Analyse the hotel property and operations at Four Seasons Hotel Sydney

Question

Task: Prepare the content analysis results and fully describe the current issues and identify common issues and possible impact on the hotel.Briefly describe the method and the process of your content analysis. Revealthe results of guest perception from your content analysis and provide insights into the hotel attributes (or product/service components) guests care about at your chosen hotel including the most crucial aspects in need of improvement as perceived its guests. Discuss how these issues have a negative effect on the selected hotel.

Answer

Four Seasons Hotel Sydney

This report offers an insight into the Four Seasons Hotel Sydney located amidst the central business district of the city. It offers a pleasant view of the iconic Sydney harbour and is adjacent to the Circular Quay and The Rocks. The property owing to its central location is preferable among tourists and business travellers. The hotel gets different types of guests around the year.So, it has different offerings like deluxe city rooms, premium partial harbour rooms, full harbour club suites, presidential suites, and others for them to choose from. It is one of the premier properties in Sydney and often features among the best places to stay while in the city.

The amenities at the property arequite top-notch having three dining options – Mode Kitchen & Bar, The Cabana, and Grain alongside, in-room dining options(fourseasons, 2023). The facilities, services, and activities are up to the mark at Four Seasons Hotel having pool facilities, a salon, spa, retail, and fitness centre. It is a family-friendly property offering babysitting services and special packages for families like discounted breakfast for kids and a trip to Taronga Zoo. Besides, the hotel provides valet parking, transportation to the airport, local shuttle services, and housekeeping to let the guests feel at home.

Four Seasons is a chain of resorts, residence clubs, and hotels that provides the epitome of luxury. Its Sydney property is one of the finest properties around and is one of the preferred joints for leisure seekers and corporates to stay while on vacation or business trips. The property not only arranges food and accommodation, but it also provides additional services like arranging trips for the guests to get around Sydney. It also has meeting and conference rooms that can accommodate up to 500 people at once. The success of the property lies in its treatment of customers and goes to lengths to ensure they have a nice stay at the property.

Method and Process of the content analysis

The contents of the report are based on the customer feedback who stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel Sydney property. The hotel asked for feedback from its esteemed guests and they jotted down their thoughts and feelings while their stay at the property. It is quite important to understand what the targeted customers feel about this particular hotel to facilitate suitable improvements to make their stay more comfortable(Goodman, 2019). Further, customer satisfaction is of utmost necessity as Four Seasons Hotel operates in a competitive market. So, the hotel management thought it would be wise to ask the customers what they feel right about the property and what avenuesto look into.

Accordingly, the property started taking customer feedback from guests to tick certain things that they feel right about the property. They also sought honest feedback about the property which they could write in the comment section. The hotel management presented a questionnaire to the customers while they check-out from the hotel(Doherty & Fredey, 2020). It comprised a rate card out of 5 on five distinct aspects – location, cleanliness, service, value, and sleep quality. Therein, the guests have the option to rate the different elements within the range of 1-5, wherein 1 is the least rating while 5 is the highest.

The customers were encouraged to provide their honest feedback enabling the Four Seasons Hotel to provide them with the best service while their stay on the property(Sharma, 2019). Besides the rating, the hotel provided a comment section in which they can jot down their experience while they stayed at the property and the things they liked and disliked about it. They even facilitated online feedback for those who stayed at the property to provide their feedback at their convenience.

Results

The rating was mainly on five aspects like location, cleanliness, service, value, and sleep quality. Some reviews are quite encouraging implying that the property is treading on the right path, while some reviews the management should take note of. A fellow guest pointed out that the superior and deluxe rooms are quite small and so does its showering area. The hotel management should look into the matter as there is intense competition in the market(Adeyinka-Ojo, 2018).They should take care of this variability in room size to make the guest more comfortable while staying at the property.

Amid good reviews, there were certain reviews wherein, the customers are not happy and pledge not to stay at the property on their next visit to Sydney. The room quality, typically its size and the services are the main issues that bother the customers. Though those were trifle issues like not offering any food or beverage while the guest was at the pool, denied access to the Grin bar during Easters, and some housekeeping issues. Though these things may vary from customer to customer, the management may look into it as the negative reviews attract the customers’ attention and they contemplate a judgement based on it(Michopoulou & Giuliano, 2018).

The location aspect was not at all an issue with customers, rather it was the main attraction to stay at the property. But some reviews suggest that Four Seasons abuses its branding by overcharging the guests like charging the taxi fare equivalent to limousine service. A customer who overpaid them when confronted with it, the hotel management provided a lame excuse of the state government rates for limousine service and the phenomenon extends to taxi services also. Thus, it gathers the ire of the particular guest who vowed not to stay at any Four Seasons property further and gave a poor rating.

Some guests shared their terrible experiences while they stayed there.From their reviews, it is clear that they were grossly disappointed with the services and size of theirallotted rooms. Among the reviews, the smaller size of the rooms seems to get due attention which the hotel management should take note of it. Notably, among 50 customer reviews, only 6 customer reviews had ratings lower than 4 which can be categorised as bad reviews. The overall rating has been derived as 4.58 out of 5 which is a feat and very few players have such strong ratings.

Out of the 50 reviews; 2 people gave ‘4’ ratings, 3 people provided ‘3’ ratings, 3 people came up with ‘2’ ratings, only 1 individual showed his disappointment with ‘1’ rating and the remaining were overwhelmed with ‘5’ ratings. It shows that around 41 customers gave the highest overall rating which constitutes 82% of the total customer feedback. It implies that Four Seasons Hotelis on the right track to entertain the guests as per the given standards(Hill & Alexander, 2017).

The property location is the most sought-after thing that forms customer delight. It got an overall rating of 4.97, the most unique proposition that catches customers’ attention to the property(Sharma, 2019). After its location, the sleep quality of the property is most applauded with a rating of 4.92. It shows the ambience and quality of the rooms that the property has though a guest complained about the noise of the traffic from the adjacent road that disrupted his sleep. Contrarily, certain guests are overwhelmed by the comfy beds at Four Seasons Hotel Sydney.

Cleanliness got an overall rating of 4.91.Barring a handful of customers, most of them are satisfied with the way the housekeeping of the property is maintained. Service got an overall rating of 4.53, while it is 4.33 for value. These are the two aspects that some customers have issues with and it deserves management’s attention. The guests are paying for 5-star services and even if they come across a little hinge, they become quite reactive(Woratschek, et al., 2020). Sometimes it may not be possible to provide due care to each demand and expectation of the customers due to various factors like shortage of staff and others. But it becomes quite difficult to make the customers understand the situation and they refuse to comply with and provide bad reviews.

The overall rating is quite encouraging, though the management should give due attention to the value the property provides as well as its services. These are the two aspects that the guests look for while staying at a particular property and if they do not get the anticipated treatment, they shift theirloyalty elsewhere(Michopoulou & Giuliano, 2018). But these are a handful of guests, and most of them are happy with the services and value provided.The hotel management should congratulate their staff to provide relentless service to the staff and motivate them to carry forth such good work (Doherty & Fredey, 2020). If the staff are happy and satisfied, they will put in the effort to have satisfied and loyal customers in the competitive market.

Bibliography

Adeyinka-Ojo, S., 2018. A strategic framework for analysing employability skills deficits in rural hospitality and tourism destinations. Tourism management perspectives, 27(1), pp. 47-54.

Doherty, T. & Fredey, C., 2020. Hotel Revenue Management: Forecasting and Budgeting. Hospitality Revenue Management: Concepts and Practices, p. 139.

fourseasons, 2023. PROPERTY INFORMATION. [Online]

Available at: https://www.fourseasons.com/sydney/welcome-back/?_s_icmp=ja_syd_lwc_no_state_found#dining

[Accessed 23 May 2023].

Goodman, J., 2019. Strategic customer service: Managing the customer experience to increase positive word of mouth, build loyalty, and maximize profits. Sydney: Amacom.

Hill, N. & Alexander, J., 2017. The handbook of customer satisfaction and loyalty measurement. Perth: Routledge.

Michopoulou, E. & Giuliano, C., 2018. Understanding mega-events success and customer satisfaction. Event Management, 22(1), pp. 9-23.

Sharma, B., 2019. Review of human resource practices in hospitality and tourism. Tourism Management, 9(2), p. 4.

Woratschek, H., Horbel, C. & Popp, B., 2020. Determining customer satisfaction and loyalty from a value co-creation perspective. The Service Industries Journal, 40(11-12), pp. 777-799.