The Giraffe Is Winking – Service Delivery Is About Experience

Over the December holidays, we visited the Nakuru national park and then Maasai Mara reserve. With all the promos on ‘tembea kenya’ we decided it was time for a tour. For the little ones, it was time to watch the ‘real’ lion not just the characters on Lion King or Madagascar 3! The trip to Nakuru was quite pleasant, with the usual stops at the popular viewpoints. The greenery around the escarpment was breathtaking. It was a pleasure to the eyes. On my part, it was nostalgic as my alma mater was in the vicinity.

We arrived at the gate of the park just past 1PM. By the time we checked in at the hotel, we had a very short time for a quick lunch. Our hotel experience started the moment our vehicle reached the gate, as the security personnel gently opened the barriers, and with a wide smile. Once again, the greenery was amazing, with well-manicured lawns – they all spoke of a well maintained ground. The concierge was very welcoming, with charming smile. He handed us soft towels to the kids first and then adults. First impressions count, and in this case, being the first stop, it was quite impressive.

When travelling with little ones, food comes first – and was no different in this case. The manager briefed us and quickly ushered us to the restaurant. We did not first go to our rooms immediately as time for lunch was almost over. The aroma and the arrangement at the restaurant was enticing. The food was appetizing. Initially, we hesitated given we came almost closing time. Being a buffet, we feared the food would be cold. To our surprise, the hotpots were replenished! From fresh vegetables to sizzling ‘nyama choma’ – it was quite enticing. Were we eating so much because we were hungry or just because of the ambience and the relaxing environment? Every counter we visited had a cheerful staff serving out to the visiting customers. We stayed in the restaurant longer than planned, thanks to the chef and the rest of the ‘crew’. With protruding tummies, the little ones rushed to the reception area to check with ‘auntie’ about the rooms. The auntie in this case was the lady at the front desk – thanks to her welcoming charm, she earned the title quite fast.

To our surprise, we had an upgrade – oh yes! Upgraded to a suite where all six of us could share. That was another pleasant experience – it amplified our experience at this establishment. We would have our camp fire in evening, and roast some marshmallows. The silvery lining from Lake Nakuru was quite breathtaking.

We had to leave as it was already past 4PM – time for the first game drive. A member of the staff reminded us of the tea before the drive, but the little ones were too excited to take it. ‘We want to see the animals’, they shouted. I realized they were still too full from the lunch and did not want to take any food. There were some buffaloes roaming in the vicinity, which only made them more excited. The hotel staff was once again at hand in case we required any assistance before the drive. Off we went, and started the trip around the park.

The excitement reached its peak when we came across a lone male giraffe. We stopped, switched off the engine and just gazed at it. The car roof was opened and everyone popped their heads out to have a better look. That still moment. The kids were so quiet, like in a state of meditation, as they all gazed at the marvelous animal. It was also so still – only to realize it was actually peeing. I didn’t know a giraffe takes so much time to pee. In the midst of the silence, the little girl whispered – “the giraffe is winking at me”. We burst out so loudly that the peeing giraffe moved a few steps back. Indeed, the rest of the evening and the next morning, nature was winking at us. We had a pleasant stay.

Our next booking at the Mara reserve was in an entity related to the first. We had our expectations. The bar had been raised quite high. After the long drive from Nakuru to Mara, we reached our destination. Standing with crossed legs, the concierge handed the soft towels to everyone. Oops, what happened to the smiling people? Why cross legs? Maasai usually stand on one leg, not crossed ones! My sister in law complained, but I told her maybe the guy is tired. We reached the front desk, which was quite busy since guests were going for lunch.

After the check-in formalities, the concierge led us to the designated tents. Oh unto us! He took us down the stairs to a different direction from our tent numbers. Well, he never checked with the front office or even confirmed with us the numbers of the tents allocated to the group. He may have overheard a number at the front desk and assumed that was one of our tents. We had to pull the luggage across the field to the other end – as there was no trolley. As previously highlighted, first impression counts. From the crossed legged staff and now the one taking us to the wrong direction, the impression was below par. We wondered if this was the same establishment as the one we had stayed the previous day. How can the service levels be so different? Is it a staff issue? An environmental issue or just slackness?

The above scenario is replicated in many service industries. How seamless are the service standards across your outlets? Automation has helped to standardize offers. However, it is difficult to replicate the same where human interaction is involved. Across sectors, having standardized service attributes and responses is common. How do you ensure adherence of the service standards across outlets? Our experience left a sour taste as we wondered if the two establishments were under the same company. We even assumed this was a franchise – but even a franchisee should adhere to the franchisor’s service standards.

It is important to ensure the human element is incorporated to the service standards. Adhering to standards in a ‘robotic’ manner does not augur well, since customers can always deduce this kind of offering. There is an emotional element to any service experience. This lies just beneath the execution process, and customers can easily deduce a genuine offering from a ploy.

As many businesses incorporate service offering, it is important raise the service standards. This is also important to the tourism sector in Kenya as it gears up for the revamp. The sector caters for experiences, and any experience has an emotional element. My previous experience in evaluating service delivery highlights some key areas that service providers in the sector can check:

1. Understanding emotions – As highlighted, it is important to adhere to service attributes. However, it is important for the service agents to show a genuine concern in the delivery of the service. This calls for understanding emotions, cues from customers during any interaction. In our trip, the concierges at both establishments handed us the soft towels at the entrance, hence the executed the duty. However, the manner in which they did it was so different that one would imagine they are not working in the same company. Smiling is a common theme – but having a genuine smile makes a difference.

This is more so when dealing with different guests from varied cultures.

2. Social media listening – An increasing number of people are using social media to highlight their experiences. Have your ears on the ground. While the traditional approaches such as evaluation by mystery guests and surveys are still important, social media listening can help in gathering bits of data within a short time – even while the guests are within your establishment. This can help remedy any shortcoming.
3. Back office segmentation but with seamless service delivery. Different customer groups have different needs. Segmentation helps in the allocating resource to different customer segments. However, where one has common utilities – e.g. common dining area / buffet offering, then there should be an undifferentiated service offering.
   Segmentation should be in no way be discriminative. I once overheard a service agent address a guest with a connotation – “si wewe ni Mkenya, unaelewa haya maneno” (you are Kenyan, should understand these things).

Be visible but keep your distance. It is important for guest to feel cared for, be in a welcoming environment. However, presence should not be deemed as intrusive.