There is something that is a dangerous threat to your front desk, lurking in the shadows, waiting to pounce as soon as the going gets tough: the fluster bug! But have no fear; there are many ways to prevent this from happening.
The fluster bug is characterized as a sudden burst of members, phone calls, questions, complaints, requests, etc. that barrage your receptionists all at once, leaving them feeling completely overwhelmed and flustered. Many times, this feeling of tension and frustration lingers much longer than the event itself. The problem is not usually the event, but the long-lasting reaction to it.
Any club can encounter this problem because of the tendency to staff according to your club’s specific, normal traffic. But normal traffic can often increase exponentially and spontaneously, especially around this time of year. The difficulty comes when member traffic/needs increase, but your staffing stays the same. Your receptionists will be tested in these situations, and I am not saying to expect them to not be overwhelmed or not get flustered. We all would have those reactions in certain situations.
The key, however, is to never let the member see that.
Consider that simple idea (to never let the member see that) as the flu shot for the fluster bug. Often times at GHF we’ll have a daily traffic of 3,000 members, five lines ringing at once, 40 guests a day, and countless members with account questions while only having three people working the desk. That’s a lot going on at once. But I don’t expect my receptionists to not feel overwhelmed. What I do expect from them is to smile big, take a deep breath (or a few), and work quickly, efficiently, and effectively.
We’ve all seen people working in different service positions that run around (literally…run), throwing things, dropping things, looking like they’re on the verge of tears because there’s a line of customers forming. And the result is usually always the same: they get the same amount of work done as they would if they were calm, cool, and collected, yet the customers are infected with the tension and negative energy. Don’t let this happen! We would all rather wait in line and then be finally greeted by a friendly, calm face than wait in line the same amount of time and be greeted by someone who doesn’t make eye contact because they’re trying to do 15 things at once and about to have a breakdown.
The fluster bug is a dangerous infection, but, with an ounce of prevention and training, your staff will be immune to it.
Amanda Purser is the Front Desk Manager at Gainesville Health & Fitness. She can be reached at APurser@ghfc.com.
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Rachel Zabonick-Chonko is the editor-in-chief of Club Solutions Magazine. She can be reached at rachel@peakemedia.com.
