Travelers Prioritizing Solid Customer Service

Image: One of the critical areas that every holiday season puts tourism service providers to the test is good customer service, as it is a determining factor in building customer loyalty. (monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Getty Images Plus)
Image: One of the critical areas that every holiday season puts tourism service providers to the test is good customer service, as it is a determining factor in building customer loyalty. (monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Getty Images Plus)
by Juan Antonio (Oso) Oseguera
Last updated: 5:38 PM ET, Tue October 4, 2022

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the tourism GDP in Latin America reports a regional increase of 48.2 percent in 2021, so it is expected to be a great year of recovery.

One of the critical areas that every holiday season puts tourism service providers to the test is excellent customer service, as it is a determining factor in building customer loyalty.

According to Zendesk's CX Trends 2022 study, quality customer service personnel play an increasingly important role in organizations. After all, 61 percent of customers reveal that they would switch to a competitor after just one bad experience, while 76 percent indicate that they would leave if they had two negative experiences.

This makes perfect sense, as solid customer service is not just about finding a quick solution to any customer problem but about building a long-term relationship.

Serving Customers With Quality

Surprisingly, according to the study, 54 percent of respondents believe that serving customers with quality is the last thing on the minds of most of the companies they buy from. At the same time, 68 percent believe that most companies should improve the training of their agents who are in contact with consumers and provide good customer service.

So, if you are thinking of taking a well-deserved rest period this holiday season, consider these simple tips for identifying from your first interaction if the tourism services company you have contacted has customer experience (CX) among its priorities.

This will help you make your vacation memorable when booking a room, tour, rental car or buying a plane ticket.

When you contact the company of your choice to ask for information or make a reservation, check that they have several options to do so and that you are the one who selects the one that suits you best and not that which the service provider imposes on you. That is to say, if you can choose between a phone call, a conversation on WhatsApp, or a chat, you are off to a good start.

The service provider should offer you different options to have a conversation and serve you better.

Nice Service From a Human or a Bot

Couldn't close your vacation on your first contact and need to get back in touch? Make sure you can pick up the same conversation without repeating all the information you provided first. If you have to recount everything, run away. You're not in the best hands.

Did they take a long time to respond, did you communicate outside of office hours, and did you not receive guidance from a bot? It would be best to consider whether you agree to give your money to a company that doesn't invest in good customer service.

Are the answers you get, whether from a human or a bot, clear and optimized for your communication channel, and can you do so via an instant messaging service? If the answer is no, we are sorry to tell you that you face a red flag.

Remember that the above tips apply whether a person or a bot serves you since today, artificial intelligence (AI) is mature enough to offer a high-quality experience for consumers. Sixty-six percent of customers thank AI for making their lives easier.

Now that you know these tips run to make your reservations and run away from those companies that don't value your time and money and don't offer you the best of good customer service experiences.


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Juan Antonio (Oso) Oseguera

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