It's The Little Things

It’s the Little Things…Published January 5, 2009 Customer Experience Tags: Customer Experience, Customer Service, Hotel Service
Last month I traveled to Baltimore to present at a customer service conference. I travel quite frequently for the job and have been exposed to “less than stellar” customer service more times than I care to remember. However, my experience at the Hampton Inn at BWI airport was incredible — here’s how it went. It started at the airport when I walked out of baggage claim looking for the shuttle only to see the driver pulling away from the passenger loading area. I went back inside to baggage claim to get warm and wait for the next shuttle. That’s when I noticed the information kiosk — you know the ones with a phone receiver and 75 ads for local amenities. The thought ran through my head, “Why bother, just wait another 15 minutes for the next bus,” but I was feeling adventurous and actually picked up the phone and dialed for the Hampton Inn. Much to my surprise, the shuttle driver answered (the airport phone station is programmed to call the driver’s cell number directly — not the front desk of the hotel). The driver politely apologized for not seeing me. Now mind you, it was no one’s fault I missed the shuttle, just poor timing. He looped back immediately to get me. My waiting time was about 30 seconds! Once we got to the hotel, the good customer service continued. I had arrived in Baltimore on an earlier flight than intended, and hit the front desk at the Hampton around 11:30 a.m. Now, I’m experienced enough to know you usually can’t check in to a hotel before 3 p.m. unless you have made prior arrangements, and even then, almost never before noon! Jennifer, the front desk agent, welcomed me to the hotel, pulled my reservation and began by saying, “Mr. Ely your room is not ready yet.” At this point I’m ready to check my luggage at the desk and settle in for about three hours of laptop work in the lobby, but much to my amazement, Jennifer continued, “But I’ll call housekeeping to clean it right away. It should only take about five minutes.” Holy cow! I was amazed that Jennifer took the extra step to get me into my room almost immediately. My compliments to Jay (the GM), Ayub (the AGM), Jennifer and the entire staff at the Hampton (I don’t remember the shuttle driver’s name. If anyone reading this post knows, please send it to me.) This type of service is obviously due to good training. The driver and Jennifer did something that all customer service staff should do. They put themselves in my shoes and empathized with the customer. They viewed the situation from my vantage point and most importantly, took action! Kudos to you all at the Hampton. Yes, they were little things, but you totally made my day. www.onceuponacustomerexperience.com