I noticed when traveling a few weeks ago that I have become spoiled by the customer service ethic here at SurveyGizmo.
I live in a world where we strive to make sure all of our actions add up to a better experience for all of our customers. We pride ourselves on service being our number one feature and all of our employees know that they have the power to do what needs to be done in order to make our customers happy. Because great service is just a part of life here, I find myself noticing it more in other companies and feeling somewhat let down when I receive service that is not up to our standards.
So, I just happened to find myself lounging poolside in Vegas (!) with my friends on vacation, discussing how we might be able to help the hotel out with a few tips on service. This was after some less than stellar experiences with their staff. It seems to come down to the fact that the staff was not empowered to be able to help. They could (and did) tell us all of the things they were trained to tell us, and then apologized for the policies that they needed to uphold. They had no authority to make an exception or implement a commonsense solution of their own. Some issues and suggested improvements:
- There were long lines just about everywhere. If they could not ease the pain of the length of the lines by adding another employee, maybe they could have entertained us while we waited. Cocktails while we waited would have been appreciated, but card tricks or exotic animals would have been acceptable.
- We had pre-purchased our passes to the buffet, but we were in the same line as those that still needed to pay. It would have been nice if there was a separate “express lane” for us to get to the food that we had already paid for.
- Some simple improvements could have gone a really long way to making my stay great. I would have shared this great experience with all those that I am connected to, but instead I am lamenting the short fallings and considering which other hotel we will be staying at next time.
On the other hand, there are some great customer service experiences out there to be had. We imbibed at several dining establishments during our stay. Several restaurants that we visited had employees that went out of their way to make our dining experience even better than we expected One of them did such a great job, we are already talking about when we will be going to go back. Some of the simple things that were really noticed included:
- The ease and relaxed nature of the staff. Even when we were just ordering drinks we were not rushed or made to feel less important. We were doted on as if we had order a ten course meal.
- When one of the wait staff overheard a friend commenting on how she really wanted to go on a quick, inexpensive shopping excursion, he recommended his girlfriend’s favorite shops. He was not offering his advice for any self-serving reason; he just had an idea of how to make our overall experience that much better.
We will surely fit these restaurants into our next visit!
So here’s to companies that empower their employees to provide great service and to help their customers find solutions when needed. It is definitely a breath of fresh air when you find them. And when I do encounter these experiences, I know that I talk about them with my friends, family and co-workers! These good experiences make me want to come back again and again!
In this case, what happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas…It gets around!