Measuring Great Service
When I was in San Francisco in September, I stayed at the W Hotel (a Starwood brand). I have nothing negative to say about the accommodations, service, and otherwise excellent treatment I received, but that’s not enough to warrant a blog posting. Like too many consumers, I ignored the questionnaire which accompanied my bill and asked me to rate my stay. A few days ago I happened to pick up the survey and take a look at it, and had I opened it when I was in San Francisco I would have been likely to fill it out because of how unique it was.
The short questionnaire had only 4 questions, and each made sense based on what I’d experienced during my three days there. The hotel wanted to know “who created a wow experience” (every staff member I met gave me their business card), “how the experience could be better next time” (I would have a hard time coming up with anything), and “will you return” (which also asked for an explanation), were three of the four. The last, asking for a 1-5 rating of the overall experience, was very unique and caught my eye most. Instead of the typical excellent, great, etc…, the 1 to 5 were labeled “not so fab, ehh, ok, good, and fabulous.”
There are many things that the W could have done that would have made me more likely to complete the survey (a follow-up email for example), but I do wish I had opened it before leaving and let them know how great and unique their service was. Ultimately, what impressed me was that everything (including the satisfaction survey) revolved around a culture of service. As someone who’d never traveled that far from home, it made all the difference, and if I ever visit on a non-work related trip, I’ll be sure to stay there again.
