Where the butler concept fails, it is because he (or she) is cast in (frankly) degrading-to-the-profession roles such as “bath butler,” “fireplace butler, “technology butler,” “baby butler” (who provides rocking chairs and watches children), “dog butler,” “ski butler,” and “beach butler.” The idea being, apparently, that anything offering superior service in some small area is called “a butler” in an effort to siphon some of the prestige of the profession. At best, the idea is myopic, at worst, self-defeating.
via The Hotel Butler – Recognizing the Value Butlers Bring to the Bottom Line, by Steven Ferry.