April 2018 - Customer Service Training Manual - WORKING - Google Docs

 

○ However, if the customer is the one who is initiating the conversation, they are 
required to use the contact form. 

Main tools in Freshdesk 

 

 

1. New: Create new tickets (phone log), new emails, new contacts (customers), new 
companies (suppliers) 

2. Search: Search for tickets by email addresses, ticket ID, GYG numbers, names, etc. 
3. Notifications: Notifies you of any actions taken on your tickets 
4. Accept Assignment Button: Turn ON at start of shift & OFF when leaving. Allows 

you to receive assignments. 
5. Account and Settings: Lets you see your preferences, profile information and 

keyboard shortcuts 
6. Your Ticket Overview: Shows you an overview of your current ticket volume and 

status 
7. Today’s Trends: An overview of all your tickets from the current and the previous 

day 
 
A. Dashboard: The Freshdesk home page 
B. Tickets: Where your daily assignments are stored 
C. Contacts: List all the supplier and customers’ contact information 
D. Knowledge Base: A knowledge database of all our procedures, stored within 
Freshdesk 
E. Reports: Statistics on emails, CSAT, and productivity 
F. Admin: Where TLs set automated rules to help you work more effectively 

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Statuses of emails 

○ Open (when we have received an email/reply from the customer or supplier) 
○ Pending (the email we have sent is waiting for a reply from the customer or 

supplier)  
○ Resolved (the email has been solved) 
○ Closed (after 7 days of being resolved, cases get closed; you should should 

manually close phone logs when they do not require a follow up email) 
○ Waiting on Senior Reps (the case has been escalated to the Senior Reps; you 

should not manually use this status) 

How to create a new email 

 

1. Click on ‘New email’ 
2. Fill in the: email address, subject line, status (resolved or pending), main contact 

reason and ticket language 
3. To write your message, click ‘Show more fields’ 

 

 

 

 

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4. Write your email in the ‘Description’ field 
5. There is no need to change the ‘Priority’, ‘Type’ or ‘Is it a child ticket?’ 
6. If available, enter the information for ‘ Group’, ‘GYG Booking Reference Number’  
7. Send your email 

 
● You should also log in Freshdesk all the calls you receive. Try logging the call while you have 

the customer on the phone. For more detail, please check section “Phone script and how 
to log calls”. 

Anatomy of an email 
○ Status and Service Level 
○ Tags 
○ Email body 
○ Reply 
○ Add note 
○ Forward 
○ Merge 

 

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○ Contact Reason 
○ Booking Reference Number (if applicable) 
○ Assign to 
○ Ticket Language  
○ Status 
○ Contact Details 
 

 

 
 
How and when to merge emails 
 
○ It's important to always check if a customer has sent us two or more similar 
requests. If this is the case, we can merge the emails involved. 
 
■ This is very useful as it avoids two CS Reps working on a case which could 
be replied by only one. 
■ Especially when we are in high season or experiencing a backlog; this is a 
great time-saver.  
 
○ It is possible to merge emails from multiple email addresses. 

○ Whilst writing an email, click the ‘Merge’ button at the top. 

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○ This will open the ‘Merge ticket’ tab. Search for the GYG number/ticket number or 

email address of the customer you want to merge with. 
○ Click (+) and choose the primary email. 

 

○ Click ‘Continue’. The emails are now merged. 

How and when to merge customers 
 

○ Freshdesk also lets us merge customers 
 

■ This is useful when a customer uses different email addresses and we want 
to see the emails under one customer name. 

 
○ When working on a ticket, click on the customer’s name in the ‘Contact Details’, on 

the right-hand side.  
■ In case you don’t see the ‘Contact Details’, click the ‘i’ icon to open the 
‘Contact Details’. 

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○ This will open the customer’s information page in Freshdesk. Click on the ‘Merge’ 
button at the top of the page. 

○ A tab will open where you can search for the email address you wish to merge with. 

○ Choose which email address you wish to be the primary one. The system will now 
consider these two email addresses as one customer. 

 

3.2 How to Categorize Cases
 

 
All new cases that come into Freshdesk are automatically labelled and assigned to representatives 
based on multiple filters running in the background.  
 
When you reply to a new email, you will need to specify the following properties: 

○ Main Contact Reason: Always categorize the case by filling in the main contact 
reason and all levels that appear once you have selected the main contact reason. 
Please read the “Categories” section in the appendix for more information.  

○ GYG Booking Reference Number: Fill in if applicable 

○ Ticket language: The language of the customer/booking. We should always answer 
customers in the same language they write to us. For example, if the customer is 
German but contacted us in English, we should reply in English.  
However, if you feel that the customer is struggling with the language in which they 
first wrote to us, you can offer to reply in their native language. If they agree, please 
do so. 

○ Status: This field is mandatory but does not need to be changed manually. You can 
automatically change the status when sending the email by clicking ‘▲’ next to the 
‘Send’ button. 

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○ Emails get reassigned to an available representative after 8 hours if no action has 
been taken. This way we make sure that emails are not blocked in a representative’s 
inbox. 

○ If you are off for more than two days, you should talk to a colleague and then 
assign your cases to him/her, leaving all the necessary information. Although 
cases automatically get reassigned, it will make work easier for your colleagues if 
you hand over your cases. 
 

○ ‘Send and set as Pending’ vs. ‘Send and set as Resolved’ (click ‘▲’ next to the 
‘Send’ button to see these options): if a new email needs to be answered, categorize 
and then click ‘Send and set as Pending’ in order to keep the message open for an 
answer. If no answer is necessary, categorize and ‘Send and set as Resolved’, in 
order to close the case. 

● Spam cases: Mark the email as spam by clicking on the three dots next to the ‘Merge’ 
button and selecting ‘Spam’. 

 
 
● Voicemails: When customers cannot reach us, because no CS Rep is available for the 
chosen language line, they have the option to leave a voicemail. Those voicemails will then 
be sent as a wav. file and end up in Freshdesk. 
○ The voice message looks like this: 

 

   
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○ We can see the customer’s phone number (if they are displaying their phone 
number in outgoing calls) in CLID (caller ID). 

○ Click on the attachment in order to listen to the voicemail. 

○ Call back the customer (remember to check the time zone first).  

■ If it is too early to call the customer, leave a note in the Freshdesk case, 
summarizing the message and call back at a decent time.  

■ An appropriate time to call is between 9am-6pm local time. 
 

○ If you cannot reach the customer, leave a voicemail for the customer, if possible, 
and resolve the voicemail in Desk. Customers should be able to see in their missed 
calls that we tried to contact them. If it is urgent, they will call back. 

○ If the customer has an existing booking, please remember to also leave a comment 
in the booking.  

○ If customers choose not to display their phone number in outgoing calls, and are 
not mentioning any contact information in the voicemail, (or state their booking 
reference number or name), resolve the voicemail right away. In this case, we do 
not have any possibility to reach out to the customer. 

○ In case you open a voicemail in a language you do not speak, assign it to the correct 
language queue. 

○ Remember to always categorize the voicemail. 

○ If you use a Chromebox, please refer to the CS Site for instructions 

■ https://sites.google.com/a/getyourguide.com/cs-site-2/tools/newvoice
media *** 

  

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3.3 Answering Emails  

 

● How to add canned responses 

○ We have many pre-written replies that can save time and effort when answering 
emails.  

○ When replying/ forwarding an email, click the icon that shows a speech bubble with 
a star inside. Alternatively, you can also use the shortcut ‘/c’ to open the canned 
responses window. 
 

 

 
○ Each canned response has a “Quickcode” that you can enter in a search box.  
○ Canned responses are available in our main languages (EN, DE, IT, FR, ES, PT and 
PO).  
○ Insert the desired code into in your email reply.  
○ When using the canned responses icon, Freshdesk allows you to create your own 
canned responses. 

 

 
 

● The difference between ‘Reply’ and ‘Forward’: 

○ Reply: This is used when we want to reply to the person/email that initially 
contacted us. It is sent as an email. 

○ Forward: This is used when we want to send an email to anyone else except the 
person who initially contacted us. It is sent as a note. Before you click ‘Forward’, 
make sure to click the three dots (...) at the bottom, left-hand side of the email box 
and delete the initial email(s) from the email thread.  

 

The option to forward emails is especially helpful when handling complaint cases, when we 
moderate both the supplier and customer’s messages or when we need to deal with questions prior 
to booking. 

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○ For example: when a customer sends a complaint: 
● Send a reply to say that you are working on the case (template: CG 
FOLLOW UP) 
● In the same email thread,click ‘Forward’ send your refund request to the 
supplier (template/ canned response : CG REF REQ COMPLAINT). 
Remember to erase the customer’s email and your follow up from the email 
you are going to forward. 
● If/when the supplier replies, get back to the customer by clicking ‘Reply’. 

 
● Send and set as Pending vs. Send and set as Resolved 

○ You can automatically change the status when sending an email by clicking ‘▲’ next 
to the ‘Send’ button. 

 

○ Send and set as Pending : this will send your message and put the case into 
Pending. It will remain visible in your tickets .  

○ Send and set as Resolved: this will send your message and resolve the case so that 
it no longer appears in your tickets. 

● If the customer replies, the thread will open again. The case will be 
assigned to the next available representative covering that specific 
language.  

● If the customer does not reply within one week, the resolved email will 
automatically close.  

○ We do not manually set ‘Send and set as Closed’ and ‘Send and set as Waiting on 
Senior Reps’. 

○ When you resolve a case, a CSAT link will be automatically sent to customers, as 
below. The current CSAT target for Freshdesk is 90%: 

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● Attaching documents 

○ To attach a document to an email, you should click the paperclip icon in the bottom 
left-hand corner. 

○ Attachments DO NOT transfer across emails. If you would like to refer to a 
previous attachment, you would have to manually re-add it. 

 

 

● Scenario automations 

● When you use a scenario automation, certain actions are automatically done to an 
email (for example the status might be automatically set). 

● For now, there is only the ‘Escalate to Senior Reps’ scenario automation which will  
○ Automatically assign a ticket to the Senior Rep’s queue 
○ Change the status to ‘Waiting on Senior Reps’ 
○ Change the priority to ‘High’ 

 
● To execute a scenario, click the three dots next to the ‘Merge’ button and select 

‘Execute scenarios’ 
● Remember to leave a note for the Senior Reps summarizing the case. 
 

   
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3.4 Pre-booking Questions  

 

● When customers have questions regarding an activity before submitting a booking, we 
always check first whether we have the information at our disposal and are able to reply to 
the customer’s question(s): 

○ Tour description 
○ Tour or supplier comments 
○ GYG tours FAQ sheet 
○ CS site 
○ Supplier’s website 
○ Google 
 

● In case we are not able to answer the question based on the information available, we need 
to forward the question to the supplier. Common scenarios are: 

○ Tour/ activity specific questions 
○ Questions about pick-up, departure and return times 
○ Customized booking requests 

When forwarding a question to the supplier, inform the customer of this so that they know 
their question is being dealt with. 

● When  dealing  with  pre-booking  questions,  make  sure  not  to  add  any  customer  contact 
details  in  your  message  to  the  supplier  and  vice  versa.  Otherwise,  the  supplier  and  the 
customer could get directly in touch and skip GetYourGuide. Therefore, it is very important 
to  remember  to  erase  the  customer’s  message  (via  the  three  dots  under  the  signature) 
when forwarding a question to the supplier. 

● When  a  customer  asks  a  question  about  an  activity that will take place in less than 24 
hours and we do not know the answer, you should call the supplier instead of forwarding 
the question. If the supplier is in a different time zone, hand over the request to someone 
who  is  working  during  their  opening  hours.  If  it  is  not  possible  to  reach  the  supplier  by 
phone,  inform  the  customer  accordingly,  answer  the  question  the  best  you  can/  suggest 
alternative tours in the same city/ region. 

 

● If a supplier does not reply within 24 hours to a pre-booking question, call the supplier. If 
you cannot reach the supplier, send a reminder by email. In case the supplier does not reply 
within 24 hours to this second email, close the question as follows: 

○ Apologize to the customer 
○ If possible, answer the question as good as you can 
○ Suggest alternative tours in the same city/ region 

 

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3.5 Last Minute Pick-up Requests  

 
When a customer asks to confirm a pick-up for an urgent booking (within 24 hours), proceed as 
follows: 

● Categorize the case 

○ The category to be used is 3.3.1. ([POST booking] Existing Booking / 
Meeting point / I want to schedule my pick-up) 
 

● As soon as the customer contacts us (email/call), you should call the supplier; 

● If you can reach the supplier, provide the customer with all the details; 

● If you cannot reach the supplier, send a pick-up pending email to the customer (template/ 
canned response: GSPOST PICK UP PENDING), followed by a pick up request to the 
supplier, with the customer in CC (template/ canned response: GSPOST PICK UP 
REQUEST).  
In the PICKUP PENDING email, also inform them that:  

○ we couldn't reach the supplier by phone; 

○ we have sent a pick-up request to the supplier with the customer in CC; 

○ we recommend that the customer also tries to proactively to contact the supplier 
by phone (we should include the supplier’s contact details in our email, just to be 
sure). 

○ both emails sent to customer and supplier should be in the same thread and be 
resolved. 
 

3.6 Supplier Cancellations (Free-sale and Confirmed, On-demand)  

 
When a supplier wants to cancel a booking that is already confirmed, you should: 
 

● SUPPLIER CALLS TO CANCEL A CONFIRMED BOOKING: 

○ Ask the supplier for the reason for the cancellation and leave a note in the booking 

○ Accept the cancellation 

○ Log the call 

○ Email the customer about the cancellation 

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● CUSTOMER CALLS SAYING THAT THEIR BOOKING WAS CANCELLED BY SUPPLIER: 

○ Apologize to the customer 

○ Reassure customer that we will ask supplier for a refund 

○ Log the call  

○ Email the supplier, using the template/ canned response "CG Refund Supp Cxl" 

○ When the supplier replies, confirm the cancellation 

○ Resolve the case 

 

● SUPPLIER EMAILS ABOUT CANCELLING A BOOKING: 

○ Cancel the booking 

○ Refund the customer 

○ Email the customer about the refund and cancellation 

○ Resolve the case 
 

● CUSTOMER EMAILS ABOUT THEIR BOOKING BEING CANCELLED BY SUPPLIER: 

○ Email the customer, using the template/ canned response "CG Follow Up" 

○ Email the supplier, using the template/ canned response "CG Refund Supp Cxl" 

○ When the supplier replies, confirm the cancellation 

○ Refund the customer 

○ Resolve the case 

 

3.7 Invoice Requests  

 

● If a customer contacts us requesting an invoice for VAT purposes, we need to ask the 
supplier for it. This is because we are not the actual tour operators, therefore, we cannot 
issue invoices to our customers. Invoices always have to be issued by our local partners. 

● You should send the template/ canned response CS - EN SUPP INVOICE REQUEST to the 
supplier and you should reply to the customer’s email accordingly. 

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● Please keep in mind that, if the supplier comes back to us with any issues regarding the 
invoice, we should escalate it to the Destination Manager via the Senior Reps. 

● Additionally, if we are the supplier, there are specific processes that have to be followed.  
● As an example, please see the ‘3rd Party Bookings Overview’ section for further 
details. Please assign these invoice requests to the Senior Reps. They will be able to 
issue an invoice. 

 
 

3.8 How to Log Calls
 

 
● Log all inbound calls in Freshdesk but not outbound calls. However, if there’s a booking, 
always write a comment for inbound (IBC) and outbound (OBC) calls in Portal.  
● To log a call, follow these steps: 

 

 

 

1. Click on ‘New’ to create a new ticket. ‘Tickets’ are what Freshdesk calls ‘Phone Logs’ 
2. Fill in the contact reason 

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3. In case the customer has no booking yet and we do not know their email address, fill in 
[email protected]. If the customer’s email address is known, use this one 
instead 

4. Keep the fields from ‘Subject’ to ‘Assign to’ blank 
5. Set the status 

● ‘Closed’ when no follow-up email is needed 
● ‘Open’ when a follow-up email is needed (assign the call log to yourself) 
6. Click ‘Create’ to create the phone log. If the description field was left blank, as it should be, 
the message will say ‘Not given’ 
7. If you need to send a follow-up email, use: 
● ‘Reply’ (same email as phone log) 
● ‘Forward’ (a different email, as a note) 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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4.0 CUSTOMER LIVECHAT

 

4.1 LiveChat Overview  

 

LiveChat offers customers the possibility to chat with one of our CS Reps. It is available on activity 
pages. Customers mostly use LiveChat for pre-booking questions. We are covering our 5 main 
languages (EN, DE, FR, ES, and IT). The current LiveChat hours are from 09:00 am until 5:30 pm. 

 

 

 

4.2 How LiveChat works  

 
To receive chats, you need to be in the status ‘Accept chats’.  

When selecting ‘Don’t accept chats’, you won’t receive any new chats. However, you will be able to 
finish your previous chats. 

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This is how LiveChat looks like from a CS Rep perspective: 

 

On the left-hand side, you can see your chats. You can access each individual chat by clicking the 
corresponding chat button. 

We use message sneak-peek, which allows us to see what the customer is typing in before sending 
it over. This way we can start gathering information faster and make our responses quicker.  

Another time-saver are canned responses. To use a canned response type in hash (#) followed by 
the quickcode. You will find a list of the canned responses in the appendix section. 

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Next to the chat window, you will see the customer details. This can come in handy when you need 
to determine which activity the customer is referring to. The section ‘Visited pages’ shows you the 
customer’s browser history. 

 

 
If you need to hand over a chat to another representative or language group, you can do so by 
clicking the 3 dots (...) in the upper-right corner of the chat window and choosing ‘Transfer to’. 
 
 

 

  

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5.0 3RD PARTY BOOKINGS 

 

5.1 3rd Party Bookings Overview  

 

What is 3PB? 

● 3PB is a way for GYG to acquire key inventory that we would otherwise not be able to have 
on our website. We do this by purchasing tickets for customers directly on the supplier 
website (B2B or B2C). 

● The 3PB team uses the Supplier Administration tool to monitor and confirm all bookings. 
Their aim is to confirm all bookings within 48 hours but this can be affected by limited 
supplier availability, a limited bookable time frame or a high volume of bookings. 

How to find a 3PB product? 

● All 3PB products can be found in the 3PB Overview, which you should bookmark. They can 
also be identified by checking the flag on the ‘Product/Supplier’ box of the Portal booking 
page and on the ‘General’ box of the Portal tour page, as below: 

 

   
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How to contact 3PB? 
● Please send all requests and questions through the 3rd-party-booking Slack channel 
(#3rd-party-bookings) with a brief description and the booking/Freshdesk links. 

 
Common customer questions and how to action 

● Can you please confirm my booking?  
○ Please send the case to the 3PB Slack channel so they can confirm. 
○ Make sure to check the 3PB overview sheet before asking, as some activities have 
restrictions on how long in advanced they can be booked. 
■ For example: The Leaning Tower tickets in Pisa can only be confirmed 2 months 
before the start date of the activity (this is stated on the 3PB overview sheet, so 
there is no need to ask the 3PB team). 

● I need to reschedule or cancel my booking?  
○ Please refer to the cancellation policy stated on the booking page in Portal.  
○ If it is possible to cancel, please process the cancellation as normal and then inform 
the 3PB team via Slack. 
○ In case of an exceptional situation (multiple pushback emails from the customer or 
sickness/death), please refer to the internal policy found on the 3PB overview and 
contact 3PB, if applicable.  
■ However, for exceptional cases it is up to the Senior Reps discretion 
whether to apply a Goodwill refund, or not. 

● Do I need to print my voucher?  
○ Please refer to the GYG webpage for the tour in question 
○ The information on the tour page will show either: 
■ Printed voucher accepted 
■ Mobile voucher accepted 
○ If you do not see one of the options above on the tour page, this means that the 
voucher method is not accepted 

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● I got the wrong tickets?  

○ Please inform 3PB via the Slack channel (#3rd-party-bookings). 

● I need more information about this product?  

○ Refer to the GYG tour page, Portal and the Google sheet ‘GYG tours FAQ’.  

○ If you have still not found the requested information, please contact 3PB on the 
Slack channel (#3rd-party-bookings). 
 

3PB rescheduling/cancellations in Portal  

● If you can see a 3PB product in Portal cancellations, do not take action. 

○ They will be taken care of by a member of the 3PB Team 

■ The 3PB team handles the cancellation requests of the following suppliers 
in Portal (this list can also be found in the appendix): 

● Disneyland Paris 
● Encore Tickets LTD 
● GetYourGuide Tours & Tickets GmbH 
● San Diego Zoo and San Diego Safari Park 
● Strömma Turism & Sjöfart AB 

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● Visit OSLO 
 

● You can easily check if the booking is a 3PB, in the booking page, by checking the answer on 
the row ‘Third Party Booking?’.  
○ If it is ‘Yes’, then it is a 3PB (and you should not touch the Portal CXL!)  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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6.0 B2B TEAM

 

6.1 B2B Team Overview
 

The B2B Team provide support to resellers and suppliers with the priorities 3 and 4. The team 
consists of Anna Corpas, Benedetta Lepri, Chiara Cecchini, Florian Wever, Jesse Verhoef, Jo-Ann 
Casupanan, Suzy Nader, Victoria D’Souza and Wioletta Galan. 

 

6.2 Resellers  

 

● GetYourGuide offers a partnership structure with different categories based on volumes 
of traffic and integration tools needed. 

● General affiliation is the first level of the program and offers a variety of tools, including 
general advertising materials, such as banners and widgets, and the access to a Partner 
Dashboard, which allows tracking of the activities and results. 

● The advanced partnership tier is open to our top performing partners that have already 
established a working relationship with GetYourGuide. Advantages in this tier range from 
an increased commission rate to access to additional integration tools like our API. 

Who are our resellers? 

● Travel writers (bloggers) 
● Airlines and booking partners 
● Travel agents 

 

Why do we work with resellers? 
● Huge market. 

● We get a lot of bookings from these resellers. 
● GetYourGuide will establish itself with these resellers. 
 
Reseller registration 

● Resellers can sign up on https://partner.getyourguide.com/en    
 

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How a reseller makes a booking 

● Travel agencies need to book through the reseller account. After login, they need to click 
on the “Book now” button. The button will lead them to our website, with a yellow banner 
on the top saying they are logged in as a travel agent. All bookings made through this 
account will be tracked.  
Some bigger travel agencies submit their booking via API (e.g. TUI Deutschland, FTI, Ctrip, 
etc.). 

          Travel writers, airlines & booking partners do not book on the website. The customers 
  book themselves 

●

○ They work with online integration tools, such as deep links and widgets linked to 
our webpage.  

○ By clicking on one of these tools the customer is directed from the reseller website 
to our website.  

○ If the customer books, the reseller gets the commission thanks to the reseller 
tracking ID integrated in these tools. 

 

 

Recognizing a reseller booking 
 
 

● Reseller info box on a tour page 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Reseller - commission 
 

● Travel agencies usually get 10 % commission. Some bigger travel agencies (e.g. TUI, FTI, 
Ctrip, etc. ) get between 10 % and 20 % commission:. 

● Travel writers and airlines & booking partners usually get 8 % commission (big resellers 
get higher commission).  

 

How the B2B team support resellers 

● Technical integration tools (widget, deep link and API) 

● Payment related questions 

● Booking related questions for TUI Deutschland, FTI, Ctrip, etc.  

● Reseller discount 

● Miles&More (Europe’s biggest frequent flyer and award program)  

 

6.3 Suppliers  

● The B2B team also take care of suppliers with the priorities 3 and 4. 

● Suppliers with the priorities 1 and 2 tend to contact their Destination Manager. The B2B 
team deal with those suppliers only when they have technical issues with their accounts. 

 

Supplier registration 

● Suppliers can sign up on https://supplier.getyourguide.com/en/    

 

How the B2B team support suppliers 

● Product related questions 

○ Cut-off time 
○ Cancellation policy 
○ Tour approvals 
○ Availability 

● Supplier administration related questions 

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○ Account issues 
○ VAT/ company policy 
○ Insurance policy 
○ Agenda 
○ Deactivation of tours 
● Questions about commission increase 
● Payment related requests 
○ Invoices 
○ Failed payment 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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7.0 EMAIL ETIQUETTE

7.1 Templates/ Canned responses  
 

Why are they important? 

● They save time 

● They set the tone for the company’s professional image 

Templates/ canned response make our work more efficient and help us solve customer problems in 
a standardized way. However, templates/ canned response require some amount of 
personalization in order to be as effective as possible. Otherwise, customers will feel that they are 
not being taken seriously. 

You can read through full template/ canned response texts in the Canned responses section in 
Freshdesk. 

You can view an index of all templates/ canned response, with Quickcodes (“QCs”) and a brief 
summary, in the Master Templates for Desk, in Google Drive: 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1oMpZmaHx_dVIZpLo40klfApsN2y4gtYJ_3VYgG4j
0O0/edit?ts=569e0133#gid=0  

 
How to personalize a standard text 

● Use a clear subject line: briefly describe the reason for your email. A subject line should be 
neutral and informative. 

● Address the customer by name in the greeting. 

We use a semi-formal tone in our communication and adapt to the content of the communication. 

For example: greeting the customer by “Dear + First Name” is normally sufficient.  

Of course, if you are handling a case in another language and you feel the greeting needs to be 
adapted, please do what is culturally sensitive. Use a polite and professional tone. 

● Thank the customer for their email. 

● Reply to the question the customer asked. 

○ Identify the question or concern. 

○ Identify a solution. 

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○ State any actions you are taking on the booking 

○ For example: If you are giving a refund, state the specific amount and when they 
can expect to receive it 

○ If you need to provide instructions, be clear and concise. Bullet points help! 

● Add specific information about the booking: tour title, date, reference number, etc. 

● Provide further information (check ‘First-time resolution’). 

● Proofread for typos and spelling before sending. 

● In closing, thank the customer again for their email, offer any further assistance and (when 
appropriate) wish them a pleasant trip to their destination. 

● Use an appropriate closing salutation, based on language and the content of the 
correspondence. 

Sometimes, a template/ canned response is partially, but not entirely, appropriate to a customer’s 
reply. Use the template/ canned response anyway but feel free to rearrange, add or delete 
information as necessary - get creative! 

The tone for all contact with customers should be warm but natural. The goal is not to sound 
robotic: show empathy, be polite and demonstrate that you are willing to help.  
 
Keep the structure simple and be consistent in your formality. 

7.2 When Customers Complain  

 

Why do customers get angry? This is mainly about expectations: a customer expects one thing 
and their actual experience is different. Generally this is due either to inaccurate information 
provided before the tour; a last-minute, unforeseeable change; or a lack of knowledge or a 
misunderstanding on the part of the customer. 

Examples: 

● A supplier adds a tour to GYG and then later changes the itinerary without updating the 
GYG product page 

● A supplier changes their product page on GYG in the master language and Content does 
not make the change in other languages or the automatic translation is not accurate 

● A tour is cancelled due to bad weather 

● A customer wishes to cancel and is not aware of the cancellation policy 

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● A customer does not read the tour inclusions/exclusions or “Know Before You Go” 
information before booking and is unaware of additional fees or seasonal/conditional 
changes 

In each instance, the manner in which you handle the case will depend on the general reason 
behind the complaint. If the fault is on the supplier’s end or GYG’s end (or if it was out of everyone’s 
control), it is usually much easier to obtain a refund and a resolution that will satisfy the customer.  
 
Cases where the supplier believes that they are in the right or where the problem is due to a 
customer mistake are less likely to end in a positive resolution. 

Regardless of the reason behind the problem, it is our job to remain neutral and objective. Here are 
some guidelines when corresponding with a customer and supplier about complaints. 

Complaint workflow 

○ As seen before in this manual on the Complaints section, identify the exact problem or 
concern. 

○ Do you have enough information to forward to the supplier? 

■ For example: many customers complain that the supplier was not at the meeting point. 
Does the customer say where they were waiting? This kind of information is very helpful 
in building a case on the customer’s behalf. 

○ Let the customer know that we have received their email and are working on the case.  
Template/ canned response: CS - CG FOLLOW UP. 

○ Email the supplier to outline the complaint and request a refund.  
Template/ canned response: CS - CG REF REQ COMPLAINT. 

■ If the customer’s complaint is brief and calm, you can quote it directly. If a customer’s 
complaint is rude, profane or disorganized (typos, unclear formatting, long and 
rambling), please paraphrase/summarize the main points in your email to the supplier 
(also be sure to remove content that is not directly related to the tour/complaint). 

■ Decide the refund amount that you wish to request: full or partial?  

● If partial, what percentage of the total price (or sometimes, a specific amount) do 
you wish to refund? 

■ Set a deadline for a reply:  

● 72 hours for weekdays 

● 5 days (if you email the supplier on a Friday). 

○ If the supplier does not reply, refund when the deadline is up. 

○ If the supplier replies and approves the refund, proceed accordingly. 
Template/ canned response: CG SUPPLIER REFUND GRANTED 

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○ If the supplier replies and declines the refund, we usually push back with the customer. If 
you feel that the customer deserves a refund, refer to the Goodwill Policy for next steps in 
the specific situation (no voucher, customer was late, meeting point issue, etc.). 

Guidelines and best practices 

○ Be polite, sympathetic and concise with both the customer and the supplier. Each side has 
their own story. 

○ Use the Reply/ Forward function when forwarding messages between customer and 
supplier. 

○ Don’t hesitate to ask for more information when necessary. If a customer, or a supplier, says 
that they have proof of something (emails, receipts, photos, credit card statements), ask for 
a copy. It can really help to speed up a case resolution. 

What to do when a customer is dissatisfied with a case resolution 

○ Do they have a valid point…? 

■ If the problem was due to a GYG error, talk to a Senior Rep before proceeding with a 
refund. If a Senior Rep is not present, use your best judgment to determine the amount 
you wish to refund and proceed with the Discount refund. You can review the case later 
with a Senior Rep. 

■ If the complaint is the result of misleading information on GYG, determine where the 
fault lies. Is this truly the supplier’s fault, and if so, do you think it’s worthwhile to go 
back to the supplier with another request?  
Please also refer to the supplier’s Destination Manager (via the Senior Reps) for 
assistance. 

○ …or are they simply dissatisfied with your reply? 

■ If the complaint is the result of the customer’s lack of knowledge or misunderstanding 
(they didn’t read our cancellation policy, they did not read the tour 
description/inclusions/Know Before You Go), you can generally consider the case 
closed. Reiterate the reasons for the outcome and specify the refund amount again (i.e. 
“for this reason, we are not able to offer a [further] refund”). 
Template: CG NO REFUND 

■ There may be a point at which we can no longer help. If the customer isn’t able to 
backup their claim or if the resolution is a final decision, respectfully, but firmly, tell the 
customer that the case is closed. 

■ If they continue to reply in a harassing manner, you can simply close the case without a 
reply. Rising to the bait of accusations or harassment will only make the situation 
worse. 

 

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7.3 First-time Resolution  

Why is it important? 

○ It saves time. 

○ It educates our customers. 

‘First-time resolution’ refers to answering a customer’s first communication (email or call) in such a 
way that they do not need to contact us again. Usually, this involves a combination of answering 
their direct question and providing extra information to answer further questions they may ask. 

How to do it 

○ Answer all questions that the customer asks. 

● Before sending your reply, re-read the customer’s message to make sure you have 
addressed all of their questions. 

● Provide simple solutions for problems/troubleshooting. 

● If a customer’s request is vague, provide as much help as possible to lead them to 
the answer.  

○ For example: if someone asks, “I want to book the desert safari tour”, you can explain 
how to search for and book a tour, and also send a link to our desert safaris in Dubai 
(the most popular destination for this type of tour).  

○ This might make their search easier. 

● Answer questions not asked/back up your answer. 

■ For many general support cases, customers actually aren’t aware how GYG 
works. If their question seems to indicate this, start with an explanation to 
set the stage for your answer to their real question. 

■ Back yourself up! Link to the policy pages. 

■ When a refund has been made, specify the exact amount, where it will be 
paid (credit card, PayPal, bank account) and when. 
 

How to predict other questions a customer might ask 

○ Does the customer seem to understand how GYG works? 

○ For many general support questions, it’s clear when the customer doesn’t know that GYG is 
a booking service instead of the actual tour operator. In cases like this, you can provide a 
brief explanation of the company, answer their question, and then provide links or other 

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information to help educate them on how to use the site.  
Template/ canned response: GSPRE WHAT IS GYG 

○ Provide a link to other tours in their travel destination, etc. 

○ Tell them how to contact a supplier with their voucher info. 
 

Is the customer’s request possible? 

Sometimes customers ask for something that we simply don’t have, or can’t do, such as inclusive 
packages, specific types of tours, flights and accommodation, a question that isn’t for GYG, etc. 

● If we don’t have a tour or can’t offer a service, try to find an alternative and provide links.  

● If the question isn’t actually for GYG, take a minute to find contact information for the 
company they need to reach out to. Usually, the Customer Support page on a website is 
sufficient. 

7.4 General Guidelines for Writing Emails  
 
 

● Avoid using all capital letters. 

● Minimize the use of exclamation marks. 

● Keep sentences short: aim for no more than 15 words to a sentence. 

● Proofread briefly before sending. 

● If the customer’s language is not covered on the team, use Google Translate to read the 
question and then reply in English. 

 
 

7.5 GYG Style Guide

 

The Content team has put a style guide for the company, which is useful to keep the same 
standards. Below, is a quick overview of some of the key style components to keep in mind.  
 
Check our EN Style Guide for a complete list of all style considerations. 

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Acronyms 

● Never assume your audience knows what you’re abbreviating. Spell out the acronym in the 
first reference. Example: Skip-the-line; not STL. 

American Spelling 

● Use the US-English spellings of words. For example, traveler, cancellation, familiarize, etc. 

Apostrophes 

● Treat nouns ending with the letter “S” like any other when indicating possession. Only omit 
the extra “S” when indicating possession of a plural word.  

○ For example: (singular): “Wales’s highest mountain”.  
○ For example (plural): “Pick-up directly from guests’ hotels”.  

 
● Never use apostrophes to indicate that something is plural.  

○ For example: iPhones, URLs;  

○ Not: iPhone’s or URL’s. 

Capitalization 

● Avoid all caps. We don’t want to YELL AT OUR CUSTOMERS (or send ransom notes)! 

Commas (serial) 

● Use of the Oxford (serial) comma is a stylistic choice. We do not use it. So, in a series of 
three items or more, do not use a comma before the conjunction such as “and”/ “or”. 

○ For example: “Book tickets, tours and activities”; not “Book tickets, tours, and activities”. 

● In instances where a lack of comma creates ambiguity, change the word order of the 
sentence.  

○ For example: “On the morning tour you can choose from cereal, bacon and eggs and 
toast”.  

○ Clarified example: “On the morning tour you can choose from bacon and eggs, toast and 
cereal”. 

Company name 

● Write GetYourGuide all as one word. Always capitalize each word. Never abbreviate. 

● For other organizations: pay attention to how they write and punctuate their name and 
follow their naming conventions. 

○ For example: PayPal; not Pay Pal. 

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Dates 

● Use the format Month/Day/Year.  

○ For example: March 8, 2018;  
○ Not: 08 March, 2018. 
 
● Do not use a numeric only format such as 3/8/2018, which can be confusing. 

● If specifying a date range, use “from... to” or “from... until”. 

Exclamation marks 

● Yes, we’re enthusiastic, but not manic. Use a single exclamation mark to convey excitement. 

○ For example: “We’re happy to help!”; not “We’re happy to help!!!!”. 

Foreign place names 

● In most cases, use the English version of a place unless the non-English name is more 
common. Not sure? Check out what is used on the English Wikipedia.  

○ For example: Eiffel Tower instead of La Tour Eiffel. 

Numbers 

● Use the figure for all numbers, except if it results in two or more numbers directly next to 
each other.  

○ Wrong: “The cathedral has 4 50-meter spires”.  
○ Right: “The cathedral has 4 spires, each 50 meters tall” or “The cathedral has four 

50-metre spires”. 
 
● Write numbers 1,000 and greater using a comma.  

○ For example: “Access real reviews from 260,000 customers just like you”. 

Periods 

● Use one space after periods.  

○ For example: “Book tours and tickets worldwide. Anytime, anywhere”;  
○ Not: “Book tours and tickets worldwide. Anytime, anywhere”. 

Pick-up and Drop Off 

● Right: “Pick-up is from your hotel” or “Your pick-up will be in a pickup truck”.  
Wrong: “Pickup is from your hotel” and “Pick up is from your hotel”. 

● Right: “Drop off is at your hotel”.  
Wrong: “Drop-off is at your hotel” and “Dropoff is at your hotel”. 

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Pronouns referring to companies 

● When you speak about a company, use the third-person singular: ‘it’ or ‘its’; not ‘they’ or 
‘their’.  

○ For example: “GetYourGuide has several offices. Its Berlin office is on…” 

Times 

● Use the 24-hour clock in the format hh:mm. Do not use AM or PM. 

● Use the format X hours and X minutes for a time duration of more than 1 hour. But use X.5 
hours rather than X hours and 30 minutes. Use the format X minutes for a time duration of 
less than 1 hour. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

  

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8.0 PHONE

8.1 New Voice Media  

 

NewVoiceMedia is the phone system we use and also our telephone number provider for customer 
service, as well as for the rest of the company. 

Once you login, click on "ContactPad", to open a new window. 

Here, you can see your current status and how long you 
have already been in that status. 

Your status will automatically be set to "Ready" when you 
log in. 

If you come into work early, set yourself to “Off shift”. 

How to receive a call 

When your phone rings you will be informed in your NVM 
screen. Accept (or reject) the call by clicking on the button. 

There will be a small pause before the customer is 
transferred to you and you will be told the customer's 
spoken language, by the so-called language whisper. 

How to make an outbound call 

Go to the NVM contact pad and click "Make Call". Copy and 
paste the phone number you wish to ring, remembering any 
area codes (+44, etc.) and click "Dial". 

How to place an outbound call or transfer while the 
customer is on the phone 

You will see the options "HOLD" and "CONSULT" in your 
NVM screen. Please put the customer on "HOLD" so they 
won't be able to hear you (they will hear the hold music); then press "CONSULT" where you will 
have three options: 

● Number (with no scroll down menu): you use this for calling externally, (a supplier for 
example) by copying and pasting the phone number from Portal - remember to include the 
country code!  

● Agent: here you have a scroll down menu with all the CS Reps available. Use only when you 
want to talk with a specific CS Rep or transfer a call. 

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● Language group/Call Queue: to talk (or transfer the call) to someone from a specific 
queue. This is very useful when you don't speak the language of the customer on the phone. 

Once you are talking with another CS Rep or with a supplier you have two options: 

● ALTERNATE While keeping your colleague or Supplier online you're back with the 

customer. 

● TRANSFER You transfer the call to your colleague or the Supplier. You're not in contact 

with the customer anymore and have ended this call. You can do this while talking to the 
customer after pressing ALTERNATE or just directly when talking to another CS 
Rep/Supplier. When you transfer a call to another CS Rep, it will not count towards your 
CPH.   

For a detailed technical guidance on how to use the phone system, New Voice Media, please check 
the CS Site.  

 

8.2 Basic Phone Etiquette  

 

How to greet customers 

Your greeting will depend on the language you are speaking! You are welcome to customize your 
greeting to something that is natural and easy for you to say. 

● At the beginning of a call: 

○ Thank the customer for their call/welcome them: “Thank you for calling 
GetYourGuide”, “Willkommen bei GetYourGuide”, etc. 

○ State your name. 

○ Offer your assistance: “How can I help you?”, “What can I do for you today?”, etc. 

 

● At the end of a call: 

○ Recap the call. 

○ Thank the customer for their call. 

○ Wish the customer well: “Take care”, “Have a great time in ____”, etc. 

○ End with a goodbye appropriate to your language. 
 

○ 

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How to ask for specific information: 

● Booking number, email address, customer name (first and last), invoice number: most 
customers will not give you their booking number up front; some don’t even know where to 
find it. Generally, even if a customer has a long explanation, ask them for their booking 
number or email address before giving any answers. Some customers think that the invoice 
number is the booking number. If they can’t find the booking number or if you’re not able to 
find the email address in Portal, ask for their full name instead (you can also find the 
booking according to their invoice number). 

● Tour product IDs: if a customer says they are looking at a tour, ask them for the product ID. 
It is normally written in the top right corner on the GYG website. If not, direct them to the 
very bottom of the tour page (under the customer reviews), on the left side. You can also 
search for a tour on the website by writing tour:ID number (no spaces).  

● Alternately, if you feel that the customer has a decent grasp on technology and web page 
formats, you can ask them to find the product ID at the end of the tour page URL. 

 
 

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● Supplier IDs: if you get a supplier on the phone with a request that does NOT involve 
existing bookings, but a feature of the supplier account (or any other request), please insist 
to the supplier that they have to contact their Destination Manager or write to B2B/ 
Supply Ops through the contact form in the Supplier Administration. If they say they have 
already written and no reply yet, you apologize and ask for their understanding telling them 
they will get a response as soon as possible. When in doubt, consult with an Senior Rep via 
LiveChat. 

 

Putting customers on hold 

Sometimes you won’t know an answer or may need some time to find it. It’s ok to ask a customer to 
wait! Generally we use the Hold button if you need help from another CS Rep. 

● Holding the phone to ask for help 

○ Tell the customer what you are doing: “I need to ask one of my colleagues, I’ll be 
right back” is fine. 

○ Check back frequently to let them know you are still working on their question. 

○ Thank them for holding, then provide your answer. 

● Calling out to another line 

○ Ask if it’s ok that you put the customer on hold to call a supplier. 

○ Select a second line on which to dial out. 

○ Thank them for holding; apologize if it was a long wait. 

● Forwarding calls to GYG colleagues:  

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○ Put your phone on hold, select the transfer name from the list in the phone tool and 
then hang up. Here are some guidelines for handling specific forwarding reasons: 

■ You don’t speak the language: forward the call to the appropriate language 
line; you don’t need to ask a specific person before forwarding. 

■ A customer asks to speak to a specific CS Rep: ask the CS Rep if you can 
forward the call. 

○ Sales team: as the Sales team is very big, we need to make sure that important 
information does not get lost or that a Destination Manager gets many emails from 
different CS Reps regarding the same issue. So, you should follow this process: 

■ If you identify a case where the Destination Manager should be informed 
or contacted, please escalate the case to a Senior Rep via LiveChat or by 
assigning the case to the Senior Rep queue in Freshdesk. 

■ If a Destination Manager contacts you via email or Slack, please tell them to 
contact the Senior Reps directly ([email protected]). If it is 
very urgent, they can always send an email directly to the Senior Reps Team 
Lead ([email protected]) or speak to him or any Senior 
Rep in Slack. This way we make sure we track all the contacts and take the 
relevant actions avoiding waste of time and miscommunication.  

■ Basically, the communication flow should be always through the Senior 
Reps.  

■ Please always be polite and keep the communication standards when 
speaking to suppliers, as they are our customers as well. 

○ HR: ask for a name and the reason for the call. Check in Slack before forwarding. 

○ Marketing: ask caller to email [email protected] 

○ Reseller program: forward to the B2B team; or have the caller email 
[email protected]  

○ Finance: ask the caller to email the appropriate person directly; suppliers should 
also include their Destination Manager in cc. 

○ Anyone at GYG who does not have a phone (Content, IT): ask the caller to email 
directly. 

○ Founders: they do not have direct lines, ask the caller to email instead. 

How to reply when you can’t hear the other person: 

Sometimes a call doesn’t connect correctly and we can’t hear anything from the other end. If you 
don’t hear anything after greeting the customer: 

 

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● Say ‘Hello’ again. 

● Wait for a reply. 

● Inform the caller that you cannot hear anything and they can try calling back. 

● Thank them for the call and hang up. 

Smalltalk: This is ok! Some customers like to chat. Feel free to engage the caller, but keep in mind 
the task at hand and steer the call back to the original inquiry. 
 

8.3 Escalated/Unusual Calls from Customers  

 

How to manage angry customers: 

Customers are human; they get angry and frustrated, especially when money is involved. In all 
cases, it is our job to remain as neutral, calm and objective as possible. This doesn’t mean that you 
should not empathize but we should not be conspicuously taking sides. Remain calm. 

When a customer has a problem (supplier not at meeting point, tour cancelled, complaint): 

● Offer your sincere apologies. 

● Be patient and never respond with emotions but with empathy. 

● In the beginning of the call, give them time to vent and do not interrupt or argue with them. 
There's no point in explaining before they let it go. 

● Do not tell the customer to calm down. Instead, wait for them to do so and then explain in 
respect to his or her situation. 

● Ask for any necessary info: booking number, whether the customer has called the supplier, 
where they were waiting, what went wrong. Take notes. 

● If you can help immediately (customer is at the wrong meeting point), provide them with a 
solution. 

● If you need to contact the supplier for a resolution, outline the steps that you will take, 
when the customer can expect to hear back from you and how you will reply (phone or 
email). 

● When ending the call, offer your apologies again and reassure the customer that you will be 
in touch soon. 

Ending a call when the customer is being rude/disrespectful or does not accept the answer 
that you have given 

● Remind the customer that you are trying to help and ask them to not use profanity. 

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● Inform them that, if they do not stop, you will have to end the call. 

● If they do not stop, inform them that you are ending the call, and hang up. 

● Pause your phone for a few minutes! Take a breath and let yourself calm down before 
taking more calls. 

Always leave yourself an out; it’s ok to be firm yet vague. If you don’t know the outcome, the 
word “should” is your friend. For example: 

● A customer demands a refund, but the tour has already taken place and you have informed 
them that we will ask the supplier. The customer is concerned that we cannot issue a 
refund immediately: “We are selling this tour on behalf of the local partner. A refund should 
be ok, but we need to check in with the operator before we take any action”. 

● A customer is concerned about a pending booking: “You should receive the confirmation 
within 24-48 hours”. 

Balancing quality and quantity 

● How to end a lengthy call 

○ Every now and then, you may get a customer who wants to talk and talk and tell you 
their life story. As stated previously, smalltalk is ok, but when it gets out of hand, we 
need to wrap things up in order to assist other customers. 

○ You answer a question and the customer starts to tell stories that are not directly 
related to their inquiry: it’s ok to politely interrupt and let them know that there are 
other customers on the line who also require assistance and they can call back later 
if they have further questions. 

○ A customer assumes that we are a travel agency and wishes to book: explain how 
GetYourGuide works and how they can book themselves on the website. 

● Requesting some time to do research and call back later 

○ This is usually for customers who aren’t sure what they are looking for. Especially if 
the call is getting long, tell them that you don’t want to keep them on the phone and 
offer to do some research for them and email them back with some ideas. Take their 
name and email address before ending the call. 

 

8.4 Calls from Suppliers  

 

We can basically put supplier requests in 3 different buckets. So whenever you have a supplier 
calling you, you should ask yourself the question:  

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● Is the supplier's question related to a booking of a customer?  

If the answer is ‘yes’, you can either go ahead and handle the request yourself or you involve 
our Seniors. Everything that involves a customer/booking will be handled by the main 
customer service team.  

● Is the supplier's question related to the onboarding process? 

Whenever you have a supplier on the phone who is asking for the status of his onboarding 
process you can tell them that he will receive an update on his request within the next 7 
days.  

○ What needs to be done in order to speed up the onboarding process? 

Very simple: You just send the Supplier ID to the Senior Rep team via LiveChat. (In 
case you have a Freshdesk case about regarding the same topic, please also 
forward the Freshdesk link) Our Seniors will forward your request to the Supplier 
excellence team and they will get in touch with the supplier within 7 days, promise!  

● Is the supplier's question related to ANYTHING else that doesn't fit into group 1 or 2? 

If the answer is ‘yes’, please tell the supplier to send an email via the supplier contact form. 
(Important: not the customer contact form). The B2B team will answer the questions as 
soon as possible. 

● Who to contact for further information? 
If you have followed the flowchart and are still unsure of how to proceed, please check with 
the B2B team: 

○ By email: [email protected] 
○ By Slack: To be announced (TBA) 
 

8.5 Frequently Asked Phone Questions  

 

What do customers frequently ask? 

● I didn’t receive my confirmation/voucher 

● I want to change the date/time on my booking 

● I want to cancel my booking 

● Is the XXX tour available? 

● I’m at the meeting point and the guide is not here 

Phone bookings 

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● When do we offer to do it? Usually we don’t. If a customer asks to make a booking, please 
inform them that they can book themselves on the website. However, we can book for 
them if: 

○ They are having problems with their payment. 

○ They seem to genuinely not know how to book online (this mostly applies to elderly 
customers). 

● How to book over the phone 

○ Make sure the customer understands that we can only accept payment via Visa or 
MasterCard credit card. We do not accept American Express, Discover, etc. If they 
only have a debit card, we can still try it. 

○ Ask for their credit card currency and select that currency on the site. This is to 
avoid their credit card charging a conversion fee. 

○ Find the tour they wish to book. Ask for the product ID or the exact tour title. 

○ Select their desired date, time and number of participants. Add to cart. 

○ If they want to book more tours, add the other ones to your cart as well. When they 
are done, proceed to checkout. 

○ Have them provide all customer information (name, email,country, phone) and any 
relevant info requested by the supplier (hotel, flights, etc.). 

○ Choose the payment method and proceed to payment. 

○ Ask for the ‘name as printed on the credit card’, then the card number, expiration 
date, and security code. Click Submit. 

○ If the booking does not go through, you can try again or ask the customer for 
another credit card. 

○ If the booking is successful, inform the customer of the confirmation timeframe 
(immediate or within 48 hours) and give them the booking reference number. On 
the booking page in Portal, add a comment stating why you booked over the phone 
and toggle the “Phone booking” option in the ‘GYG Information’ box on in the lower 
right corner of the booking page. 

  

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9.0 GOODWILL POLICY

 

9.1 What is Goodwill?
 

 
Goodwill is a policy that companies can apply to appease customers when something goes wrong. 
Customers have no legal right to claim a goodwill refund and it is always granted on a case-by-case 
basis. Goodwill refunds or gestures are at the discretion of the company. 

An example of goodwill would be: the cancellation policy of a tour states that the activity cannot 
be cancelled or refunded for any reason. A customer booked the tour and then has an accident that 
makes it impossible to attend. The customer asks for a refund and GetYourGuide makes an 
exception, as the supplier does not agree to the refund: we refund from our end due to the 
exceptional circumstance. 

Goodwill is a common instrument in complaint management. It increases customer satisfaction and 
loyalty and creates positive word of mouth. 

 

9.2 Core principles of Goodwill  

 

● Always work with the tour operator to try to find a solution with them. If the supplier does 
not approve a refund, CS will step in to determine if the case is eligible for a goodwill 
refund. 

● We help customers to understand and solve their problem. We reward them for being 
proactive. 

● CS is the customer’s advocate to the supplier. So, we will always try to obtain a refund. 

● CS is not a judge. We are mediating conflicts between customers and suppliers. 

● Word-against-word cases (where the customer and supplier both give conflicting 
information and we cannot determine which one is most accurate) will always be handled 
pro-customer. 

● Goodwill can provide appeasement for dissatisfied and angry customers. 

● If a customer is at fault, we do not offer a refund immediately. Rather, we educate them first 
and, if they push back, we can issue a goodwill refund at our discretion. 

● Specific rules are in place to satisfy customers rather than assuming that every customer 
will purposefully abuse those rules. 

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● We keep a close eye on refunds and their root causes. 

 

9.3 Goodwill Policy  

 
The full Goodwill Policy can be found in this document: 

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1632cxbOtazmMsIT7MY3BYNg1jKVL-r4M2I4b8w
bdqi8/edit  

You can also view the policy on the CS site:  

https://sites.google.com/a/getyourguide.com/cs-site-2/gyg-policies/goodwill-policy  

This document contains tabs for: 

● Core Principles 

● Rules & Guidelines: a list of goodwill rules and guidelines on how to handle specific 
scenarios when customers ask for a refund. 

● Template: Template titles, Quickcodes and a brief description of each. 

● Cancellation/Reduction/Discount Reasons: a list of reasons to enter in a cancellation, 
reduction or discount comment field in Portal when processing a cancellation or refund. 

● Difficult cases: if you have a difficult case, or one where the situation/resolution was not 
clear, please add it in the document so that the Senior Reps can view it for future reference. 

● Success Stories: if you have a case where the application of the Goodwill Policy resulted in 
a happy customer (especially one who was extremely unhappy at the outset), please add it 
in the document! 

 

 

 

  

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10.0 SENIOR REPS

 

10.1 What They Do
 

 
The Senior Reps are a group of CS Reps who provide support to the main team. They are: Abhishek 
Nair, Allira Mayr, Augustine Kuan, Carlos Lopez, Franca Fischer, Jihad Yagoubi, Joanne Gernet, 
João Campos, Katja Lüthke, Laetitia d’Orsanne, Milica Ilic, Nick Attard, Rafael Bediaga, Santiago 
Fiorito, Stamatis Nisyrios, Stefania Facco, and Tugba Diyar. 

Please go to them for the following: 

● Any questions about the site, how something works, clarification on tour information, CS 
work processes and policies, etc. Any question that you might ask in Slack or to your 
neighbor can go to the Senior Reps (exception: if you need to transfer a call to another CS 
Rep for a specific language, please do use Slack to ask for this). 

● Customer payment problems: when customers are having trouble paying or if they have a 
question about a refund. 

● Reactivating cancelled bookings. 

● Escalated cases in queue: any complicated case that is still unresolved after many 
interactions in Freshdesk.  

● Escalated phone calls: when a customer asks to speak to a manager or when you feel you 
can no longer handle the phone call yourself. 

● Mon Petit Paris contacts: when you receive a contact from a customer with a Mon Petit 
Paris booking and you believe that this would be a case that you would normally contact 
the supplier, please assign the case to the Senior Reps queue or escalate the call after 
giving some preliminary information over LiveChat. For this, you will consider the 
guidelines for contacting a supplier in general, not Mon Petit Paris.  

For example: a customer wants to reschedule a booking or informs us after the booked date that 
there was no representative waiting to give them the tickets. In those cases, you need to escalate 
the case to the Senior Reps queue in Freshdesk. 

If a customer calls today to cancel a booking for the day after tomorrow, you wouldn't 
contact Mon Petit Paris due to their non-refund policy. Therefore, we directly push back 
with the customer. If the customer insists, you escalate the case to the Senior Reps.  

In case a customer asks a question about the product itself, you answer the question if you 
know the reply. If you do not know the reply, forward the question to Mon Petit Paris.  

● Approvals for goodwill refunds. 

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● Advice about how to handle a goodwill case or when the policy states that a case must be 
taken over by a Senior Rep. 

● Bugs or issues with connected bookings 

When the Workforce Managers are out of office, the Senior Reps also monitor the New Voice 
Media system. In order to help all of us to achieve our targets and increase customer satisfaction, 
they can see which lines have customers waiting and for how long. They are asked by their Team 
Lead to check who should be available on the phone and, if the CS Rep is not, they will ask why, 
including long wrap up times. Is it to control you? Not at all. It’s to help you and, more importantly, 
to help the Team and to reduce the waiting time of the customers. 

Finally, the Senior Reps handle requests from Sales, special requests/escalations from Facebook, 
Twitter and Instagram, support for other GYG departments, etc. A full list of Senior Rep tasks and 
how you can contact them about each one can be found here: http://bit.ly/1jKzPex  

 

10.2- How to Contact Them  

 
LiveChat: 

● This tool is internal to GYG only and can be accessed by navigating to the Customer Care 
Cockpit in Portal. A pop-up will prompt you to contact a Senior Rep for any requests. 

● Please use LiveChat for urgent questions! Official coverage is from 9:00-18:30 daily. From 
8:00-9:00 and 18:30-20:00, there should be a Senior Rep available, but, if we are receiving 
lots of calls, they may not be able to reply to you immediately.  

● Log in with your name, ask your question and be sure to provide links, booking numbers, 
etc. whenever possible. A Senior Rep can deal with up to 3 simultaneous chats in LiveChat. 
So, please be patient if they do not answer straight away. Try to always ask first via LiveChat 
and to start your conversation specifying if it is a question regarding a call or an email so 
they can prioritize better. It’s very useful to send the case link, if there’s one. 

● When you have your answer, close the chat window to open the queue for other CS Reps to 
ask questions. 

 
Freshdesk queue: 

● If you have an email in Freshdesk that needs to be escalated to the Senior Reps, please 
execute the scenario automation ‘Escalate to Senior Reps’. Remember to leave a NOTE 
explaining why the case is escalated. Your note should include the following: 
urgency/deadline, what you need (advice, info, approval, etc.) and a brief description of the 
problem. This will help you to really understand the case and it will help the Senior Reps to 
know what the problem is in a faster way so they can deal with the more urgent cases first. 
If it’s a case that simply needs to be taken over by the Senior Reps, they will handle it from 

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