Doubletree continues to provide exceptional service. Several weeks ago, I wrote about my memorable Doubletree hotel stay in Phoenix. This week, we’ll hear about the Doubletree in Scottsdale from a colleague of mine who shared the following story with me.
Real World Story: I visited Scottsdale this weekend to spend time with my niece who’s attending college in Arizona.
We stayed
at a Doubletree. We arrived at 11pm and found a long line of waiting travelers at the check-in counter. The person who appeared to be the hotel manager acknowledged and thanked me for my patience.
As far back as I can remember, Doubletree has always given away warm chocolate chip cookies at check in. It’s such a very nice touch! So the front desk receptionist gives me a cookie when it’s my turn to check in. I tell him there are three of us, so he gives me two more chocolatey treats. He was very polite and helpful, showing me where to go to find my room, about the hotel’s wifi connection and other amenities.
My room reservation included breakfast, but he gave me vouchers for one person only. When I reminded him there were three of us, he said my reservation indicated breakfast for only one person. When I said my reservation acknowledged breakfast for up to four people and that I had forgotten to change my count from one person to three, he said, “Let me see what I can do.” He quickly came up with enough vouchers for three people for our entire three-day stay.
I then noticed a small glass sign sitting on the desk counter that read: “If you’re not satisfied with your stay, let us know and we’ll MAKE IT RIGHT.” And “make it right” did seem to be the theme of this Doubletree. In fact, that phrase was the wifi password during our stay! I was impressed that he had been given the authority to “Make it Right,” even though it was my mistake for indicating one adult only for breakfast at the time of my online booking. As I was leaving the check-in area, he offered me a bottle of water. I accepted it, and then he handed me water for everyone else in my party without being asked. Wow, he anticipated my needs.
It was now after 11:30pm, and access to our rooms was from outside the building. As we looked for my room in the dark, we noticed two young men working outside. They both cheerfully asked if we needed help finding our way since rooms could be difficult to locate. I had my hands full with a suitcase and carry-on. As I tried looking for the room number on my key, one of the young men pulled out his cellphone and shined the screen’s light to help me find it. They let us know the easiest way to find the room and even offered to carry our bags! They were not bellmen. They appeared to be part of the maintenance staff, but they just jumped in to help anyway! I was so impressed that I had to ask, “How is it that everyone here is so helpful?!” They laughed and, of course, didn’t have an answer because for them it was just the obviously right thing to do.
Strategies that Turn it Around:
- Empower employees. Give employees the power to offer great service. This includes pre-set responsibilities and flexibility to bend the rules when appropriate or go the extra mile to earn customer loyalty.
- Hire for attitude. I’ve said it once and twice, and I’ll say it again: You can teach skills, but you can’t teach a genuine great attitude. When hiring for customer service positions, always hire for attitude. Training will take care of the skills.
Remember: Employees who demonstrate care toward their customers create lasting impressions. And lasting impressions will earn you loyal repeat customers. And isn’t that what we all want?
What do YOU do to ensure your organization delivers extraordinary service? Please share in the comments section below.