The Three-Ring Standard
Five steps for answering, holding and transferring a reservations call. The caller decides how the hotel feels before anyone mentions a rate.
- Who
- Reservations agents, and anyone covering the line
- When
- Every incoming call to the reservations line, 24 hours a day
- You need
- Headset on, PMS open on availability, the transfer list
- Measured by
- Answered within three rings
- Hold asked first, under 30 seconds
- Name and need passed on every transfer
5 steps
01
Answer
Pick up by the third ring, about ten seconds. The sentence you were typing can wait. Greet with the hotel’s name, your first name and an offer of help, in that order, on every call.
Say this
“Good morning, Grand Hotel Reservations, this is Giulia. How may I help you?”
Common mistake Answering so fast the caller hears “—ervations”, or with the department alone. The first two seconds carry the hotel’s name.
02
Take the name
Ask for the caller’s name in the first 30 seconds and write it down, spelling included, before you check a single date. Use it once early and once at the close; more than that sounds rehearsed.
Say this
“May I take your name, so I can look after you properly?” Then: “Thank you, Mr Okafor.”
Common mistake Going straight to dates and availability. Ten minutes later the call ends and nobody knows who it was.
03
Ask before holding
Never press hold without asking and waiting for the answer. Give a reason and a time. Come back every 30 seconds, even with nothing new, and thank the caller each time you return.
Say this
“May I place you on hold for thirty seconds while I check the sea-view rooms?” Then wait for the yes.
Common mistake “Can you hold?” and the music starts before the caller has answered. A question you don’t wait for is not a question.
04
Transfer warm
When the call belongs elsewhere, stay on the line, tell your colleague the caller’s name and need, then introduce them. If nobody picks up within 20 seconds, take a number and a time to call back.
Say this
“Ms Rossi, I have Paola from the spa with me. She knows you’d like a couples treatment on Saturday.”
Common mistake The blind transfer into a ringing extension. The caller tells the story twice, or hangs up and tries another hotel.
05
Close
Before hanging up, sum up what was agreed in one sentence, thank the caller by name and let them end the call first. Log every call, booked or not, with a name and a contact number.
Say this
“So that’s two nights from 14 May, and the confirmation reaches you within the hour. Thank you, Mr Okafor.”
Common mistake Hanging up first. The caller remembered one more question, and now has to dial again and wait through three rings.
What the Caller Hears at Each Moment
Seven moments when the caller meets the hotel without seeing it. The middle column is what to say; the right column is what slips out on a busy day.
Brief one row a day at the start of the shift and act it out in pairs for 20 seconds. On Friday the reservations manager listens to five live calls and ticks which rows were heard as written.
The Standards Library.
No. 08 · Reservations
The Booking Call Standard
Five steps that take a caller from “do you have availability?” to a confirmed stay. Most callers have already decided to come and are waiting to be asked.
No. 09 · Reservations
The Email Reply Standard
Five steps for answering a written enquiry within two hours. The guest who emails has often written to several hotels, and books with the first full answer.