Restaurant Manager Visits

I’ve noticed recently that the manager of the restaurant we are eating out at makes his or her rounds visiting tables asking their customers how things are going.  I’m assuming this is a relatively new trend in the industry since it is something I’ve just noticed in the past year.  Most managers I’ve seen are very awkward and uncomfortable doing this which tells me they are required to do it as a directive from Corporate.  It also tells me that these managers are not trained how to do these visits effectively.   It makes me uncomfortable when they visit my table as I can sense their discomfort and that they really don’t like doing it. 

It reminds me of when my previous employer required their store managers to  talk to and survey customers as we were touring the sales floor throughout the day.  It was a very awkward exercise walking up to a customer and asking them how their experience in the store was so far.  I usually got strange looks and one word answers.  I was frustrated because we were given the directive but no training how to do it effectively.  The “training”  consisted of a sheet telling us to do this and how effective it will be.  There was no instruction of how to do it effectively.  I was uncomfortable and not happy that I had to do this.  I quickly discovered that it was much easier if you were actually working with and helping the customer with a sale.  Approaching a customer cold is difficult if not impossible because there is not rapport or trust. 

The other day, I witnessed a restaurant manager who figured out how to do it well.  It was at a Red Robin in the Denver area where the manager actually greeted us as we entered the restaurant.  He also seated us and told us his store was a test store and made some suggestions from the menu cube on the table.  As I discovered in my store, building a rapport from the beginning is important as he was doing by seating us and making some suggestions. He returned about 15 minutes later and saw that we had ordered the chocolate shake that he suggested on the test store menu cube and asked how we liked it. It was excellent, by the way.  His behavior was relaxed and confident as he circulated throughout talking to his customers.  He was helping with greeting and seating people, making suggestions, and  brought items out to people.  He was clearly engaged in all the aspects of the operation of his restaurant which clearly showed in his interactions with his customers.  It was genuine and real which was obvious to us customers.  It made it much easier for him to do his interactions with customers since he had built a great deal of rapport with most of the diners. 

We left Red Robin with a very positive feeling and we gave a big thumbs up to the chocolate shake on the test menu and hope they roll it out to all their stores. 

Chick-Fil-A Almost Gets It Right, Almost.

My Experience:

Last evening as I was packing up my things to leave work and go home, a young lady from Chick-Fil-A showed up in our office with a large container and passed out free Spicy Chicken Sandwiches.  She was dressed well, clean cut, friendly and generous with the sandwiches.  An impressive representative for Chick-Fil-A.  She was careful to visit every person in the office and offer them a free sandwich or two.  Everybody seemed pleased and grateful.   Who doesn’t like free food?

I thought this was a very smart move on Chick-Fil-A’s part and was impressed they made the effort to promote themselves and their new menu item in a very creative way. 

I took my two sandwiches home to eat for dinner with my family.   After the first two bites, I was unable to finish my sandwich.  It was too spicy for me and it was too spicy for the other members of my family.  We aren’t fans of very spicy food and while I knew this was a Spicy Chicken Sandwich, I was hoping it was something my Scandinavian palate could handle.  It wasn’t and, along with my family, was very disappointed that we were unable to finish our dinner and had to prepare something else.  

What Chick-Fil-A did right:

1. They were creative by sending out a positive representative to pass out their free sandwiches.  She was dressed in clean khakis, a white polo shirt, well groomed and friendly.  She left us all with a very positive impression about Chick-Fil-A.
2. They were creative by giving out the free sandwiches.  They went on the offensive by reaching out and giving their food to people who may have never been to a Chick-Fil-A or haven’t been there for a while.  The goal is to drive new traffic to their restaurant. 
3. I have always been impressed with Chick-Fil-A.  Their restaurants are always clean and their employees well trained and friendly.  They are a well run company that takes pride in what they do and how they treat their customers. 

What Chick-Fil-A should have done:

1. They should have had a less spicy or a regular sandwich to give away to those few of us who don’t like spicy food.  Not everybody can handle or likes hot and spicy food.  

Summary:

Overall, I like Chick-Fil-A.  Unfortunately, I ended up being disappointed.  I understand their strategy to drive traffic to their restaurants and I think it was the right idea.  I also must be in a very small minority of people who don’t like hot and spicy food.  I tried googling to find out what percentage of people don't like spicy food and only found sites promoting and singing the praises of it.  It appears that Chick-Fil-A’s promotion will be fine and they won’t alienate too many people.  Just a few of us. 

Chick-Fil-A turned an initial positive experience into a disappointing one.   Despite my overall positive feelings about them, I was disappointed in the end and don’t have any plans to visit one of their restaurants any time soon. 

The Stagecoach Motor Inn in Dubois – Well Done

After the three previous poor experiences discussed previously, I am pleased to share a very pleasant and positive experience.

My Experience: 

With Yellowstone Park behind me, I had some business to take care of in Dubois, WY where I spent the night.   Dubois is a very nice “western”  town located in Northwest Wyoming with a population of about 1000.  I made reservations in the Stagecoach Motor Inn because they were listed in the AAA guide but I didn’t have very high expectations because I knew it was an old 60s era “motor inn” - the type I’ve stayed in many times and been disappointed.  In addition, I had just come from a disappointing and frustrating experience in the Park.

The first sign that my expectations would be exceeded was when I checked in.  The lobby was old and typical of a 60s era motor inn but it was clean, inviting, orderly and the “desk clerk” was very friendly and accommodating.   Turns out the desk clerk is the owner of the motel and exhibits significant pride in his property.  After a pleasant check in,  I went to my room on the first floor, and my expectations were exceeded once again.  The room was “vintage” but it lacked the threadbare decor and odor that is common in motels of it’s era.    Everything was in good repair and very clean.  So much so that it seemed as if I was back in time actually staying in the room in the 1960’s.  That is except for the plasma TV attached to the wall.  I could even hear a creek, called Horse Creek, running behind the room and smelled fresh cut grass from the lawn between the motel and the creek.  It was very pleasant. 

The next day, after completing my business, I returned to my room to pack and get ready to leave.  As I was unlocking my door, I was greeted by the “maid” cleaning the room next to mine.  The maid is the co-owner and wife of the desk clerk I met the afternoon before when I checked in.  She asked me how I liked my stay and if I spent any time in town.  She was very friendly and also clearly took a lot of pride in her ownership of the motel. 

On their website, they have the following statement about the owners:

Your Hosts

The Stagecoach Motor Inn has been owned and operated by our family since 1977. With our long term dedication to this motel you can expect your rooms to be exceptionally clean and comfortable. We are continually striving to give you, the customer, the best possible stay by updating and remodeling our rooms on an annual basis. We are located in the heart of Downtown Dubois, and you can park and walk to most everything our Western Town has to offer. Whether you're just passin through or coming for a long stay, you can be assured that, The Stagecoach will provide you with all your lodging needs.

I left Dubois with a very positive experience which was nice after the uncomfortable and unsatisfied feeling I had recently experienced  in Yellowstone Park. 

What The Stagecoach Motor Inn did Right:

First:  The owners operate the motel.  They are vested in and have a direct stake in the success of the motel.  They clearly enjoy what they are doing and take a great deal of pride in their property, Dubois and the hospitality business.  They are friendly, genuine and sincere.  When you are these things, it shows. 

Second:  Despite the motel being a 60 year old property, the owners have kept it in exceptionally good repair and clean.  There was no evidence of worn out carpet, furniture, bathroom fixtures and floor, bed, linens, pillows, towels, etc.  Everything is well kept and clean.  Most telling to me, is there was no odor that is common to motels this old. 

Third:  As I was preparing to write this post, I did a search for the motel and was surprised to find they had an updated, current, and easy to navigate site.  They are taking the time to maintain a website which exhibits more evidence of their pride of ownership and sincerity. 

Summary:

I had a very pleasant and positive experience at the Stage Coach Motor Inn in Dubois.  Granted, my expectations were low to begin with and anything might have seemed better after the disappointing experience I had in Yellowstone.  Despite all that, the experience I had was positive and left a good impression with me.    The owners showed pride of ownership and excellent customer service.  Their sincerity was genuine and evident in how they present their property and treat their customers. 

Well done, Stagecoach Motor Inn!  Thank you.

Travelocity and United Combined to Make Things Difficult in PA

My Experience:

In addition to the trouble I had with Travelocity renting a car while I was in Philadelphia with my son in April, I had an additional problem with Travelocity combined with United Airlines.  The problem came at the end of the trip with the flight out of Philly.  Back when I was making my reservations through Travelocity, I had to check flight availability before I could book and pay because my son needed to fly from Missoula to Denver to meet me then both of us fly together to Philadelphia which we reversed on the trip back. 

I checked the flights and wrote down the flight numbers and times so I could make sure we were synced up and together for the Denver to Philly and Philly to Denver flights. I also confirmed seats availability.   In addition, I needed to make sure there was a reasonable layover time between the Missoula/Denver and Denver/Missoula flights.  After doing all this, I booked and paid for my son’s flight first since it was more complicated.  When booking my flight I was unable to find the United Philly to Denver flight I had booked for my son just minutes earlier.  What I found was a US Airways Philly to Denver flight leaving at exactly the same time as the United Philly to Denver flight and assumed it was the same flight.  I tried to find information on the Travelocity website to confirm but there was nothing.  I also checked United and US Airways websites but they were no help.   I went ahead and booked and paid for the flight assuming they had to be one and the same.

When we arrived at the Philly airport on Monday morning after a fantastic week where my son’s team won the U16 Tier II National Hockey Championship, I asked the United Airlines ticket agent behind the counter if the United Airlines and US Airways flights listed on my itineraries were the same flight since they were leaving for Denver at the same time.  She looked at them quickly and said they were not and started clicking away at her computer.  She told me it would cost $75 to change flights getting my son and I together on the same flight.  I told her go ahead and as she was in the middle of making the change she realized her error and told me the original flights were the same.  I asked her about refunding the $75 charge for changing flights since it was her error but she said it was too late because she already cancelled my flight and charged me. We went back and forth for a few minutes nearly causing a scene but she would not budge.  Since we were in an airport filled with security, I backed down and reluctantly accepted the $75 charge.  The agent printed us our boarding passes and we went to the concourse.

In the concourse we had a quick breakfast and while eating I took a look at our boarding passes and noticed the United agent had put my son and I on an earlier flight to Denver then the one I had booked through Travelocity.  Fortunately I looked at the boarding passes early enough that it didn’t create any problems but it still frustrated me the that the agent didn’t tell me about the change in flights.

A few days after the trip, United sent me a survey.  I filled it out and explained how the ticket agent didn’t understand the United and US Airways flight were the same flight and how she charged me a $75 fee to change flights even after she realized she made a mistake.  I asked for United to refund me the $75 and how unhappy I was with the ticket agent. 

What Travelocity Should Have Done:

Travelocity should have better information on their website explaining when airlines have cooperative agreements between airlines on some flights.  There should also be consistency when booking to minimize confusion. The flight should either always be a United flight or a US Airways flight, for example.  It shouldn’t change between each booking.   I booked the United flight first and minutes later when I was trying to book the same flight for me the flight was changed to a US Airways flight.  Travelocity should also have a way for people to book multiple flights and pay for them all at once.  They may have that option but I was unable to figure out how to do it.   

What United Should Have Done 

First: The ticket agent should have been better trained and know that Untied and US Airways have a cooperative agreement on some of their flights.  She did not seem to know what I was talking about and was genuinely surprised when she realized the the United and US Airways flight were the same flight. 

Second:  The ticket agent should have not charged me the $75 fee for changing flights when she realized it was her error.  It is incredible to me she didn’t even think she should refund me the $75 and argued with me defending the charge.

Third: The ticket agent should have told me she changed the flights to an earlier flight.  Had I not looked at the tickets to confirm our gate, I would have thought the flight was the later flight I had originally booked weeks before and missed our flight.

Fourth:  I filled out the United Airlines survey a few days after the trip explaining what had happened to me and how the Ticket Agent made a mistake and still charged me the $75 fee.  Like Travelocity, I have heard nothing back from them.  If an organization goes through the trouble of sending out a satisfaction survey, they should respond, especially if there was a problem and the customer is not happy.  By not responding, I can only assume they don’t care about their customers or have too many complaints to be able to handle them.  Not a good impression to leave with an unhappy customer.  I will do everything I can to use another airline from now on.  Unfortunately, I live in Denver and United is  the main airline and difficult to avoid. 

Summary:

Travelocity and United should adopt a strong and sincere customer service culture.  United needs to train their Ticket Agents to where they understand the cooperative agreement with US Airways.  Ticket Agents should also be trained and given the power to correct mistakes they made.  I got the impression she was unable to refund me the $75 but she could have been simply unwilling.   Airlines are notorious for poor service and treating customers poorly.  Only one, Southwest, seems to really care about their customers and they are the only ones that seem to make a profit year after year.  Other airlines would do well to learn something from Southwest.  It’s shocking and disappointing they don’t. 

Travelocity Nearly Ruined my Trip to PA

My Experience:

In May of this year I logged on to my Travelocity account to purchase airline tickets and rent a car for my son and I to go to Philadelphia PA in April.  His AA hockey team, the U16 Montana Thunderblades were going for the USA Hockey National Championships.  The trip was a bit complicated since he was flying from Missoula to Denver to Philadelphia and I was meeting up with him in Denver and the two of us going on to Philadelphia.  We also needed to rent a car at the Philly airport, picking it up around midnight when the flight arrived and drive the 30 minutes to our Malvern, PA motel. 

Through the Travelocity website I rented a car with Budget Rent A Car.  The information on the website said they are closest to the airport, are open after midnight and are one of the least expensive.  The Philly airport has all the rental car offices outside of the actual airport where each company has a bus to shuttle you to their office.  Coordinating the flights so I could meet my son in Denver and us fly together to Philly put us arriving in Philly close to midnight. My goal was to get our luggage, get our car and get to the motel as quickly as possible so I could get my son in bed and rested for his first game of the tournament the next day. 

We arrived in Philadelphia International Airport around 11:30PM, gathered our luggage, and were out on the curb at about 11:45PM where the rental car busses were picking up their customers. We watched buses go by one after another and waited patiently for the Budget bus.  At around 12:15 I asked a porter if he knew when the Budget bus was coming and was told Budget is closed.  I tried calling the Budget office and got their answering service which confirmed they were closed.  I  called Travelocity but it took nearly five minutes to eventually talk to a real person and I was in a highly agitated state by then and gave up.  I tried calling a few of the other rental services at the airport getting their phone numbers from the busses as they drove by but none of them had any vehicles to rent at that hour.  Finally, after about half an hour to 45 minutes, I flagged down a taxi and we were on the road around 1:00AM to our motel in Malvern. 

While in the taxi,  I had calmed down a bit and called Travelocity again to explain what happened and have them help me arrange another rental car in Malvern, near our motel.  The person I reached  - after five minutes - had trouble understanding English and understanding my situation but did a nice job reading from a script designed to try to make me feel better.  It didn’t make me feel better and agitated me further.  After several attempts of me trying to explain my situation, she decided to get somebody else to speak with me.  I was, at this point, highly agitated again and not doing a very good job hiding it.  I waited several minutes, but by then we had arrived at our motel, so I hung up to get unpacked from the taxi and paid my $125 fee,  Yes, $125.

Later that morning I woke up early to figure out how to get a car so I could drive my son and I to the games for the rest of the week and to do some sightseeing in the area.  I again called Travelocity - and five minutes later - got a hold of someone and went through my situation and frustrations again.  He didn’t really understand but was very friendly and read from the same script as the person I spoke to the earlier while riding in the taxi.  I told him I was not happy that Budget was closed when we arrived at the airport and how the information on the Travelocity website was incorrect..  Had I known that Budget was the only car rental company closed at night, I would have chosen another.  Travelocity’s error and sloppiness cost me an extra $125 for the taxi.  Evoking the Travelocity Guarantee,  I asked the rep to help me find another rental car for the same price as my original reservation.  He put me on hold for about 15 minutes and when he returned he told me the nearest Budget to my motel was closed (it was 8:30AM) and I would have to call back later.  I also asked if I could get credit for the $125 I had to pay for the taxi trip because of their error but he could only refer me to another Customer Care phone number which was odd because I thought I was speaking with Customer Care.  Apparently, there is another level of Customer Care.

I was short on time due to my needing to take my son to his first game that morning in Westchester.  I could have asked another parent on the team for help but I didn’t want to impose unless absolutely necessary.  I googled Budget in the Malvern area, found the closest one, called and quickly arranged a rental.  I completed the transaction before 8:50AM.  Unfortunately, I would have to pay an additional $75 because I had to return the car at the airport.  I’m now out $200.  

The tournament went very well for my son and his team.  They won the U16 Tier II National Championship on Sunday and after the celebration we all went to the the Flyers/Rangers game in town and had a fantastic time.  It turned out to be a wonderful week despite the terrible start due to Travelocity. 

About a week after returning from the trip I received an email from Travelocity asking for feedback.  I had forgotten about contacting their Customer Care since I was still reveling in the wonderful week my son and I had.  I eagerly took the opportunity to fill out and submit the feedback questionnaire detailing the difficulty I had with the rental car situation, how much more it cost me and how disappointed I was with their follow-up customer service. I summarized my comments at the end of the feedback survey by saying how unhappy I was and how I will never use Travelocity again unless they make things right.  I actually expected a follow-up phone call or email from their Customer Care department but after over a month since giving them my feedback, I have heard nothing.

 

We hope scenarios like the ones listed below never happen to you, but in the unlikely event they do, our Guarantee has you covered. Our employees work hard to ensure that with Travelocity, "you'll never roam alone." Book with us to enjoy the peace-of-mind associated only with the Travelocity Guarantee-if something isn't right on your trip and you inform us immediately, we'll work with our partners to make it right, right away.

What Travelocity Should Have Done:

First, their Customer Care reps should have a better understanding of travel in the US.  Their call center, for US customers, should be located in the US.  The experience I had with their Customer Care was very dissatisfying and there was clearly a cultural disconnect.  They did not understand why I thought I should be credited $125 for the taxi ride and basically left stranded at my motel without a vehicle.  They didn’t seem to know how to use google to search for a nearby Budget or how to arrange another rental car reservation for me.  All they were good at was reading from a script telling me how sorry and understanding they were. 

Second, it should not take five minutes or more to reach a rep.  When a customer calls Travelocity Customer Care, something has gone wrong and needs fixing.  Help is needed and needed quickly. 

Third, their Customer Care reps should have the authority to make things right.  Instead of giving me another Customer Care number to call, the rep should be able to make the decision on the spot.

Fourth, there should always be follow-up on their satisfaction survey, especially if the customer complained about something that went wrong.  An email or phone call offering to make things right or at least explaining why they can’t.   By hearing nothing from them I can only assume they don’t care about me or what happened and they must have so many complaints about their service, they don’t have the time.  Not a good impression for customers to have.

Fifth, I would suggest cutting their advertising budget and put that money into better customer service training and follow-up. Building a US based call center or hiring and training Customer Care reps who can take calls from their homes.  While the gnome is cute and directs people to use Travelocity, bad customer service and poor follow-up alienate and drive away customers. 

Summary:

Travelocity has a huge advertising budget.  Who hasn’t seen their iconic gnome and his travel adventures?  It’s a great campaign but should be cut back 20% and that money put into improving the customer experience.   Things go wrong and mistakes are made.  It’s how these things are handled and taken care of that determine how a company considers it’s customers.  Travelocity does not care about their customers and has lost my business.  I will start using Orbitz and Expedia in the future and hope they really care about their customers.