Concierge: What is the cost of hiring?

Why hire a concierge?

A concierge is the first point of contact for businesses, such as hotels and condominium buildings. They specialize in customer service and will help guests with making dining reservations, arranging transportation, or recommending activities to do in the area.

Contributions of a great concierge:

• Very friendly and personable
• Will have a wide knowledge of local activities and sites
• Can make sure guests feel special

What are the different types of concierges?

A concierge is a guest services representative and can work in many different environments. Though most people think of concierges as working in hotels, there are a variety of places that have a concierge on staff. A concierge has to be able to talk to anyone, always be friendly, and know a lot about the business as well as the area. The following is a list of common concierge roles:

• Hotel concierge: Will help guests navigate the area, make dinner reservations or arrange transportation.
• Condominium concierge: Will greet all guests and residents to the building, sign for packages, and keep track of overnight visitors.
• Travel concierge: Will help tourists make tour reservations.
• Medical concierge: Will give directions to people visiting the hospital or medical care facility.
• Concierge security guard: Will work as both a concierge and security guard.

Where to find a concierge

To find the right concierge for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Professional organizations: There are local concierge organizations where you can post jobs for people who are already in the profession. By looking at professional organizations, you can make sure that the candidates you find already have experience.
• Hotel industry job boards: There are job boards that are dedicated to the hotel industry. You can post your concierge job posts on these job boards to get high-quality candidates.
• Referrals: By asking your friends, family, and colleagues, you might be able to find a concierge for your organization that is already trained and skilled for the job.

Post your job online: Try posting your concierge job on Indeed to find and attract quality concierge candidates.

Skills to look for in a great concierge

A great concierge candidate will have the following skills and attributes as well as work experience that reflects:

• Expert customer service skills
• Oral and verbal communication skills
• Knowledge of local area attractions
• Keen attention to detail
• Knowledge of business with the ability to answer questions about the company

Writing a concierge job description

A thoughtful description is important for finding qualified concierge candidates. A concierge job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities, and the required and preferred skills for the position.

When writing your concierge job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on concierge jobs, according to Indeed data:

• Concierge
• Security guard
• Customer service
• Hotel
• Front desk

Interviewing concierge candidates

Strong candidates for concierge positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• Experience dealing with difficult customers
• Ability to clearly give directions
• Experience making arrangements for transportation, dinner reservations
• Clear knowledge of local attractions and events
• Experience working with a variety of different people

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of concierge interview questions for examples (with sample answers).