I’ve been happily flying on Southwest Airlines for years. If you were to ask me which is my favorite airline, without hesitation, I would exclaim, “Southwest Airlines, of course!” But a recent poor customer service experience just may have changed my opinion.
Real World Story: A friend and I recently flew on the same Southwest Airlines flight from San Diego to San Jose, CA – a short 1 hour and 10 minute flight. We sat in different seats, so he relayed to me the first part of the following story about his flight experience.
“Half-way through our flight, I needed to use the restroom. I walked to the back of the plane, and there were three people standing in line. After about 5 minutes of 
waiting behind the SAME people, the line had not moved. I politely asked the flight attendant if she could knock on the door to see if the person inside the restroom was okay. The flight attendant said, ‘No. You just need to be patient.’ The other passengers and I continued to wait. One, two, three more minutes go by and no one came out. Again, I asked the flight attendant is she could please knock on the door. She then started growing impatient with me. She said the person may just need more time. I explained that maybe the person was sick and needed help and, therefore, would she please knock. The flight attendant refused. Having urgency myself and tired of already waiting 10 minutes, I took it upon myself to knock on the door. The flight attendant became angry with this and berated me for possibly frightening the person inside the restroom. I explained that someone needed to check to see if the person inside was all right and that it had already been a more than 10-minute wait. A second flight attendant tried to appease the situation by saying he would check to see if anyone was inside. It turned out that the restroom was empty. The lever indicating ‘occupied’ had been activated somehow. The first flight attendant proceeded to make a phone call, which I could not hear. End of story. Or so I thought.”
As we exit the airplane, the first flight attendant is standing on the jet bridge with two police officers. She points at my friend and says, “There he is” as she scurries away. The police officers tell my friend that he was reported as being drunk, disorderly and overly aggressive. (By the way, my friend does not drink alcohol, and he actually didn’t have anything to drink on the flight!) My friend asks the officers if he looks drunk and disorderly, and they say no. He explains his side of the situation calmly and rationally. The policemen seem to understand and say there are different rules when you’re up in the air. We left without further incident, but we were very frustrated with the lack of tact used by the flight attendant. We are now considering writing a letter to the Department of Transportation to make an official complaint.
Strategies that Turn it Around:
- When a customer asks you to do something but you can’t do it, nicely explain the reason why you can’t comply with the request.
- When a customer asks you repeatedly about someone else’s safety, perhaps you should consider obliging – especially if the effort required is minimal.
- When a customer is in distress – like desperately needing to use the facilities – perhaps you need to take that information into account and use a little empathy before you reply. And never, ever lash out at a customer!
- Instead of yelling at customers or involving the police, take a breather while you examine your own behavior. Perhaps you’re having a bad day and you are the one who is acting irrationally.
Remember: It is sometimes difficult to deal with customers who are obviously in a rush or who are in some sort of distress like urgently needing to use the restroom. In such situations, you need to understand the customer’s frame of mind and act with patience, speed and understanding—especially if what is required of you is a minimal effort.
What would YOU have done in this situation? I’d love to hear your suggestions in the comments section below.