Hotel staff asking you to leave a review

[marki]

Yep I just smile and never leave a review. Why do they always even say give me a 5 out of 5 review...tired of it..

I get this often as well. It must mean something to them.

 

[Mattg]

Matt, I think you’ve just lucked out on the hotels without too much rhyme or reason. But could it be that the hotel and parent company are aware of your Blogger/AFF Editor status and are seeking a much larger audience for your review? I know for certain that at least one of the large chains actively maintains a database of Bloggers and social contributors with influence. Sorta like a Do Not Fly list for the airlines but for very different reasons.

To be honest, I doubt this was the case here.

In yesterday's example the same staff member was asking pretty much everyone in the lounge to leave a review.

Some of the other hotels where I've been asked recently are not ones that get a lot of "western" guests, so maybe that played a role there.

This morning at breakfast, the staff member on the desk noticed that I had one of those cards (I put it with my room key card) and said "oh, I see [insert name here] has given you her card". I jokingly said "it's a common occurrence, is it?" and she nodded with bemusement.

 

[clifford]

I stayed in an apartment in Athens last year, booked through booking.com. It was OK, but not 10/10. However the owner tried to badger me into giving him a 10 rating. Needless to say, it's not what he got.

The more such people try to get me to give them a high (unwarranted) rating, the less I'm likely to do it...

 

[Matt_01]

I rarely read reviews and do not think I have ever left one. My reason being is that it it is all subjective and these days most likely AI generated. I gave up on reviews after reading many that seem to be bad experiences normally related to cost and service when staying at 5* properties and the exact opposite at budget properties. I am pretty sure I know what to expect at major chains and the property price point within the chain and the quality of service.

 

[JohnK]

I've never been asked in person to leave a hotel review but get constant emails and remindercl emails and as I usually book 1 night at a time I get lots and lots of emails.

I did get a request from QEEQ to leave review on Trustpilot for car hire and they will send me a 5% discount code. I haven't renewed paid Diamond membership and $20off $400 car hire booking in June is appreciated.

 

[sudoer]

This has generally been at higher-end hotels and the staff always ask for you to mention them by name.

When checking out of Conrad St James, I asked if I could grab a Monty the Bulldog as a souvenir. It immediately turned into a business transaction - the desk essentially explained that Monty was going to cost a positive review naming this staff member.

The moment I left I deleted the review from Google Maps. I later mentioned the interaction during post-stay feedback without naming the particular staff member (although I was tempted, I figured the hotel could probably dig through their records to see who checked me out if they really wanted to)

 

[prozac]

Was a bit stunned a few years ago at a restaurant adjacent to Spit Bridge (Sydney) called "Plonk". When it came time to pay the bill I was asked for a tip! My tip? Don't ask.

 

[bullerdude]

I must have been asked to leave a review by either reception or club lounge staff at various different hotels at least 5 times during the last month. This has generally been at higher-end hotels and the staff always ask for you to mention them by name.

Today, within 5 minutes of me entering the club lounge, the attendant even came over with a printed card that had a QR code to take you to Tripadvisor and the staff member's name hand-written onto the card. The card is an official hotel business card with branding, so it seems the hotel is encouraging staff to hand these out. (FWIW the service was otherwise very good.)

What are people's thoughts on this - do you leave a review when asked to do so?

I can only assume the staff will get some kind of bonus or reward for each review that mentions them by name, hence them specifically requesting this - would be interested to know what they actually get.

I wouldn't really mind then asking, as long as they are polite and you are under no obligation.

Would certainly provide the opportunity for immediate feedback in cases where the experience is not good!

 

[NM]

Many businesses(not just hotels) are measuring their service quality through customer "surveys" or customer reviews/ratings, and offering the franchise or managers an incentive if they achieve a certain customer satisfaction goal, or a penalty of their average ratings are not above a certain threshold. Of course this promotion of the customer satisfaction goals is generally pushed down to the front-line staff who have a direct impact on customer satisfaction, by offering an incentive to the individual staff member if their name is mentioned in a positive review.

 

[jgm]

All "requests" for reviews go straight into the trash. If someone goes way above what is expected of them (& what they're being paid for), I may leave a positive review. Conversely if It is way below expectations I will probably leave a negative review. But there are far too many places asking for reviews or recommendations.

 

[craven morehead]

I must have been asked to leave a review by either reception or club lounge staff at various different hotels at least 5 times during the last month. This has generally been at higher-end hotels and the staff always ask for you to mention them by name.

Today, within 5 minutes of me entering the club lounge, the attendant even came over with a printed card that had a QR code to take you to Tripadvisor and the staff member's name hand-written onto the card. The card is an official hotel business card with branding, so it seems the hotel is encouraging staff to hand these out. (FWIW the service was otherwise very good.)

What are people's thoughts on this - do you leave a review when asked to do so?

I can only assume the staff will get some kind of bonus or reward for each review that mentions them by name, hence them specifically requesting this - would be interested to know what they actually get.

My experience over the last 4-5 weeks mirrors yours exactly @Mattg. Cards with QR Codes with names etc, the whole show. Almost begging!

As a Diamond Accor I always fill out the post stay survey. If anyone has impressed me, I note their name, same if I think they need a smack and further training. However, I never follow through to the Trip Advisor stage as they want something like a minimum 250 characters, and I mostly don't feel like writing that much detail.

 

[Mattg]

I got a particularly shameless, hard sell to leave a review at breakfast this morning at my hotel. I thought something was up when the lady gave me a 3-minute spiel mentioning her name several times before I could even enter the buffet. She then came around every few minutes to check on me (and all the other guests too), before the inevitable came and she asked me to leave a review on Google mentioning her name. She also made sure to mention her name a few more times before I left the restaurant.

 

[kpc]

I very rarely, if ever, leave a review. If I do, it means the place has really pissed me off and it will usually be a not very favourable review!

 

[TheRealTMA]

I got a particularly shameless, hard sell to leave a review at breakfast this morning at my hotel. I thought something was up when the lady gave me a 3-minute spiel mentioning her name several times before I could even enter the buffet. She then came around every few minutes to check on me (and all the other guests too), before the inevitable came and she asked me to leave a review on Google mentioning her name. She also made sure to mention her name a few more times before I left the restaurant.

One could of course mention her name in a less than positive review for harassing, but probably not.

 

[PERLHR]

If it's not hotels, it's taxi drivers, vintage cellars, tour guides, telecommunications, banks, Australia post, Qantas, Virgin Australia, Supermarkets, retail stores in general, and that's only after being in them for 5 minutes. Very insecure world!! And what do they do with the information when they get a bad review?? ,

 

[Sprucegoose]

I very rarely, if ever, leave a review. If I do, it means the place has really pissed me off and it will usually be a not very favourable review!

I couldn't agree more with KPC. People ought to do the jobs they're paid to do,

 

[Mattg]

One could of course mention her name in a less than positive review for harassing, but probably not.

It's a shame, because she was otherwise lovely.

 

[prozac]

It's a shame, because she was otherwise lovely.

But she is hassling you for a favourable review, completely unacceptable.
I ate a a Sydney harbourside restaurant a few years back where the waitress came to our table and asked for a tip when we settled the account. Needless to say ...

 

[MEL_Traveller]

If it's not hotels, it's taxi drivers, vintage cellars, tour guides, telecommunications, banks, Australia post, Qantas, Virgin Australia, Supermarkets, retail stores in general, and that's only after being in them for 5 minutes. Very insecure world!! And what do they do with the information when they get a bad review?? ,

I was just thinking, while reading this thread, that cabin crew on SQ can be quite persistent in requesting feedback direct to their management. Most crew seem to have a pre-printed card with link or QR code to the relevant feedback page!

I mean the crew are generally fantastic, and it’s a pleasure to leave the review, but it takes time, you have to remember to do it, and means you feel like you have an obligation when leaving.

 

[Cynicor]

I was just thinking, while reading this thread, that cabin crew on SQ can be quite persistent in requesting feedback direct to their management. Most crew seem to have a pre-printed card with link or QR code to the relevant feedback page!

I mean the crew are generally fantastic, and it’s a pleasure to leave the review, but it takes time, you have to remember to do it, and means you feel like you have an obligation when leaving.

I’ve never noticed this on SQ, at least that I can remember.