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OR … How to get more value for your money,  have great customer service, and improve the brand and product experience for the next guy (who actually might be you), just by being a great and responsible consumer… (no coupons necessary!)

Reality check: Unfortunately, the actual hotel lobby does not quite resemble this crisp,  bright and cheery photo featured on the Marriott website.

Courtyard by Marriott – Tremont , Boston, Mass, USA

The hotel sits in the Boston theater district, a landmark building with a lobby reminiscent of opulent glamorous  days with vast entryways, tall ceilings slathered in detailed carvings and adorned with crystal chandeliers.   Wow, this is going to be really nice! There’s a steady stream of families buzzing about who have come for a college visit weekend. Boston, which has more colleges per square inch than any other city in the world, gets pretty busy during these college event times, which is why we booked our hotel way in advance, why the hotel was booked solid when we arrived, and why, after the first impression wears off,  the hotel’s glaring signs of wear-and-tear and dingy tinge we notice are disappointing but understandable given this barrage of constant college traffic and the age of the building.  But rather than dwell on the frayed carpet and furniture that’s reminiscent of a 1970′s movie set, we keep our focus on the beautiful architectural details in the lobby and high hopes for a comfortable room.

During our check-in we asked our usual favorite question: are there any further discounts we might not be aware of that we might be entitled to?  We were told we were getting the best possible rate with AAA Members and  local university discounts.  Okay, now on to the room.

Again, given the age of the building, and the fact that we’re in town to tour the college, not to luxuriate in the room, we are willing to make do with some of the emerging additional minor glitches: rattling elevators, no wifi (just plug-in,  but at least it’s free, and we’ll happily take it), some funky caulking in the bathroom, more of the B-movie set furniture, dull beige something-or-other colored walls, the sprinkler pipe sticking out of the wall with an intrusively large “do not use a hanger on this” sticker posted next to it, and the security latch lock on the door coming off with screws sticking out.

When we return to the hotel late that evening, the lobby was filled with a pounding and rumbling sound which we assumed must be a train or subway nearby.  Nope, no train…  no subway… dance clubs… three of them surrounding the building.  No problem, we’re on the 7th floor.  Wrong.  Pa chong, pa chong, pa chonga..till the very very late hours (or early hours).  The next night the same thing, only louder.

Okay, so where am I going with all this?  Yep, you guessed it…Ask. Ask for the service provider to stand by their service agreement to you. Ask for compensation, ask for consideration, just ask politely for a remedy.  (see SLTV’s previous blog entries: How to Get Great Hotel Service and Save Money, Too! and The Single Most Helpful Tip for Shopping)

At check out we brought the broken latch to the front desk, politely brought up the noise issue, and pointed out that we had booked the room well in advance to ensure having a room, but now hotels nearby are offering even lower rates, and asked for some compensation for the inconvenience of the broken lock and noisy conditions. And… we received an $80 credit.

This isn’t meant to be a review or pan. We’ve generally found Marriott hotels to be an excellent value, and we were really surprised by this facility. We do appreciate that the Marriott front desk staff was willing to listen and empowered to offer reasonable amends. This speaks well for Marriott’s customer service policy, and is why we will continue to patronize Marriott.

The fact is that other than the broken latch lock, we never even brought up the general state of disrepair.  We were willing to completely accept many of the inconveniences. But we also have our limits. The noise was our tipping point, and keeping this to ourselves would not only have been a disservice to us, but it would also have been a disservice to future guests, and to the hotel as well.

What you pay for and what you expect in return is, to a large extent, an ‘agreement’ between you and the service provider. It’s their business to serve you, but it’s up to you to negotiate those parameters.  Service providers need to hear from you about what’s working or not working, if you will or will not be returning, and why.  This ensures that you and others will benefit by getting better service, more value, and better opportunities for deals in the future.  One of the most effective and positive ways you can advocate for yourself , keep your service provider in the know, and receive benefits is to simply ask ask ask! Politely asking is also a way of politely informing.

And, take it one level higher by using social media to let companies (and everyone else) know how your experience was, and how responsive they were or weren’t.  It’s a great way to ensure future value and quality. (see SLTV’s co-founder, Michael Fishman’s blog entry: Using the Social Web to Maximize Customer Experience)

Being budget-conscious does not mean you need to compromise on service, and being a good customer never hurts.

Jamie, sltv

What are the avenues or websites you use to report your experiences with brands or services?

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Related videos:

Be a Customer Who Gets What You Want
Gary Vaynerchuk, entrepreneur and marketing guru, comments on how consumers benefit from being good customers.

Keep Your Customers!
Ryan Lee, business marketing specialist, gives excellent concrete tips for any business to keep their most valuable asset, their customers,  coming back for more.

Cost Effective Marketing for Small Business
Joe Polish, President of Piranha Marketing, reveals invaluable top techniques to market your business more effectively & efficiently.

How Behavioral Economics Can Boost Your Bottom Line
Dan Ariely a professor of behavioral economics at Duke University, explains how we perceive value

Related SLTV blog post: How to Get Great Hotel Service (& Save Money, Too!)

PS: Please indulge me as I take a brief slightly off-topic break: This post wouldn’t be complete without a shout out to the absolute highlight of the hotel: The Encore Lounge, a piano bar off the lobby (Courtyard by Marriott – Tremont , Boston). Amtrak train conductor by day, musical comedy Dame by night,  Colleen Powers had us completely enthralled with her impeccable timing and spot-on observations (no one escapes her keen and cutting wit). Jimmy on piano followed her every cue and didn’t miss a beat when backing up the locals taking a turn on the mic. The entire scene - was completely entertaining.  And, now to bring us back on topic: It’s a tremendous entertainment value, with no cover charge!

Hotel Angeleno, part of the Joie du Vive group, Los Angeles, Ca

Hotel Angeleno, part of the Joie de Vivre Hotels group, Los Angeles, California, USA

We had booked a hotel stay at the Hotel Angeleno for 4 nights.  After two nights we realized we needed to extend our stay and booked an additional 3 nights. The additional 3 nights were over a weekend and the rates were lower than the first four mid-week nights.  So, our final bill would be the combination of two rates: 4 nights at the the mid-week rate, and  3 nights at the weekend rate (tip: in addition to planning for off-season deals and discounts, if possible, try to plan for weekend rates which are often lower than weekdays).

At check out we shared some light conversation with the front desk staff, as we had often done during the stay, (tip: never hurts to be a nice real person and cultivate a relationship) but this time our conversation turned to the topic of the hospitality business. We inquired about who actually owned and operated  the coffee shop and restaurant, (tip: never hurts to be friendly and interested in them and their business) and we did make a suggestion about what they might consider doing should the coffee shop fail to open again as it had the previous morning, and also mentioned how pleased we were that the ragged frayed towels we encountered during our prior visit were no longer being used. (tip: whining is often not effective and never appreciated, but a gentle suggestion that they have not been perfect is more likely to get management’s willing attention) We mentioned that we’ve been repeat guests, and that we would be returning in the future.  (tip: remind them that you are a future source of revenue and [social media] publicity) It was a delightful conversation actually.  One of the staff members even asked if we would please make an entry at Trip Advisor, which we eventually did.

So when we pleasantly asked if there might be anything they could do to help bring some balance to the difference in rates we were being charged, they pleasantly tried to accommodate our request. And…we pleasantly ended up receiving a $50 credit for each of the 4 nights that were billed with a higher rate.

So often we encounter hotel staff who clearly don’t have the power to generate a remedy, which is an obvious indicator that upper management has provided little or no direction, training, or protocol for staff to follow so that they may graciously care for a guest’s needs (tip: encountering this is usually is a sign that management doesn’t care about providing quality hospitality service to their guests – which is a point to keep in mind when considering choices for your next hotel reservation, because pour customer care is no bargain).

It was immediately clear that the Hotel Angeleno’s staff was empowered to take action. We were really impressed by their desire to please, and we let them know it (tip: always let them know you are appreciative).

And, we absolutely will stay with them again in the future.

Jamie, sltv

Know before you go – videos:

Arthur Frommer Shares His Top 10 Bargain Travel Tips
A rare appearance from the travel master himself

Best Sites for Flights
Tips from travel vloggers, Trip on a Deal

Travel Insider Tips: Eating and Sleeping
Rick Steves, travel editor, PBS travel program host, author, owner Edmonds Travel

Visit the sltv Travel Section
Our travel section has video tips on everything from travel insurance, to coupons, to packing for a road trip, to finding the best seat on an airplane.

Searching for THE tip; in front of the computer screen, at my desk.

Another video about saving money to review.  Though I’ve seen countless clips, I’m always excited at the prospect of learning a new tip,  so I watch with interest as this new story begins.  Our Heroine is introduced: a woman, much like me, is strolling through the local shopping mall, much like I’ve done countless times.  The story continues and soon I realize I’m not seeing anything new… and after what is beginning to feel like a very, very long minute-and-a-half, I grow a little impatient. Come on! Where’s THE big tip, the super MAGIC key that’s going to make getting more for less effortless? I want to hear something so revolutionary that I’ll never have to even think of clipping coupons or waiting for the pre-post-new-arrival-clearance-off-on-season-mark-up-down sale.  And just then, I hear the same two words I’ve heard countless times before:  JUST ASK.

Every time I’ve heard the suggestion to, “Just Ask,” for a discount, I’ve thought to myself, “Yeah, sure…like it’s really that easy?”  Words like, embarrassing, awkward, and shy come to mind.  No matter how many times I’ve heard this advice from a vast array of experts, the most I’ve been comfortable with has been asking if a merchant accepted AAA discounts.  Until recently.

Michael and I have had to do some considerable traveling lately.  Asking for AAA discounts when making travel arrangements has not been a problem for either of us, and we’ve gotten some decent percentages off hotels and rental cars.  I don’t recall exactly how it happened, maybe watching all these video tips gave us the incentive to just go ahead and give it a try, but something clicked, and after a few go-rounds with our, usual “Do you accept AAA?” a follow-up question emerged:  ”And, are there any other offers or promotions that I might be entitled to which I may not be aware of?”  GENIUS! (Thanks to Michael’s excellent word-smith skills).  We’ve been using it ever since!  Sales associates and merchants don’t seem to mind at all — in fact, they go out of their way to try to accommodate it!  It empowers them to be creative, succeed at making a sale and provide great customer service.  It’s really not embarrassing to say and we’ve both become completely comfortable using this phrase.

And, it’s saved us hundreds of dollars over the past few months. (Insert smiley face here, no, don’t, yes, no…)

I may not have actually learned anything “new” from watching that video about the woman, much like myself,  in the mall, after all… I had the magic key all along, I just had to use it.  So keep reading, researching, and of course, watching – because even though you think you may have seen and heard it all before, the cumulative encouraging effect just might pay off big.

Jamie, sltv

A couple of short videos on the topic:

Haggle for Great Deals!
Money Talks consumer advocate, Stacy Johnson

Haggle for Shopping Deals
KMBC-TV Kansas City reporter, Dion Lim

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