These days, cities and communities have become so similar to each other — the same landmarks, the same chain stores, the same restuarants, the same chain hotels — that tourists to your city have very little reason to recommend your city to
their friends and their family. They also have very little reason to return
themselves to your city. Goodbye tourist dollars.
If your city’s economy depends even slightly on tourist dollars, this should be of grave concern to you. And it is important
you recognize that the only thing you have left to stand out among the competition is the quality of the people in your community — specifically, all the people who come into contact with your tourists: airport
personnel, taxi drivers, police, front desk receptionists at your local hotels,
etc.
Even if you are fortunate enough to have a great tourist attraction in your
community, it is important you recognize that tourists might come to your community for that attraction, but what they will remember most about your community is the quality of the people in your community.
Now, you may be wondering, “How do we attain this level of interaction with our tourists so that it pulls them to return and
refer?”
Consider for a moment two front-line people in your community —
● THE FIRST FRONT-LINE PERSON: The first front-line person has been taught the paramount importance of smiling, always speaking with a “smile in your voice,” and always saying “thank you.” In fact, he is surrounded by signs and banners to ensure he never forgets any of these things. He has studiously memorized all the scripts for responding appropriately to every possible comment,
objection, or emotion expressed by a tourist. He has learned how to appear
professional and poised. And he is even armed with a list of experts and authorities within the
community so he can connect the tourist to the person who will best take care
of the tourist’s needs.
● THE SECOND FRONT-LINE PERSON: The second front-line person doesn’t have a lot of scripts. He has no banners or signs to remind him to smile or
say “thank you.” And although he has a list of experts and authorities within the community, the
list is strictly for his own use. Right from the first moment he comes into
contact with a tourist, his priority is not to impress the tourist but to
understand and connect with the tourist. Instead of a canned script, the tourist gets a genune human being. The front-line person often
laughs and cracks jokes, but not because he’s been instructed to do so. He wouldn’t dream of handing the tourist to anyone else within the community because he
understands how upsetting this would be to the tourist. So, he takes the time to gain as much information
about his community as possible, not because he has been instructed to do so,
but because he knows this is how he can best service the tourist. Most tourists
remember him by name. And because of their connection with him, they tell their friends about the “the really great people” in his community.
Which of these individuals do you think will cause tourists to return and refer your community?
There is no contest, is there? The second person, without a doubt.
What's interesting is that when you start reading about the first person, he sounds very well
groomed as a front-line person. Any individual so up-to-speed on what it takes
to be a good front-line person is worth his weight in gold. You are not even
aware that something crucial is missing until you start reading about the second person.
It's only in contrast that you can see that the first person is mostly on an intellectual path to
success as a front-line person. He has a great grasp of all the scripts and techniques—what to say, what to ask, what to do. But he operates mostly from the head. He
doesn’t even realize how far he is off the mark. He isn’t even aware that he is hurting the reputation — and economic wellbeing— of your entire community.
If you want your front-line person to change from the first type to the second type, you won’t find the answers in traditional books or courses. That’s because they focus on teaching your front-line people what to do and what to think and what to say — all of which lead them to becom people of the first type, the very thing you
want them to graduate away from.
What your front-line people need to learn is to change their worldview — and one of the best ways, I’ve found, is through small group gatherings, where everyone collectively learns not what to do or say, but about who they are and how they see the world, especially tourists.
Start a City Concierge Group Now!
SCHEDULE: Use this site to Create a City Concierge Group for all front-line people in your community. If you want
to limit visibility of your Group to those who are part of your community, you
have the option to do so. The ispreadchange.com site has been designed to let you network with your City Concierges, send them
schedules and reminders, make announcements, exchange notes.
INVITE: Invite your front-line people to join the Group. Encourage them to keep track
of the event on ispreadchange.com.
POST: Invite other people in your community who come face-to-face with tourists to
pull together City Concierge groups of their own. To promote and inspire such
groups, tap into our resources for a flyer that you can personalize.
MATERIALS: For your City Concierge Group Gatherings, the most important thing you’ll need are discussion questions to focus the gathering and maximize the
learning. You will also need Sign In sheets. Both can be accessed through the resources page.
Congratulations on bringing your front-line people in your community together to
attain new levels of service and success!
Congratulations on the difference you make in the world.
Aman Motwane
Yes, You Can Change the World
