travel documents. Be sure the photo match with the person standing in front of you. Nowadays you should give extra wait to avoid any fraud. 2. Request your guest to fill all required data in detail in guest registration card. Don’t give any backdated Registration card. According to the present security demand include new information there. 3. If guest becomes bored or show anger to fill so much detail then politely inform him or her that all these information are needed to be taken for national security and this will help your guest for his safe visit in your country. 4. Collect business card and frequent flyer card from all first time travelers in order to prepare a proper Guest Profile. 5. If your guest does not have any business card or not willing to give you then gently request him or her to fill in the remainder of the guest registration card. 6. Do not take so much of his time. Other guest might wait behind him and wants to check in. Try to complete check-in procedure promptly but emphasize much on accordance not for time saving as taking proper information is your ultimate task. 7. After collecting data verify with presented documents and be sure information he has provided are correct. 110

37. Answering Telephone in Hotel & Restaurant: DOs &DON’TsTelephone always plays a significant role inhospitality industry. People from all round theworld call for making booking or askinginformation or transferring message to the guestor for various other purposes. If you are ahotelier then you may have to answer telephonecalls. This happens mostly with front desk staffs.Today we will learn some most effectivetelephone answering tips. These are some basictechniques you should apply while answeringany call in hotel or restaurant.DOs:  Answer the telephone promptly within 3 rings.  Make the caller know your work area, your name and offer appropriate greeting. If it is an inbound call then just mention your department and if it is outbound call then mention name of the hotel with your identity.  Always have pen and paper on hand, specially front desk personnel should always be ready to keep records.  Listen carefully. Pay close attention to details being expressed by the caller.  Make the caller feel that they have your undivided attention. Make an occasional acknowledgment of what he/she says. Mention the name of the caller, once established.  If you have to ask the caller to hold on, explain why. Wait for the caller’s agreement before actually putting him/her on hold.  If you have to transfer the call, explain why and make sure that the caller is properly introduced to the next party. If the purpose of the call has been said already, repeat the same to the next party.  If you say you will call back, do so as soon as possible. Give him some sorts of idea that how long he or she needs to wait.  Sometimes you may not understand whether the caller is a man or lady. To be on the safe side politely ask his or her name or you can say “how should i address you”?  Repeat back any details and follow up in writing (if necessary).  Close conversation politely. Always say “thank you for calling.” 111

 Let’s caller hang up first.  Try to satisfy your guest with proper information. If you don’t know detail then transfer the call to the right person. Never give wrong information.DON’Ts:  Let the telephone ring more than 3 times.  Answer the phone with merely “hello” or “yes”.  Ask the caller to hold on while you scramble for pen and paper.  Rely on your memory instead of writing what the caller says. Asking the caller to repeat the details is annoying and does not leave a good impression.  Say “hold on” and leave the caller wondering if he/she is still being attended.  Say “I’ll transfer your call” without saying to whom and why.  Say you will call back when you have no intention to do.  Say you cannot help and not offer to connect the caller to someone who can.  Say “he hasn’t come in yet”, “she hasn’t come back from lunch yet” or “he is in the toilet”. People do not want to know the reason and are given the wrong impression by such answers.  Hang up without trying to close the conversation.  Hang up without thanking the caller for calling.  Put your least intelligent, least coherent or “panicky” staff in charge of the phone.  Keep talking to another person while answering phone.  Eating something while answering phone. 112

38. How to Take Reservation on PhoneTelephone plays an important rolein times of reservation on phone.Perfect telephone handlingensures efficiency of thereservation agent which at thesame time upholds hotel’sstandard. All the time you shouldfollow proper telephone manner.Basic Tips for TakingReservation on Phone: 1. Pick up the phone before 3 rings. 2. Greet the caller according to the time. Try to keep very fresh, clear and friendly voice tone so that guest from other side of the phone may feel comfortable. Remember First Impression is the Last Impression. 3. It is advisable to greet in this way “Good Morning. This is Hotel X. Thank you for calling. How may I help you, sir?” 4. Try to identify caller gender by his or her sound. Listen to the name properly. Repeat the name with Mr. or Ms. Caller may be hurt if you by mistake call him wrongly. 5. Try to understand why the caller calls. In a hotel people call not only for making reservation but also for getting information, arranging party, sending message to a guest or making business deal etc. So, first listen carefully to identify what sorts of assistance the caller wants from you. 6. If the caller calls for room reservation and if he is not a repeated guest then you should try to give a short overview on your hotel including hotel’s feature and amenities, specialty, special offer you are offering etc. 7. In the mean time, look at the room status or reservation chart. It will be so bad if after informing everything, guest becomes convinced and wants to have a room booked but you don’t find any room to sell as all are occupied. So, always be updated specially about room status. 113

8. If callers requested date indicates “SOLD OUT” which means you are unable to sell the room for that specific date, then very politely say sorry to the guest and let him know why you are unable to sell the room. 9. If the requested date indicates “WAIT-LISTED” then politely inform the guest about the situation and inform him that reservation on that day is wait-listed for that reason you are taking his reservation but not giving full guarantee and request him to check again closer to that requested date. 10. After giving an overview of you hotel, now try to identify what sorts of room the caller wants and try to offer him some options so that he can decide from his own or if he needs then assist him. 11. If the guest want to book the room then say that we are very please to reserve a room for you. May I have some information from you please? Now try to collect these information with proper spelling:  Name of the Guest  His Contact Address  Room Types  Room Rates  Date of Arrival  Date of Departure  Date of Reservation Made  Mode of Payment  Special Remark (if any)  Reservation Made by Person or Company13. Repeat all the information caller gives and at the same time give him areservation confirmation number.14. If you have any objection about guest’s mode of payment or anythingthen inform the guest about your rules and request him to give you anotheroption.15. After settling everything thanks the caller for his patience and calling you.End up the call as warmly as you start and try to make him feel that he justhave made a perfect decision. 114

39. Wake-up call Handling ProcedureWake up call is an in-house telephone call to asleeping guest at a specific time to wake him up,predetermined by the guest. It is generally done inthe morning but a guest may require any time of theday. It is the duty of telephone department to wakeup the guest but if the call will be made up for airlinecrews or group of guests then lobby personnel willtake get calls from local airline operators about thetiming of the flight and then they should forwardthe message to telephone operator.In case of airline or groups generally the wake-upcall should be done 45 minutes or 1 hour before thepickup time. In small hotels it is the duty of frontdesk agent to wake-up guests.Wake Up Call Handling Tips  Give full attention to write proper room number, name and time to wake-up guest to avoid any mistake.  Always ensure that guest really wakes up after your call. You can politely ask the guest that if he wants to have a 2nd wake-up call or not.  If no reply is done by the guest while you are calling or guest just hang up the phone and hardly give any reply then you should call him again.  While calling you should start this way, “Good Morning, Mr. X. This is 6 Am in the morning which is your wake up time. Have a nice day.”  After getting your call, a guest may not understand the situation quickly as he just wakes up. So give him some time and explain again why you call him.  If after 2nd call, guest does not respond at all then send the bellperson to knock his door and wake him up. 115

40. Proper Telephone Manner in HotelTelephone plays a very important role in hotelindustry. Generally people outside from hotel callsfor reservation or booking or change of scheduleor passing message knowing information ortalking to any guest. In all the cases the personwho will receive the phone has to consider somebasic telephone manner. Also if you are a frontdesk agent then you have to know some telephonicspelling codes used globally to write properspelling of a guest. So if you are a non-English oreven an English speaker you should know somewell known telephone manners.Tips for using telephone in HotelLet the caller know who you are and from where you are talking by let himknow your name, your department name, designation you are holding etc. 1. Use some common phrases over telephone. 2. If you have to receive phone call frequently then you must have to have some essential materials like telephone guide, essential number and price list of your hotel, notepad, pen, pencil, eraser etc. 3. Try not to make the conversation lengthy, make it short and be specific. 4. If possible try to ask some questions to know what guest want to inform that will ensure your sincerity to guest. 5. As over telephone no one can see each other so set your voice tone in a friendly manner. 6. You must not engage with other work like eating, drinking or writing while talking to guest because that could be an obstacle. 7. Remember and must use globally used common telephonic spelling codes.Globally used common telephonic spelling codes  A for Alpha  B for Beta/Bravo  C for Charlie  D for Delta  E for Echo 116

 F for Foxtrot G for Golf H for Hotel I for India J for Juliet K for Kilo L for Lima M for Mike N for November O for Oscar P for Papa Q for Quebec R for Romeo S for Sierra T for Tango U for Uniform V for Victor W for Whisky X for X-ray Y for Yankee Z for Zulu 117

41. Methods of Payment in HotelHotel is a business organization which runs solely formaking money. Hotel earns money mainly by sellingrooms. So, it is the major responsibility of a front officeagent to collect the room payment from guest properly.Generally, guest pay during their registration and in timeof check out.Some methods are widely used as methods of guestpayment in hotel industry. Those are:  Cash  Credit Card  Personal Check  Direct BillingCash Payment:Some guests prefer to pay room charge by cash. Guests living for shorterperiod of time have such tendency. They do not expect to extend their inhouse credit by shopping or having food in hotel. If he wants to extend hiscredit then the front desk agent may collect his credit card imprint or politelyrequest him to settle his account immediately in times of his extendedpurchase or use of any amenities. If a guest wishes for cash payment then intimes of registration, the front desk agent should acquire full room rate, taxesand some anticipated usage amount (such as room service, in room phoneetc) to avoid fraud. If any guest don’t wish to pay anticipated amount intimes of registration then he will be charged and have to pay every time hepurchase or use any service from hotel.Credit Card Payment:Nowadays payment through credit card has become the most commonmethods of payment. Some of the well known brands are American Express,Diner’s Club, Visa, Master Card, JCB etc. The agent obtains the card in timesof registration and has an imprint. In all the hotel there is a computer systemby which agent can know whether the card is valid or not with sufficientamount of money. This is referred to as Card Approval. Computerautomatically calculates anticipated amount of money to be charged bycalculating room rate and amount of stay. 118

Payment by Personal Check:Some hotel allows such method of payment while other has totally strictpolicy against this method of payment. Personal check verification is asimilar process like credit card. Through the issuing bank, funds to cover areverified. For the approval of personal check hotel needs following points ofinformation:  Guest’s driver’s license number  Address  Telephone number  Contract details, etcThese need to be written on the back side of the check. One point to bementioned that travelers check and certified check do not need any approvalbecause they are solely issued by exchange of payment while those are issued.Direct Billing: 119

Direct billing arrangement is made through guest or company and the frontdesk agent in advanced of the guest arrival. In this case, the guest needs tojust sign in the bill in times of check in and check out. The agent just reviewsguest credit application and check whether the bill exceeds the limit or not.Generally hotels offer to use this type of methods to their loyal guest or whomwho are representative of any company with whom hotel has prior contract.Bills are sent to guest in their office or other addresses after they finishingstaying in the hotel. 120

42. A to Z Guest Registration Procedure (Part-1)When the guest, after his arrival approach to front desk, registrationprocedure begins. If all the front desk staffs are busy with guests, which nothappen generally, then they may request gust to wait for some minutes inlobby area and they will call him back when they will get free. Often in busytime guests, stand in a line and approach to front desk one after one.Front Desk Agent have to have ready smile all the time. As the guestapproaches the front desk, he/she should be greeted warmly.The guest whois warmly welcomed with a sincere greeting will feel positively about thehotel and will expect similar mannerism from other hotel staffs. There is a10 x 10 Rule, practised by front desk agents. This has 2 basic significantparts:  The first 10 Suggest that, gusts have mentality to judge a hotel by his first 10 minutes visit. So, during this time if he gets well professional service then they will have positive thoughts about the hotel.  The other 10 means a front desk agent should greet and welcome the guest, 10 feet before he comes to front desk. This will make guest feel important and make a friendly atmosphere.When the guest approaches toward front desk, now it is time to startconversation and during the conversation it is advisable to double check theinformation provided by the guests. Registration is a process where manyissues will come to play. We will discuss those later on this series of tutorial.Here are some basic points applicable to that situation when the guest hasdone pre-registration  Verify guest’s name. Ensure spelling to avoid any mistake.  After finding reservation record, give a summary of the record so that everything is right. Here you should include name, nationality, room preference, room rate, arrival & departure date etc.  Be sure about room status before you give it to your guests. Only V/R (Vacant Ready) rooms can be given. There is a high chance that the room is vacant but as the previous guest leaves few times ago, so housekeeping staffs are in a process to clean the room. If this is the situation then front desk agent can politely tell the guest to wait in lobby for specific period of time. If for any reason the room, which the guest has booked earlier, cannot be given then gently sorry to him and give him some more preferences. 121

 Be sure whether the guest is a member of the hotel or comes from any discount or promotional or any kind of offers or not. Often many organizations offers free staying in a hotel as a part of their promotional or social activities.  Now the most important part, be sure about the Methods of Payments to settle bill. Generally guests prefer cash, credit card, debit card, bank checks etc for payment. This is a tricky part. We have discussed in this tutorial. Don’t miss this tutorial.  Finish the process, double check, give the key and tell the guest how to move to the room. If the guest needs, ask the bell person for guiding him.*** (Guest Registration or Check in procedure is quite complicated. So, forbetter understanding we divide this tutorial into 3 parts. This is the firstpart) *** 122

43. A to Z Guest Registration Procedure (Part-2)In our last lesson we give you a summary ofguest registration procedure a Front DeskAgent needs to follow. From this tutorial wewill cover some deep issues involving inguest registration. From a front desk agent’spoint of view there are some basic points inthe guest registration process: 1. Preregistration 2. Registration Record 3. Settling Room type & Rate 4. Methods of Payment 5. Handover Room Key 6. Especial Request (if any)PreregistrationAlmost all the guests come to hotel after making registration. So a front deskagent gets enough time to finish all the formalities prior to guest arrival. Heeven knows in which time which possible guests would come. Generally, intimes of preregistration the agent collects all necessary information andwhen guest comes he just recheck everything and settling the payment.In some hotels, agents create folio; assign room number etc in times ofpreregistration. But some front desk manager differs with this type of trend.From there experience they find 2 major problems here:  Some guest cancels registration at the very last moment.  Assigning a large number of rooms advanced may give less chance to non preregistered guests.Sometimes, some guests want transportation. In that case, the registrationmay be done by the driver of the vehicle by giving registration card to theguest. Even some well reputed luxuries hotels provide welcome check inservice in airports.Registration Record: 123

A registration record iscreated by front desk agentwhere he puts all necessarydata of the guests.Registration card holds somebasic information such as:  Guest’s Full Name  Address  Date of Arrival  Telephone Number  Company Affiliation  Room Rate  Method of Payment  Rules & Regulations of the hotel  Check out timeAfter guest departure, this record play an important role. It becomes a partof the hotel’s guest database. It is a main source of guest history file and fromthis record a hotel can easily identify the guest if he comes next and this willsave a lot of time for both, hotel and guest.Settling Room type & Rate:If a front office agent is not clear with these terms described on those 3tutorials, it will be difficult to sell the room properly. So, before readingahead you have to have clear conceptions about room types,status and rates.On the basis of reservation information, front office agent can assign a vacantroom for a guest or if the guest has any specific request then he will try tofind such room and if no such room found then can offer similar type ofroom. After deciding room types, it is the responsibility of front office agentto describe all the features, amenities of the issued room to guest and if hewants something extra then discuss it. Now settle the room rates. It variesfrom guest to guest and the policy of the hotel. If the guest has businessrelation with the hotel or comes from a company with whom the hotel hasprior contract or if the guest is a VIP or if the hotel likes to lower its roomprices for some reason, in all these situations room rate will be varied. So,front desk agent will settle room rate according to the situations. 124

44. A to Z Guest Registration Procedure (Part-3)Here in this tutorial we will discuss 3 steps:  Methods of Payment  Handover Room Key  Especial Request (if any)Methods of Payment:Guests can pay in different ways to book a room or settle his account. Somewidely used payment methods in hotel industry are:  Cash  Credit Card  Check  Direct Billing  Money Order  Voucher, etcTo avoid any future problem, it is advisable to take proper step to insureproper payment. Nowadays credit card fraud has been a common problem.So, a front desk agent needs to follow all the standard procedures beforesettling any account. Please read Methods of Payment in Hotel tutorial for moreinformation.Handover Room Key:By issuing room key to guests, the front desk agent finishes his registrationprocess. The procedure should be finished within 2 to 5 minutes if the guesthas pre registration. Now, in this stage, front desk agent should carefullyhandover the room key so that no other guest may know the room numberwhich will ensure guest privacy and at the same time should give properdirection to make the guest understand how to go there. In most cases thebellperson guides the guest to the room. If this system exist then thebellperson or if not then the front desk agent should explain room facilitiesand some guideline on how to use different services and equipments.Special Requests:Guests may have some especial requests such as: 125

 Location of the room  Room view  Type of Bed  Smoking or non-smoking habit  Amenities and equipment  Special decoration of the room  Extra facilities for child and disable guestGenerally most of the hotels could manage some common guest requests. So,if possible try to help the guest by managing their request and if not possiblethen politely ask the inability to keep his request and if possible show thereason for that. Generally, such requests are done in times of pre registrationand at that time guest knows whether his request will be kept or not. So, ifthe front desk agent acknowledges any request but the guest, after arriving,finds his request is not taken under consideration then he may feel highlydishonored. So, it is a prime task for an front desk agent to follow up guestrequests. 126

45. Hotel Room TypesEach Hotelier especially staffs from Front Office andHousekeeping department should understand HotelRoom Types. It is very necessary for a Front DeskAgent or Front Office Personnel or a Housekeeper tohave clear concept about hotel’s room type.Sometimes guest may not understand these terms.At that time it is necessary for the front desk agentto make him understand all these terms properly.So, it is very important to have Hotel ManagementTraining on this issue.15 most common Hotel Room Types alphabetically 1. Adjacent Rooms: These are more than single room. When a room is close to each other, may be divided by a wall, will be called as adjacent rooms. 2. Adjoining Rooms: 2 rooms with a same common wall but no connecting door. This may be suitable for group tour or family. 3. Connecting Room: As the name suggests, 2 rooms beside each other with one common connecting door inside so that guests can move from each other. In this type of rooms there are individual outdoor to enter separately. This is suitable for family with children as there is a common door to move from one to another. Connecting rooms sometimes refer to as communicating room. 4. Double Room: A room for 1 or 2 person with one double or two single beds. In America, double rooms are called as Twin Room. 5. Double-double Room: A room with 2 double beds or a queen bed to accommodate 1 or more persons. 6. Family Room: A perfect room to accommodate a whole family. This could be a double-double, triple, quad or suite room. As this is especially for family so if there is a child, then Child’s cot or Z-bed will be provided. 7. Junior Suite: A room with a bed with sitting or living area. This is also called as Mini Suite. 8. King Room: A room with king size bed to accommodate one or more guests. 9. Quad Room: A room for 4 persons with 2 or more beds inside. 127

10. Queen Room: A room with a queen size bed to accommodate one or more person. 11. Single Room: A room with one bed for 1 person. There may be more then 1 bed. 12. Studio Room: A single or double room with a studio bed, a bed that could be converted to couch in daytime. In a studio room there may be an additional bed. 13. Suite Room: A parlor or living room with one or more bedrooms connected with each other. 14. Triple Room: A room to accommodate 3 or more person with two or more beds. 15. Twin Room: A room with two beds to accommodate one or more person.You will find lots of Free Hotel Management Tutorials in this blog. So,please bookmark this blog and do visit frequently. 128

46. Guiding to front deskIn this stage, the Bellpeson, a Front Deskpersonnel of Hotel will come in to scenario. Theposition of bellperson is called by this names: 1. Bellboy 2. Bellman 3. Bellhop 4. BellstaffIn modern age, they are called as bellperson world wide. Their primefunction is to escort the guest to Front Desk and after finishing procedures,from front desk to guest rooms. This is called “Rooming the Guest”. Afterescorting to rooms it is their responsibility to make guest understand all theroom features and some basic, much needed information about the hotel.Some information they should give to guests are- 1. How to use room key. Some guest find room keys hard to use as it varies from hotel to hotel. 2. How to use different electronic equipment in the rooms. Sometimes by pressing one button all the equipment stops. So, he should make guest aware about how to handle equipment like Television, Computer, Dvd Player, Hair dryer etc. 3. What food items are included with room charge and for which they have to pay separately. 4. Clear idea about how to operate telephone. 5. Safety & Security equipment and procedures.Beside escorting they may assist to other departments as well. They may helpto pass message from one department to another, place room gifts likeflowers, fruit baskets in guest rooms etc.Job responsibility and placement of a Bellperson may differ from hotel tohotel. If the hotel is a small one, then the bellperson may work as doormanand may be even as valet attendant. On the other hand, if the hotel is toolarge, then often there is a chance that bellperson comes to assist guest onlyafter he checks in. It is not necessary that guest need them all the time. So itis better to ask whether the guest need his service or not. Some repeat guestsknow hotel very well and often they don’t need assistance from bellperson. 129

Bellcart:Guests come with some luggages. So, it is hard and looksunprofessional to take those by hands. So, bellperson usethis trolly which is known as bellcart to carry luggage fromfront desk to room and vice-versa. 130

47. Greet the guests on His First ArrivalIt has been told that “First impression is the lastimpression”. So, it is very important to know How togreet the Hotel guest politely when he enters into hotelpremises.Members of the uniformed services division ofthe front office, is the first hotel personnel who meet withguest at the time of arrival. Depending on the size, policy,makeup of the hotel, either a doorperson orvalet/garage attendant meet the guest.In large hotel, parking valet is the first person who firstmeet and greet the guests. Even when a guest leaves ahotel then they are the last persons with whom guests contract. So, thisposition is very crucial. A good service from parking valet personnel couldcreate some repeat guests as well. Generally a strong good looking personwith proper grooming and hospitable attitude is selected for this post. He hasto greet the guest with warm pleasant smile and try to make the guestcomfortable.When a guest first arrives in a hotel, then he could either take help from valetattendant by leaving in front door and give their vehicle to be parked or hecould park his vehicle by himself. Then he meets with doorperson. They greetwarmly and guide towards front desk. In hospitality industry there has abeen a lots of record where guest come again and again in a hotel only for adoorperson. Again in small hotel, where there are no valet attendant, in thosesituations the job responsibility of a doorman increases and a lot of thingsdepend on him. They also help the guests in their departure time. 131

48. Front Office BasicsFront Office or Front Desk of a hotel is themost important place. It is treated as thenerve center or brain or mirror of the hotel.The first hotel employees who come intocontact with most guests when they arrive aremembers of the front office. These people aremostly visible and assumed mostlyknowledgeable about the hotel. Guests, oftenin an unfamiliar situations of the hotel, wantto know each and every details. It is the responsibility of the front desk agentto be knowledgeable about his hotel and surrounding areas as well to answerproperly. Front office is such an important section which has to have a veryeffective communication with all other departments such as: 1. Banquets 2. Food and Beverage 3. Controller 4. Housekeeping 5. Security 6. Sales & Marketing 7. Maintenance 8. Human Resources Management 132

49. Learn What is Guest Folio in HotelGuest Folio is considered as the master bill in the hotel which is also knownas Guest Account Card. A guest folio contain all transactions of both cashand credit occurred by each resident guests.In manual system Folios are maintained manually and kept in the folio rackat the front office cash. In computerized system the folios are kept in thecomputer and only printed out at the time of a guest check-out.Guest folio records each entry of guest transaction and the recording processis called posting. In the folio the posting is done consecutively in the order oftransactions on a given date. The amount of money that is payable by theguest to hotel is recorded on the debit column and the amount of money thatis collected from the guest through setting his/her bill as well as advancedeposits is recorded in the credit column. The balance column of the guestfolio shows a progressive balance between debit and credit column which isdetermined by subtracting the credit amount from the debit amount. It alsoincludes previous balance. 133

Just after the guest entry the front desk clerk create a guest folio with theinclusion of:  Guest name  Room number  Date of arrival  Date of departure  Room rate  Guest address 134

 Billing instruction to the cashierIn order to perform the audit process the folios need to be maintainedchronologically. Thus each folio contains a serial reference number formaintaining the chronological order. Till the guest departs from the hotel thecashier is in charge for the guest folio. During a guest’s stay, his/her stay ison a credit. For example the goods or services that are provided to the guestsare required to pay only upon his or her departure. However, for getting thiscredit facility, a guest has to provide proof of his credit worthiness (especiallyfor the new guests) by showing credit card, credit deposit, MCO and so on.Before offering a line of credit to a guest there are two checks is required, oneby reservation agent who receives a booking and the other by thereceptionists who registers a guest into the hotel. If there is any doubt, bothstaff can refer the issue to the lobby manager or front office manager whomakes final decision. The receptionist of any is generally fully responsible forreconciling the guest’s bills.The hotel sets house credit limit in order to discourage the guests tooverspend. If the guest’s bill reaches or exceed the house credit limit, thenthe guest must clear up his or her bills. If the guest fails to pay, the hotel hasthe authority to seal the room for guest entry. The house credit limits aresupervised closely by the front office cashier and later the night auditor whoproduces a daily statement of house guests exceeding the house credit limit.Guests basically go after the following procedure to settle the bills:  Cash payments, in which a guest receive a cash voucher from the cashier as an evidence of such payments.  Guests sign their bills to be recovered by the city ledger by a prearrangement with their organization.  Paid bills through an acceptable credit card.  Debit cards.  Guests sign their bills to be adjusted against advances and deposits.  Traveler’s check which is considered as the check in the hotel.The guest can settle his or her bill from any outlet of the hotel. If a guestwants to sign the bill in the guest folio at any of the post, the cashier will askthe guest for his/her room number. After verifying the room number thecashier will then make a charge voucher like the restaurant voucher in wherethe guest will sign and then the voucher will be forwarded to front officecashier to post the amount into the guest folio. 135

If a guest wishes to buy anything from the hotel shopping arcades, the guestsare required to settle their bill or accounts directly with them (each shop hasindependent account system) as the shopping arcades are leased by the hotel.Some hotels also provide arrangements to shopping arcade to sign the guestbill. After providing the authentic documentation of the guest bill, the hotelwill repay the amount to the shop owner.To sum up here are some key points about Hotel Guest Folio:  Right after successful guest registration, a guest folio is created automatically in hotel’s computerized Property Management System or manually.  Every guest folio is opened with zero (0) outstanding balance in hotel.  All kinds of information related to guest expenditure or loss made by guest has been recorded to handle future legal actions from any party.  It is expected that all guest are trustworthy. So generally guest folios are presented and paid in check out period.  Strict advanced payment procedures need to be taken for special guests like walk in guest, scanty baggage etc.  For long term guest it is advisable to accept payment for few days and bill them weekly and try to collect payment and update the folio on weekly basis. 136

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