If you Google the word thrifty, you get the following definition: using money and other resources carefully and not wastefully. Well, someone needs to let Thrifty Car Rental in on that definition.
Real World Story: I recently flew from San Diego, California, to Indianapolis, Indiana. This is a long 6-hour travel day, involving countless numbers of customer service people.
As I approached the Thrifty Car Rental counter from far away, I noticed an employee sitting behind the counter with his head bowed down. I
figured that as I got closer, he would eventually look up and greet me with a smile. No such luck. I walked straight up to the counter. He finally looked up with a blank stare and did not say a word. Here we go I thought. I said, “I have a reservation” and handed him my driver’s license and credit card.
Without showing any form of recognition, he “processed” me through the car rental transaction and then pointed me to the car rental booth in the parking garage outside.
When I approached the booth, no one was to be found. In fact, I didn’t see one Thrifty Car Rental employee anywhere in the parking garage. I stood by the booth waiting for at least 5 minutes contemplating what to do next. Finally, I schlepped back into the terminal with all of my luggage in tow to find the original employee. I found him in his original slouched position. Again, he gave me his original uninterested blank stare. At the very least, he was consistent. I said “there’s no one in the booth. I don’t know what to do.” In a childish huff, he stood up and stormed out to the garage. He walked so fast I could barely keep up. At one point, my carry-on bag fell off of my roller bag – in the middle of the street. I looked up for help from the Thrifty Car Rental employee, but he was gone, too focused on ignoring me while continuing to storm off in a huff. I got to the booth and found him with my paperwork in hand, which he gave to me along with my car rental keys.
Now all I had to do was exit the garage. Unfortunately, no one was to be found at this booth either. As I’m just sitting there waiting, I see an employee nonchalantly walking up behind my car. When he finally arrives, he makes no attempt to apologize for me waiting and then takes his time “processing” me out of the garage. Ugh. What an awful way to start my visit to this city. But again, at the very least, the awful service was consistent.
Upon returning my car, I was prepared to receive bad service again. And guess what? I wasn’t disappointed! Consistency is key here, I guess. I pulled up to the rental car return area. As I was getting my belongings together, I noticed a man wearing plaid shorts and an orange T-shirt just standing outside my window staring at me. I felt very uncomfortable, so I didn’t want to get out of the car. When I finally summoned the courage to “go for it,” I quickly jumped out, hoping to catch him off guard. But he didn’t miss a beat and asked, “Returning the car?” to which, with some relief, I replied, “Do you work here?” It was all very painfully awkward. He attempted to “process” me, but he couldn’t figure out what to do, so he told me to go inside. Oh boy, here we go again.
Fortunately, the man inside was extremely friendly and helpful. He tried to apologize for his co-workers, but it was already too late. The bad impression was already set by too many people, too many times, and from the same company no less.
Strategies that Turn it Around:
Key questions to ask yourself about your employees and general company policies:
- Do we have the right people in customer-facing positions? Are they personable and knowledgeable? Do they genuinely like people? Can they leave their personal problems at home and treat customer warmly and with friendliness?
- Do our employees wear uniforms to help identify them as working for our company? Do they wear their nametags so customers can call them by name? Are they prompt and on time at the start of every shift? Are they courteous?
- Do we hire temporary workers? If so, do we train them properly and adequately to reflect our company philosophy on customer service? Do they represent our company well?
- Does our management team demonstrate the behaviors we want from your employees?
- Can we deliver consistently great customer service and maintain high levels of customer satisfaction? If not, whom can we contact to provide professional help?
Remember: A recent customer service survey determined that 86% of customers quit doing business with a company because of ONE bad experience. If you need professional help to get your customer service up to par or even to maintain your already high standards, simply contact Barbara Khozam!
What are you doing to ensure your customer service team delivers exceptional experiences to every customer every time? Please share in the comments section below.