With a Service-Driven Team Culture, Digital Tipping Pays Off at Hilton Richmond Downtown

“For the younger generation, it’s all about having the right digital technology,” said John Cario, General Manager at Hilton Richmond Downtown.

These days, carrying cash is an afterthought, but tipping service staff is very much a part of American culture. For Cario, Grazzy’s digital tipping platform is the right technology to help guests leave tips even when they don’t have cash.

Cario signed his hotel up with Grazzy in July 2023 to help the housekeeping team earn more. The team’s culture around great service has helped them accumulate meaningful tip earnings every month since, and those tips feed back into their strong team culture.

“We had been talking about digital tipping since the pandemic, looking for ways to reward our associates and improve retention for our team. I think it’s long overdue and I’m glad we have Grazzy in place, it’s a great platform,” Cario said.

"Digital tipping really motivates the team to do a better job."

The self-supporting cycle of more gratitude

Grazzy was built to get more money to hardworking teams, and reduce turnover and labor costs for businesses. In the real world, Grazzy can also motivate teams to go the extra mile, and even inspire positive interactions between service workers and their customers. 

When the housekeeping team at Hilton Richmond Downtown signed up with Grazzy, there was immediate excitement and impact.

“Everybody was excited and ready to sign up, and I think it made our scores better with a little friendly competition in the team,” said Renee Jackson, the hotel’s housekeeping manager.

“It motivates everyone to do a better job,” Jackson explained. “You know, you’re leaving this card in the room. It has your name on it, and of course you want the guest to leave a great comment. Of course you want them to leave them a tip. Your work stands behind that card.”

Digital tipping business cards with a QR code and a line for a signature. Materials like these put your brand and your team front and center with guests.

Over time, that motivation has fostered team pride about the work. Jackson explained that she uses Grazzy reports to start each week with congratulations for those who are earning a lot of tips, which reinforces the basic value of the program for the whole team. But the stories around those tips matter, too.

“To me, digital tipping is also inspiring the team to want to talk with guests, and we share those stories with each other, too. Sometimes they’ll come down from the floor and say ‘I met this great guest on the floor today, and they wanted to buy me a coffee.’ Those interactions are another incentive to keep doing a great job,” Jackson said.  

How to maintain digital tipping’s impact for the business

The Grazzy team reached out to Hilton Richmond Downtown after noticing a dip and then a resurgence in tips in the winter. We wanted to understand the cause of the dip, but also how the team not only rebounded, but beat their best month twice in a row, too.

What we learned was simple, but powerful. The tip dip they experienced in late 2023 was a combined result of seasonality and too few program materials on hand, but it served as a good reminder of what Grazzy was helping the team bring in.

"Your work stands behind that card"

Good program maintenance – ordering materials, making sure they’re used – is critical for more tips. But also, “Keeping the message alive and well,” is now one key to the team’s continued success, Cario explained. 

His advice to other GMs considering or getting started with digital tipping is similar: HR should talk about tip earnings while recruiting new teammates. “Highlighting that the starting wage is ‘X’, but you can earn more with tips, that’s a selling point,” he said.

Making sure new managers get educated on Grazzy fast will also help make sure the team is getting the full benefit of the program, he said. Just as helpful is simply talking about digital tipping and its impact at team meals or meetings. Keeping the message alive helps everyone understand the value and their role in the program’s success.

How can digital tipping help your team?

For information about the impact Grazzy digital tipping can have for your team, reach out to us here or email at info@grazzy.com 

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