Refers to the activities within and around the organization that relates to its competitive position (Porter 1985).

It is the story of a product from creation to consumption.

Entails the examination of each sub-system or organization represented by each box as shown to understand how the business can improve its operations, competitive advantage and profitability.

Tourists/suppliers intermediary Tourists/consumers

This can be done by establishing a credit line and priority in booking, which hotels usually provide to good clients

Also called tourism “principals”

Include hotels, restaurants, museums, shops and transport companies.

Promote the tourist destinations and link the consumers to the suppliers by providing means to convert inquiries to actual bookings, such as tour operators ( usually sells wholesale or in bulk and based in the destination) and travel agencies (usually sells retail, or where you can buy a tour arrangements for one person).

Refers to the tourist or the end-users

The tour operator puts together a package that includes hotel accommodation, transportation and city tour

Sells it directly to a group of tourists or through a travel agency

The tourists get the experience it through the services provided by the driver, the hotel staff and the tour guide

The linkages in tourism go not only forward but backwards as well.

Backward linkage refer to the supply chain in tourism.

Tourism is not just a single industry but a mix of interrelated sectors that range from hotels and airlines down the line of food production and other allied services (Edgell et al. 2008)

For instance, with tourism, vegetable farmers and fishermen will have more buyers.

Other products and services will have to be sourced too, either through local or foreign suppliers.

Tourists need transportation

Can be land, water or air

Follows a route: rail tracks, road system, air tracks or sea routes.

Some are charted and tailored to fit the tour schedule, while some follow a fixed schedule of arrivals and departures.

Schedule trips converge at some points called terminals, stations, interchanges or hubs, where tourist takes a connecting flight or another mode of transportation.

Important for regulatory agencies like the DOT to maintain certain standards, such as through accreditation

Accreditation is certification issued by an authority to recognize tourism workers and establishments that meet minimum requirements for guest safety and convenience.

UNWTO

IATA

WFTGA

DOT

•MULTILATERAL AGENCY WITH IVER 150 MEMBER COUNTRIES

ADVANCING “RESPONSIBLE, SUSTAINABLE AND UNIVERSALLY

ACCESSIBLE TOURISM”

•UNITEED NATIONAS WORLD TOURISM ORGANIZATION

UNWTO

•INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION

•TRADE ASSOCIATION THAT HELPS CRAFT AVIATION POLICIES

CONCERNING CRITICAL INDUSTRY ISSUES SUCH AS AIPORT SLOTS,

FUEL, ENVIROMENTAL POLICIES, TAXATION, LIBERALLIZATION,

INFRASTRUCTURE, UNRULY PASSENGERS, ETC.

IATA

•WORLD FEDERATION OF TOURIST GUIDE ASSOCIATIONS

•Professional organization that seeks to uplift the training standards,

ethics, equality and reputation of the tour guiding profession and

encourages exchange among the various tourist guide associations

in the world.

WFTGA

As the progress of a person throughout his/her life, mostly work related. ( Merriam-webster)

It also involves learning and other experiences that contribute to molding that person into who he/she is.

Types of Company Frontline Back of the house

Bus company Driver; bus conductors Mechanics

Airline Flight attendants; ground attendants

Pilots; mechanics

Hotel/Cruise line Front desk staff; concierge staff

Housekeeping staff; engineering staff

Restaurant Waiters; receptionists Chefs; kitchen helpers

Travel agency Reservation agents; tour guides

Auditors

Government Tourism information officer

Tourism planner

Front line staff interacts directly with the tourists◦ Example: waiters, flight attendants and front desk staff

Support staff work at the “Back of the House”, tourists do not interact with them directly but they also contribute a lot in the delivery of the tourism product

There are also management position available at each company in various departments.

Example: dining supervisor and head chef for restaurant; general manager, front desk manager, and housekeeping supervisor for hotels.

Training and considerable work experiences are needed to join the management team, as it is in other industries

Entry-level staff can aspire to become part of the management team as well through hard work and perseverance

One can also become a tourism entrepreneur, by putting up a hotel, restaurant, souvenir shops, art gallery, bus/taxi company, travel agency, etc.

Likewise, one can become a famous freelance tour guide and be his/her own boss.

Is the reciprocal sharing of verbal or non-verbal information following a set rules.

Process of communication involves a source that uses a channel to deliver a message to the receiver and this message produces an effect and feedback (Black&Bryant 1992 & Ongkiko 2006)

Source

message

channel

Receiver

Effect

feedback

The elements of communication: ◦ Sources

◦Message

◦Channel

◦ Receiver

◦ Effect

Other elements include noise and barrier, that affects the reception of the message.

Tour guide

Commentary

Microphone

Tourists

Reactions and

appreciation

Feedback relayed by the

tourists to the tour guide

(feedback on the performance,

suggestions, tips& repeat visit)

Typical tourism scenario, the source is tour guide, the message is the commentary, the channel can be microphone, receiver is tourist and effect is the tourist’s reaction and appreciation. Feedback is also relayed by the tourist to the tour guide in the form of formal evaluation of the tour guide’s performance through feedback forms, suggestions on how to improve the tour guide’s performance, tips or gratuities and repeat visits.

Prevent message from reaching the receiver and creating desired effect.

Classified as : physical barriers and socio-psychological barriers

Include channel and environmental factors.

Channels ex: microphones, telephones and radios

Environmental factors ex: potential disruptions around the source and receiver such as noise, brightness and temperature.

For instance, if the place is too hot or bright or if the vendors around are too noisy, tourists may not be able to understand the tour guide well.

Include differences in pronunciation, meanings, emotional blocks like stress and communicators role and stature within a group.

Tour guides should not perceive communication barriers as problems but as “CHALLENGES” that can be surmounted.

In facing these challenges, tour guides will learn about other cultures and improve their service in the process.

Tour guides relate with the people around them to inform, to clarify, to promote, to build relationships and to evaluate the service they provide.

Tour guide’s duty is to inform the guests of the tour schedule: where the tour group is going and at what time, what to wear or bring and what to expect.

Informs the guest about the tourist spots and places of interest, their history and significance.

Tourists come from different cultural backgrounds and as such meanings, symbols and pronunciations may differ and affect communication

As tour guide, part of his/her role is to break those barriers and promote understanding through clarification

Paraphrasing and repetition are some of the means to ensure that the message is understood.

A bridge remark can also be used to encourage response. Questions on preference are examples of a bridge remark, such as “Do you like _____?”

Tour guide does not only represent oneself but the company and the country as well.

Promotion is necessary to improve the guests perspective and help them plan their next visit and in the process help spread the benefits of tourism as well.

As T.G. you will not only interact with your guests.

It is also your duty to liaise with tourism suppliers, including your colleagues in the travel trade.

Effective communication helps build lasting interpersonal relationships with customers, colleagues and suppliers; this is important to sustain tourism activities.

Collecting feedback from guests is important because this will serve as basis for improving services.

There are several ways to get feedback.

Aside from filling out feedback for, responses may also be gathered simply by asking questions about guests interests and whether their expectations are met during and after the tour.

Ariel, the little mermaid, wanted to talk to the human prince. Ursula is giving her the chance to do so by giving Ariel a pair of feet but Ursula is going to take Ariel’s voice in exchange! How can Ariel communicate then?

Ariel: But without my voice, how can I..

Ursula: You’ll have your looks, your pretty face. And Don’t underestimate the importance of body language, ha!

Two forms of communication: Verbal and non-verbal communication.

Words are used in verbal communication

Body language and attitude are used in non-verbal communication

Using voice, face to face, to deliver a tour guide’s service can be a mixture of verbal and non-verbal communication.

1. Volume – loudness or softness of the sound

2. Speed – pace or tempo of delivery

3. Articulation – Accent or pronunciation

4.Tone – quality of voice

When tour guide speak, they apply these two forms of communication.

They use voice to provide information and convey meanings through spoken words

They use their appearance and attitude to lead the group, serve as model and exude appropriateness.

Smile

Facial expressions that shows a person’s mood like surprise, puzzlement or impatience

Hand gestures.

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Telecommunicating

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How do you conduct yourself on the phone

TODAY ??????

Can you answer YES to all of the above for EVERY CALL?

Polite Professional Efficient Knowledgeable Confident Do you offer the BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE

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Communication : The Flow

Sender ReceiverMessage

Feedback

Channel

Perception

DeliveryFormulating

Response

Understanding

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Telecommunication is…

Voice tones

55%

Body Language

7%

Words

38%

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Communication Skills

Body

Language

7%

Voice Tone

55%

Words

38%

•Smile

•Posture

•Volume

•Accent

•Speed of talking

•Influence

•Knowledge

•Confidence

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Golden Rules

Not on 1st ring, not after 3rd ring.When you answer on 1st ring, the guest won't be ready to listen you.When you answer after 4th rings, it's too long. (more than 10 seconds)

• Rule #1: Answer the phone

within 3 rings.

Rule #2: Your body posture should be straightly standing or if sitting, sit on your hip and chest up.

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Leaning the counter or something, makes you feel bore. It will definitely effect your voice.

Use gestures if it helps you. No-one can see you.

Rule #3: Always identify yourself

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The caller must know whether his call reaches to correct destination or not.

Rule #4: Explain and get permission from the caller when you have to put on hold.

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Explain him the reason and check whether he wishes to be on hold.

And keep informing him on every 30 seconds so that he doesn't think that his call has been forgotten.

Rule #5: Get permission before you transfer and make sure that call is answered.

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Operator - After transferred the call and if nobody answer, make sure to pick it up and offer assistance. Others - Do not release until the other side answer it.

Rule #6: Let the caller feel your sweet smiling voice.

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Telephoning is the communication without seeing the faces, so your sweet and courteous voice could create your good image.

You really can ‘hear’ a smile over the phone. A smile actually relaxes the throat muscles and your voice sounds warmer.

Rule #7: Whenever you are engaged and have to answer a call, please excuse first to the person you are dealing.

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It's rude to pick up a call when you are engaged with a guest at counter or on the line without getting permission from him.

Rule #8: Always use the caller's name

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It's nicer for the caller if you remember his name and use it. (Recognizing)

Rule #9: Always hang up only after the caller did.

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The caller might have any more to say. Listen until to the end.

A few second will not make you delay, but it will destroy all your effort with the call if you do not want to wait for it.

Rule #10: Final rule. Always use the magic words.

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Magic words such as Thank you for calling, Please, May I, etc are really worthy for you if you use it.

Never ever use slang, yap, yeah, nop, OK, Sure!

Do Not Use Industry Words With Customers

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There are some words that

do not sound good

►CAN’T / CANNOT - negative word, don’t tell the guest

what you can’t do, tell them what you CAN do

►CHEAP - indicates poor quality. Try to use “good value”

►NO PROBLEM – “Did I say there was a problem”??? Not

professional, try “You’re Welcome” , “My Pleasure” or “Your Welcome”►JUST - JUST for one night, JUST for one person

►Yep / Yeh / Yup / Arhha / Uhmm / – Unprofessional. You

are in fact replacing the word “YES” with slang.

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. 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.

Professional Telephone Etiquette:

B: Other People’s Call:

• Don’t say, you don’t, whether the person is whom the

caller’s 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.

Professional Telephone Etiquette:

Widely Used Phrases:

Now we will learn some most common widely used phrases and

expressions used while handling calls:

1. Sometimes by hearing the tone you may not identify whether

you 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?”

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?”

Widely Used Phrases:

Bad Practices Good Practices

Just start a conversation with only “Hello” or

“Department Name” or “Hotel’s Name”

Start with greeting and then follow the procedure we

discussed at the beginning.

Avoid taking responsibility in the way like “I am not

working in HR department”.

If you are not the person whom caller need then

transfer to the appropriate person.

Requesting to hold down as because you don’t find you

pen or pad

You should always keep your Pen, pad or pencil.

Being silent while talking for a long time. Must make some noises like “Hmm”, “Ok”, “Yes”, “I

Understand” etc.

Use plain language . Use some Magic words like “Certainly”, “You are right”,

“I do understand”, “Thank you” etc

Taking wrong or incomplete message Pay deep attention while 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 about guest You can’t share guest information or room number to any unknown person. You should only transfer a call or take message on behalf of him

Good & Bad Practices: