Learn how to use verbal confirmation to understand what the customer is saying, from a conversation between a hotel staff member and a guest
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Brandon: Hi everybody! Brandon here! |
| Becky: And I’m Becky. At the Check-In Counter |
| Brandon: In this lesson, you will learn to talk about required information like Room number, Directions, Breakfast times, and other important details. |
| Becky: This conversation takes place in the evening at the front desk. |
| Brandon: It’s between a hotel staff member and a customer. |
| Becky: The speakers are in a professional relationship, so they’ll be using formal English. Let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Staff: Hello, Welcome to Innovative Inn. How may I help you? |
| Customer: I have a reservation for tonight. |
| Staff: Okay, certainly sir. Could you please let me know your last name? |
| Customer: Sure, it’s Smith. |
| Staff: Please give me one second. Okay, Mr. Smith you are in room 315. It is a non-smoking, double bed room as you requested. |
| Customer: Thank you. |
| Staff: You’re welcome. The quickest way to your room is to take the elevator right behind you to the third floor and take a left when you get out. There is an information pamphlet with details of all of our amenities in your room. You can also dial 0 on your phone if you have any questions. Is there anything else I can assist you with today? |
| Customer: No, that is all. Thank you. |
| Becky: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Staff: Hello, Welcome to Innovative Inn. How may I help you? |
| Customer: I have a reservation for tonight. |
| Staff: Okay, certainly sir. Could you please let me know your last name? |
| Customer: Sure, it’s Smith. |
| Staff: Please give me one second. Okay, Mr. Smith you are in room 315. It is a non smoking, double bed room as you requested. |
| Customer: Thank you. |
| Staff: You’re welcome. The quickest way to your room is to take the elevator right behind you to the third floor and take a left when you get out. There is also an information pamphlet with details of all of our amenities in your room. You can also dial 0 on your phone if you have any questions. Is there anything else I can assist you with today? |
| Customer: No that is all. Thank you. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Brandon: When you’re working at the front desk, you will encounter many different types of guests. |
| Becky: You certainly will. Some of them will be seasoned travelers who stay at hundreds of hotels every year. These customers will know how to take advantage of all the services the hotel offers and will need only minimal amounts of support from the hotel staff. |
| Brandon: However, other guests will be less experienced and may need a considerable amount of guidance and direction in order to enjoy their stay at the hotel to its fullest. |
| Becky: Because of this, one of the most important things you can do for your guest is tell them where they can call, ask or look for more information. |
| Brandon: You usually do this by saying things like "there’s a pamphlet in your room" or "dial zero if you have any questions." |
| Becky: And, you can do both, which is what the staff member did in the dialogue. Okay, now let’s take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Becky: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| : The first word we shall see is: |
| Brandon: room number [natural native speed] |
| Becky: number that identifies a specific room |
| Brandon: room number [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Brandon: room number [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Brandon: quickest [natural native speed] |
| Becky: fastest |
| Brandon: quickest [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Brandon: quickest [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Brandon: non-smoking [natural native speed] |
| Becky: not smoking, smoke-free |
| Brandon: non-smoking [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Brandon: non-smoking [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Brandon: pamphlet [natural native speed] |
| Becky: advertisement, brochure |
| Brandon: pamphlet [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Brandon: pamphlet [natural native speed] |
| : And Last: |
| Brandon: right behind [natural native speed] |
| Becky: directly in back of |
| Brandon: right behind [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Brandon: right behind [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES |
| Becky: Let’s take a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Brandon: The first word we’re going to look at is "quickest." |
| Becky: This phrase is talking about the speed with which something is done. |
| Brandon: The reason we’re looking at this is because "quickest” is probably the best word to use in these situations. It’s even better than "fastest" or "shortest", even though the meaning is the same. |
| Becky: That’s right. There isn’t much reason why “quickest" is better but, generally, it is the go-to or default word to use in these situations. I also heard somewhere that it is used the most because it is the quickest word out of the three. |
| Brandon: The next phase we’ll look at is "right behind." |
| Becky: This phrase is often difficult for English learners, because the word "right" is used in a way that has nothing to do with right and wrong, or direction-wise, the right side of a person versus the left side of the person. |
| Brandon: That’s true. Here, the word "right" is used kind of like directly or immediately. It emphasizes the closeness behind someone. |
| Becky: For example, "The restaurant is right behind that door." You couldn’t say "The restaurant is very behind the door." It sounds strange. Okay, now let’s move onto the grammar. |
| GRAMMAR POINT |
| Brandon: In this lesson, you’ll learn about delivering vital information quickly. |
| Becky: In the dialogue we had the phrase, "The quickest way to your room is to take the elevator right behind you." |
| Brandon: When customers check in, there is some basic information that they need to know. Things like the room number, how to get there, any special instructions, events, phone messages for them, and so on. |
| Becky: So we’ll be looking at how to get that information to them quickly. There are two main things that you need to say to every guest that checks in. |
| Brandon: That’s right. Those two things are their room number, and the directions on how to get to their room. That may seem obvious, but front desk agents do sometimes forget to tell the guest where their room is. |
| Becky: And a good tip here is to practice giving directions to many different places in the hotel. For example, "Your room is number 213 which is on the second floor. You can get there by going up the stairs to your right, then going all the way down the hallway on the second floor." |
| Brandon: It’s also very important that you know and are familiar with the layout of your hotel. |
| Becky: The most important tip about these two things is that you say them quickly, but be sure to say it clearly. Often when we talk quickly, our pronunciation gets muddled. But, making sure they understand you the first time by speaking a little slower will actually be much faster than having to repeat yourself multiple times. |
| Brandon: Other details you should tell most guests are things like confirming special requests. For example, "Your room number is 721. It is a non-smoking, double bedroom as you requested." |
| Becky: Also, some hotels require that front desk agents explain about particular services offered by the hotel. For example, in the dialogue, the front desk agent needed to explain certain things about pamphlets and how to use the phone. By doing this he lets the customers know the amenities exist and where to get more information if interested. |
| Brandon: That’s right. For example, "We've recently installed a hot tub in our pool area and between the hours of 9 to 5, we have a lifeguard on duty." |
Outro |
|---|
| Brandon: Well, that’s all for this lesson. Thanks for listening! |
| Becky: And we’ll see ya next time! Bye! |
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