Conversational Communication In Instructional Practice

+ Discuss with classmates and practice communication situations.

- Suggestions for solving the situation

+ Have a polite and friendly communication attitude.

+ Clearly state the booking deadline and ticket price, ticket issuance deadline as well as the conditions attached to the ticket.

+ Always make accurate requests about the number, list, flight date, flight and information of international flights arriving and departing for group booking cases.

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5.2. Communication in tour guide profession

5.2.1. Overview of tour guide profession

In the field of tourism in general and travel in particular, guiding is considered a typical activity and plays an important role in welcoming, serving and attracting tourists. This activity was formed to meet the understanding needs of tourists in a direct, diverse and lively way. Not only that, it also helps to solve problems arising during the travel process of tourists, contributing to diversifying the fields of activities and improving the quality of tourism business.

In Vietnam, tour guiding activities are understood as follows: "Tour guiding is the activity of guiding tourists according to the tour program" 14 .

Thus, tour guiding is an activity of tourism organizations, carried out by tour guides and related people to welcome, serve, and guide tourists to perform services according to pre-agreed programs, as well as help tourists solve problems arising during the tour.

The tour guiding process is carried out with many specific activities.

like:

- Organizational activities: organizing to welcome and see off the delegation; organizing transportation services

transportation, accommodation, food, sightseeing or organizing entertainment activities.

- Information activities: Exchange information with the company, with suppliers, with customers.

- Inspection and monitoring activities: Inspect and monitor the service provision process of suppliers or the service usage process of tourists.

- Customer care activities: Respond to tourists' needs arising before, during and after the tour.

14 Article 4, Vietnam Tourism Law, 2005.

- Promotion and advertising activities: Promote information about the company, landscapes, landscapes, country, people,... to strengthen the image and attract tourists.

Thus, it can be seen that in the tour guiding activity, many complex, intertwined and flexible communication relationships will be formed. Handling communication relationships well during the tour guiding process will play an important role in creating tourist satisfaction, improving the quality of tourism products, contributing to attracting and increasing the number of tourists as well as promoting the development of the tourism industry.

In tour guiding activities, tour guides are the ones who directly perform and play an important role in ensuring the quality of tourism products and building a beautiful image of the country in the minds of tourists.

Article 4, Vietnam Tourism Law, 2005 defines “ A person who performs guiding activities is called a tour guide and is paid for tour guiding services”.

Through their guiding process, tour guides must ensure to serve and provide adequate quantity and quality of services in the tour program. Not only that, tour guides are also representatives of the company and the country to welcome, introduce and promote to tourists the culture, history and people of their country. Thus, tour guides are the main responsible person, guiding tourists during the tour, meeting the needs of tourists within a certain time and representing the company to solve problems arising during the trip within the scope of their authority and ability. Therefore, tour guides not only need to have extensive knowledge in many fields but also need to be intelligent, enthusiastic, healthy; especially skillful and flexible in communication.

As the contact point between the travel agency and the guests and suppliers, the tour guide must be able to meet the expectations of all members of the tour group and related parties during the working process. As the on-site representative of the tour company, the tour guide will accompany the guests/tour groups throughout the tour from the beginning of the program to the end of the program. Therefore, the tour guide is responsible for creating comfort, ease, ensuring safety; providing information to tourists as well as being the decision maker and organizing assistance in emergency situations to ensure the rights of tourists. In addition, the tour guide must ensure that the agreed schedule is followed; At the same time, perform payment, confirmation and coordination with related service providers such as transportation, accommodation, food, sightseeing, etc. according to daily schedule to help tourists enjoy full and quality services.

Thus, whether for tourists, travel companies or for the country, tour guides have important roles and responsibilities. With these

That responsibility, to become a professional tour guide, the guide needs to ensure the following requirements:

Knowledge requirements: to answer questions as well as convey knowledge in a complete, attractive and educational way to meet the understanding needs of tourists. At the same time, tour guides must have a good understanding of history, geography, culture, ethnic characteristics, economy, society of the country and destinations in the itinerary. In addition, tour guides also need to update their knowledge of procedures related to passports, visas, exit and entry procedures, banks, hospitals or local regulations and customs, etc.

Communication skills requirements: Communication skills play an important role in building a good relationship between tour guides and tourists. In the process of communicating with tourists, every word, gesture, behavior, and attitude of the tour guide creates feelings for the tourists. Therefore, the tour guide needs to understand the psychology, customs, communication practices, and master communication etiquette; be cheerful, sociable, know how to listen, respect, and be flexible in communication situations. In addition, the tour guide also needs to have persuasion skills so that tourists trust in their handling ability and experience.

Foreign language requirements: Proficiency in foreign languages is a mandatory requirement for tour guides, especially international tour guides. To communicate effectively with foreign guests and convey information accurately, tour guides must be able to use the language of tourists as their own.

Political qualities: In the eyes of tourists, tour guides are the official “spokespersons”, carrying out propaganda and promotion of the image of the country, its people, lifestyle, and the Party and State’s policies and guidelines. This requires tour guides to have a strong political stance, a firm grasp of policies and guidelines, and to be tactful when dealing with political issues.

Professional ethics requirements: The tour guide profession requires workers to travel frequently and work in a high-pressure environment. Therefore, to do a good job and make a good impression on tourists, tour guides must love their job, be passionate about their work, be enthusiastic, progressive, honest, and responsible for the guests, the company, and the environment.

Some other requirements : In addition to the above requirements, tour guides also need to ensure some other requirements such as: appearance, health.

The professional field of a tour guide focuses on knowledge of the destination, communication skills, leadership skills and professional service attitude. According to the VTOS standard system, the job list of the basic level tour guide professional skills standard includes 5 contents with 13 specific tasks:

General knowledge for tour guides

Task 1: Prepare to work, build a professional working attitude. As a representative of the company and the person directly serving tourists,

Tour guides need to be fully equipped with knowledge and skills in ensuring

principles of personal hygiene, communication etiquette, politeness, and enthusiastic, professional service spirit as well as understanding information about the group of guests.

Task 2: General duties and responsibilities of a tour guide.

The tour guide must manage and monitor the itinerary, ensuring that the program is implemented as agreed. At the same time, he must provide necessary information about the route, points as well as other practical information.

Task 3: Customs, immigration and quarantine procedures.

Tour guides need to provide tourists with information related to customs, immigration and quarantine procedures such as regulations on duty-free goods, visas and travel-related documents, foreign currency regulations, health care, vaccinations, etc.

Prepare before the tour

Task 4: Prepare for a specific tour program.

To prepare for a specific tour program, the tour guide needs to collect relevant travel and practical information, prepare documents, financial procedures and information necessary for the trip.

Task 5: Procedures and responsibilities related to passenger transportation.

The tour guide needs to manage the transportation of passengers, check the trip data, time, schedule, facilities as well as the rotation of seats during transportation. In addition, the tour guide must consider the luggage arrangement and information related to the trip as well as arrange with colleagues related to the transportation process.

Task 6: Tour guide and hotel arrangements.

Tour guides need to have a clear understanding of the hotel where they are staying as well as carry out procedures for booking, checking in, checking out, services during the stay and other safety instructions.

Tour Guide

Mission 7: Tour Guide

Providing and conveying specific information about tourist attractions as well as other practical information as requested by tourists is the main activity of tour guides while conducting tour programs.

Task 8: Presentation (group)

Tour guides need to know how to control their psychology and use audio equipment when presenting to a group of guests. Preparing a presentation with balanced, attractive content combined with a smooth combination of presentation skills and behavior is an important requirement for every tour guide.

Task 9: Tour guide leadership skills when implementing a tour program

As a group leader, the tour guide needs to establish the principles for the trip, make the right decisions when necessary. At the same time, it is necessary to balance the group's activities, care equally for all members of the group and build tourists' trust in their decisions.

Task 10: Resolve tourist difficulties, risks and complaints.

During the journey, due to the impact of many factors, the group of tourists inevitably has questions or even encounters unexpected, urgent situations that affect the general schedule. Therefore, when encountering difficult situations or complaints from tourists, tour guides need to listen, determine the type of complaint (technical, personal, ...) or the type of risk (health, travel, ...) to come up with solutions, resolve problems that occur according to their authority and personal responsibility. At the same time, tour guides also need to learn the skills of announcing bad news to minimize the formation of negative moods for the entire group of tourists during the trip.

End of tour

Mission 11: End of tour program.

Tour guides are responsible for completing reports and finalizing trip payments with relevant departments in the company.

Tour guides and social responsibility

Task 12: Sustainable tourism and tour guiding.

In the process of performing the task, tour guides also need to form the right attitude, be responsible for the community and the natural environment. Therefore, tour guides need to identify the key elements of sustainable tourism as well as have the task of making tourism develop richly and sustainably.

Task 13 : Cross-cultural communication and tour guide.

Tourists with diversity in composition, nationality, age, religion, etc. should form cultural and communication differences. This can cause difficulties in receiving information and cultural and spiritual values, affecting the effectiveness of communication. Therefore, tour guides need to be aware of cultural values and standards, overcome cultural and communication differences.

Thus, from the tasks for tour guides, we see that the general process for organizing a tour program for a tour guide includes the following specific stages:

Preparation phase

After receiving the program from the operations department, the tour guide needs to carry out pre-trip preparations to ensure the best quality of the tour. Basic tasks include:

- Research the tour program implementation plan such as: detailed schedule; location, time to pick up and drop off guests; tasks and services provided on each day or related service providers.

- Learn about the group: Number of members, nationality, name of group leader, special requests.

- Prepare service conditions: Program implementation plan or instructions, visa list, hotel rooms and check the service readiness of suppliers; support tools (group name tag, medical kit, signboard, flag); advertising and sales tools, documents for guests and the tour guide's own documents (mobilization order, tour guide card).

- Prepare presentation content.

- Administrative and financial preparation.

- Other personal preparations: personal belongings, mentality, assessment of external impacts,...

Thus, in the preparation phase, communication relationships are formed mainly with the company (operations department, accounting department) and service providers (checking and reconfirming pre-booked services with providers).

Stage of organizing and implementing the tourism program

This phase focuses on key activities and generates complex lines of communication with various stakeholders involved in the travel journey, such as tourists, travel service providers, residents, local authorities and company colleagues. The basic tasks include:

- Welcoming guests: At the pick-up point, the tour guide needs to quickly complete the procedures related to reception; get acquainted with the group leader and members; guide guests through the necessary procedures related to immigration and baggage confirmation. Once the procedures have been completed, the tour guide takes guests to the means of transport, leaving the pick-up point with the principle of having enough people and enough luggage. After boarding the vehicle and stabilizing the group, the tour guide needs to re-introduce himself to the group, make a good first impression and quickly integrate.

- Organizing transportation services: Inviting guests to the vehicle, arranging seats, welcoming the group, introducing service members (drivers, technicians) and providing information and instructions on operational activities during the transportation process...

- Organize accommodation and catering services: Carry out check-in and check-out procedures, check room lists, notify necessary information, manage guests' accommodation and catering activities quickly and reasonably, ensuring guests receive the best services as requested.

- Organizing tours, sightseeing, and entertainment: Tour guides need to plan a specific tour schedule with entertainment activities. Discuss with the tour leader and members about the specific schedule as well as necessary information during the trip (entrance fees, rules, dress code, camera usage, etc.).

- Payment and guest departure.

The implementation stage not only creates many complex communication relationships but also creates many unexpected situations, so tour guides need to have good communication skills as well as flexibility and a firm grasp of the principles of handling situations.

Post-Group Stage

- Make a report after the trip.

- Payment, settlement of program.

- Solve the remaining work.

During this stage, communication relationships are mainly internal business communication.

Thus, through the description of the tasks of the tour guide profession, the communication activities of tour guides have the following basic characteristics:

Form of communication : Direct communication is the main method, but communication by phone is also possible.

Communication object :

- Domestic and international tourists.

- Suppliers: hotels, restaurants, transportation,...

- State administrative agencies: customs, police,...

- Colleagues: accountant, tour operator, driver, technician,...

Areas in which basic communication activities arise:

- Explanation at the destination and during the trip.

Explaining is considered a basic activity of a tour guide, but it is mainly a one-way form of information (without much feedback from the audience).

customers) in the form of communication/presentation. The explanation can be done by the tour guide on the vehicle, at the point or handed over to the interpreter at the point.

+ Ensure good health, proficient in using microphones and other supporting equipment.

+ Understand the route and the points on the route clearly.

+ Provide attractive, selective and focused information, reasonable in time, logical in sequence, with general overview and highlights.

+ Provide information related to group organization, services at the destination, tour time, pick-up time and location.

+ Reasonable regulation of volume, time and pace of the presentation.

- Arrange service use with suppliers on behalf of tourists.

calendar.

In the shortest possible time, the tour guide should do

Accurately and appropriately complete the necessary procedures, and provide basic relevant information to customers. Customers should not be kept waiting for long, but important steps and information should not be skipped. Review all information about pre-booked services with the supplier to ensure that customers receive the services as requested. Remind the supplier of any special requests (if any), fully inform and instruct customers on how to use the service.

- Answer questions, complaints, and grievances of tourists as well as resolve arising situations and risks.

Rules for handling situations:

+ Separate guests from the group, stay calm, quickly and carefully assess the situation.

+ Pay attention.

+ Discuss with the tour leader, proactively resolve issues within the limits of authority and discuss with the tour operator issues beyond the authority and ability to resolve.

+ Report to the company and agree on the plan.

+ Propose solutions based on the principle of focusing on customer benefits, ensuring company benefits and personal responsibility.

+ Announcement of results with the participation of the delegation leader.

5.2.2. Conversational communication in guidance profession

5.2.2.1. Communication when getting acquainted and introducing the general schedule to passengers on the bus

To make a good first impression on guests, tour guides need to: