This summer heralds a wave of major events, from Royal Ascot and Wimbledon to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the Edinburgh Fringe and, of course, the World Cup. I’ll confess I probably won’t be watching the football, but with so much else to enjoy, I don’t imagine those of us who aren’t excited by it will struggle to find an alternative!
As the country looks ahead to a season of entertainment and, potentially, record temperatures – which have already boosted consumer spending this year – service leaders have a real opportunity to make it a memorable summer for customers.
That means supporting the customer on their journey from start to finish by understanding their end-to-end experience as a series of connected moments during which they need to feel valued at every stage.
Delivering on the service experience
Given the recent challenges, no one in tourism, hospitality and transport will be taking the expected surge in footfall over the coming months for granted. For the World Cup alone, over 50 million pints are expected to be sold, while Wimbledon’s valuable contribution to the London economy in recent years speaks for itself. A surge in flight prices is also expected to see more Brits taking UK city breaks and holidays.
But with that opportunity comes a duty to offer customers the very best experience we can. Whether you work in hospitality, local services or events management, your role underpins the service experience. Customers are spending their hard-earned money to travel with your business, attend your event, stay at your hotel or eat in your restaurant.
Major event organisers carry an extra responsibility to ensure the whole supply chain – and every process along the way – understands the importance of its role. Service leadership means curating the entire service journey and making it feel joined-up, considered, and intentional.
So much goes into the overall customer experience: from buying the ticket and working out the logistics of getting there, to the queuing experience – whether on the way in or out, or at the individual attractions and refreshment areas – and how polite and helpful staff are, including any contractors and third-party vendors present. Every touchpoint matters to your customers.
From commercial opportunity to community asset
The latter point is especially important for service leaders. Despite the challenges of the past year, customers remain eager to spend – in the expectation that they will, in return, enjoy a memorable experience with friends and family.
Excellent service should never feel overbearing. It should be proactive: making sure customers get what they need without having to ask. This requires anticipation, observation, emotional intelligence and knowing when to step in. Above all, though, it means caring.
Done well, service can help turn a busy summer of events into a stronger moment for customers, communities and the wider economy.
I’m reminded of the many smaller-scale community events which take place up and down the country every year – whether it’s cheese rolling, Brompton bike racing or trout fishing on my local river. Smaller, local events can have a real community-building impact on the towns and villages that host them. Is it too much to hope that our biggest national events might do the same, just on a larger scale?
The next few months offer a chance to champion the service agenda and rally our local communities. This could prove a watershed moment in rewarding our customers’ loyalty and rebuilding the Service Nation.
Related Posts
