It was a fine system, but it failed to work!
The first day we found ten guests who complained, “You fellows ought to know me by this time. I’ve been coming to this hotel for years. If this is all the impression I make on you fellows, I’ll change hotels.” Therefore we changed the expression t o, “Have you been with us RECENTLY, sir?” The “Tested Selling Sentence” now works successfully, showing that the right formation of words gets the right responses from people. It is all in how you say it. The Technique Of The Doorman The doorman in front of any hotel or restaurant is the king of the hotel. He is usually a pompous person, dressed up like a Mexican general. He makes the first impression for the hotel, because he is the first person you see when you visit a hotel. If this “ten -second perso n” makes a poor impression, your impression of the entire hotel is weakened. A study of the Statler Hotel doormen brought out some important observations. If the door man holds his hand out, palm up, to a woman guest to assist her out of an automobile, she may trip accidentally and cause him to press her hand a little too tightly, which she is apt to resent. The alert doorman, therefore, will always put his hand inside the automobile, palm down, fist clenched, giving the lady an opportunity to lift herself out of the seat, with no chance of an accidental squeezing of her hand. The doorman then counts the baggage and says: “Three bags, madam?” She nods yes, or tells him there is a small black bag in the dark corner on the floor. Many guests leave baggage in taxicabs, but this simple statement on the part of doormen is proving very valuable to Statler Hotels in eliminating the danger of lost baggage. Which Type Are You? We have told you that one secret of choosing the right words to get proper responses from people is to know at which basic motive (X, Y, Z) to direct your words. Studying human nature as it enters a restaurant in a large Statler Hotel for breakfast has taught us there are three types of American breakfast eaters at which a waiter must direct his words. The first is the fellow who has lost his appetite. He needs a good waiter with the power to make the guest’s mouth water with highly descriptive words. Good waiters will suggest, “A glass of chilled tomato juice, sir, with a dash of lemon an d Worcestershire sauce?”
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