Totally agree – if you are going to promise something like this, you absolutely have to deliver on it. The bar is indeed raised by the magnitude of the promise, because you’re now expecting something special. There is also a competitive standard; I’ve stayed at the W before, and know that their “Wish” button actually works.

And, for the record, just so people don’t think I am a whiner, I’ll give some kudos to the Aloft. They have gone out of their way to deliver, and I will definitely be a repeat customer and an evangelist. Given your knowledge of the hospitality industry, I’d be curious what you thought of the experience here.

Thanks for telling me about Social South – my world is rocked.

Sue

I wonder if your reaction would have been different if the button hadn’t been marked “make it happen”?

We’re used to buttons for Cust Svc and as used to them leading us down paths to nowhere but when a company makes a bold statement like “make it happen” then they raise the bar in the consmer’s mind.

While I’m sure that idea sounded great in a conference room somewhere in corporate America, doesn’t seem like such a great idea now. Which is an important point I think in any service business brand positioning or tactic: operational execution.

Hotels are in essence a delivered experience so everything they do should be developed with the understanding that operationally it has to happen. Otherwise, you are sure to push the customer over the edge, even if they weren’t already having a bad day.

On the bright side, this led to you staying at the Aloft with me so I’m not totally upset that it happened to you

And BTW — LOVE LOVE the new blog. Very nice and clean.
@TomMartin

Thanks for your comments and empathy. At Social South today, someone asked a question of @richardatdell regarding whether social media has resulted in more "whiners" about bad customer service. I don't know about you, but I don't think of it as whining…I think of it my right, and as voting with my dollars. Most of us, I think, are as quick to point out a great experience as an unacceptable one. That said, I do think that this newfound "power" has resulted in higher expectations.

What do you think about this?