When Going The Extra Mile Simply Makes Good Economic Sense
When my best friend asked his mother what she wanted for her 70th birthday, she instantly said, “To be with my family.” He offered her a European cruise or other similar possibilities… but she stood firm. Family is what she wanted.
So he began the process of planning the event.
We talked about some different scenarios, as he requested that I photograph the event – and I wanted a venue with some decent locations to use as a background.
Since many family members would be coming in from out-of-town, a nice hotel needed to be selected… and when he told me he was considering the Hilton in Charlotte – I laughed and said, “I stayed there last week… nice place, for sure.”
After researching his options, my friend realized that the Hilton could be a one-stop shop, as they had all the facilities he needed right there at the hotel. The family could come to town, enjoy a nice dinner, enjoy the family, propose a few toasts and hear a speech or two… then do a little dancing – and never have to leave the hotel.
One of the items on the agenda was a multimedia powerpoint presentation featuring images taken throughout his mother’s life… complete with music that she loves. He had worked hard to put this presentation together – and looked forward to his entire family being able to enjoy it.
When we arrived at the hotel, we began to inspect the facility as well as the grounds. We were a little disappointed with the landscaping, as outdoor watering restrictions were literally killing the grass and plants – but it is what it is.
In the banquet hall, the Hilton staff was setting up the tables. The projection screen was up – but no projector could be found. We wanted to get the projector set up early to avoid any problems with the presentation… so we asked the staff to find our projector.
The manager came to our banquet room to inform us that if we wanted a projector – he would be happy to rent us one for two hours for $400.
My friend informed the manager that he was led to believe the projector was included in the price. The manager was not swayed. It was $400 or no projector.
Needless to say, my friend was not impressed. When he made the arrangements, he was of the understanding that THEY would be supplying the projector – so he wouldn’t have to borrow one and transport it from Atlanta. Now, hundreds of miles away from home, it seemed like they were trying to leverage their position to pick up an extra $400 on this event.
Short story – Hilton didn’t get the $400.
No, we didn’t do the planned multimedia presentation. It’s not that my friend couldn’t afford the $400 – it was the principle of it. Hilton was already getting thousands of dollars from this event… and that figure actually grew with an additional twenty people who were added on the last day.
For the record, my friend is the Guest Services Manager at one of the few ultra-premium malls in the country. He knows what it means to deliver excellence – he does it every day. And he knows a lot of people. His company is one of the largest holders of real estate in the U.S.
While this event went very well – the food was good and served in a timely manner; the facility was clean and comfortable; and the rooms were everything we expected – this issue with the projector will leave a lasting bad taste in his mouth.
After getting back to Atlanta, we talked about how we would have handled this if we were Hilton’s managers – and the answer was so simple: we would have supplied the projector at NO additional cost. We wouldn’t have given it a second thought.
You see, the use of the projector would have not made a difference in Hilton’s bottom line. Sure, there would be another hours use on the bulb… and it might have taken an employee ten minutes to set up and retrieve the unit… and some electricity to run it… but for the most part, it would not cost Hilton much at all. Ten bucks, tops.
There is a lesson here to be learned. You are often given the opportunity to add value to your service – and sometimes the actual cost of providing that service is quite minimal… while failing to provide that service could prove quite costly.
The last time I checked – the Hilton wasn’t the only game in town… and I’m sure that fact won’t escape my friend’s mind when making his next hotel reservation – or recommendation.
Hunter Jackson says:
Customer service is one of the number 1, least expensive ways to obtain client retention. How can we make this happen in real estate?
For me, it is as simple as making sure your Vacant listings have toilet paper, paper towels, soap, electricity and running water. This is of course just an example of one of the things that should be done, which costs next to nothing.
The ideas are infinite…but they are truly what makes the customer happy.
June 18, 2008 — 10:39 am
Christopher Zabka says:
Great post, Doug. I think this one will stick with me for a while.
June 18, 2008 — 11:42 am
jay says:
I think the words “hilton reservations and customer service” and any combo thereof should be added to your post, headlines 1, headlines 2, jpegs, links, etc. 🙂
I’ll definitely avoid them if at all possible now. Thanks for the heads up on how they treat their clients–even when such unique & sentimental events are happening and they are earning $1000s already.
Imagine how they treat regular customers then–can only be worse.
jay
June 18, 2008 — 12:30 pm
Barry Cunningham says:
Hunter that should be a blog post for lazy inept agents..well said!!
June 18, 2008 — 12:51 pm
Doug Quance says:
>Hunter: Good points. I hate finding vacant properties ill-equipped for my clients.
>Christopher: Thank you, sir.
>Jay: I am not trying to paint the entire Hilton chain with a broad brush. I would like to think that another Hilton manager would have handled this differently.
June 18, 2008 — 12:51 pm
Brian Miller says:
Doug – great post.
your comment:>Jay: I am not trying to paint the entire Hilton chain with a broad brush. I would like to think that another Hilton manager would have handled this differently.
made me wonder – would another Hilton manager have handled it differently? A great question actually as IMHO it would largely depend on the culture set forth by this manager’s manager.
My sense is that is a lot of this sort of thing in corporate america right now…
June 19, 2008 — 4:46 am
David Shafer says:
I used to travel 80-100 nights/year and use hotel facilities/meeting rooms for most of those days. Generally, the Hilton Chain was at the top of the chart with their service. However, your experience does not surprise me as even the top offered uneven service experience. Come to think of it the Hilton in Cocoa Beach provided one of the worst days in my life with their service. It’s a long story I won’t burden you with. Sorry about your experience, but consider yourself lucky it wasn’t worse! I think that hotels, in general, are the most poorly managed businesses out there.
June 20, 2008 — 7:19 am
Charles Smith says:
Doug:
Great post. Your story makes me think of the disconnect some companies seem to morph into the larger they get; look at any large cable/cell phone company. As for Barry’s comment regarding agents, I’ve met many agents that have grown so large, they have problems slipping their head into their shirts. But, this isn’t a post regarding agents….
June 20, 2008 — 4:01 pm
Doug Quance says:
>Brian: Ah… the culture set. Oddly enough, the manager did not seem to be born here, if that’s any help. The customs of other cultures may have something to do with our hotel experiences these days.
>David: I hear you. It’s almost as if the whole hotel experience has been outsourced. Unsuccessfully.
>Charles: I’m not sure, as my experience with my cable and cell service providers has not been all that bad, really… not at the customer service rep level, anyway. I certainly can appreciate the comment regarding cranium size of some agents, though many of them are experiencing reduced swelling as of late.
June 21, 2008 — 9:34 am