Dial "M" for Matthew

As I mentioned in my blog entry dated 09/01/2013, I recently started working at a hotel.  The other night, I received a telephone call from a woman who was staying at another hotel, and as she was not happy with her then-current accommodations, she wanted to know if we had room available for the following two nights.

Amanda Seyfried in the March 2012 Issue of Glamour
Photo by Ellen von Unwerth, Dress by Versace
Image obtained from http://www.glamour.com....
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There was, as they say, no room at the inn.  That's the end of the story.  Thanks for reading!

Or perhaps not....  Here's where the story takes two turns that I think might seem odd to most other people, hence my reason for sharing it with you today.

Had we had the room, this would have gone much differently, but as we did not, I asked her if she had communicated her concerns to the staff at the hotel where she was staying.  It has been my experience that people fester in frustration and then complain at check-out or even later, whether by phone or by an unfavorable online review, and that in almost all of those cases, we could have accommodated their concerns quite easily had they just let us know.  I wanted this woman to give our competitor the same opportunities that I wish my own guests had given me.  Unfortunately, she said that she was just too upset with them to talk to them at the time, and that she also didn't want to say anything until she secured other lodging for the next two nights.

I provided the woman the telephone numbers to some other local hotels, and she was extremely appreciative.  Again, one might think that the story ends there, but... not so fast!

Image obtained from http://annechaconas.com/....
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Then I called the competing hotel and spoke with the individual working at the front desk there. That's right.  I gave a professional rival a courtesy call, outlining the situation - and I said that I would expect the same from her.  As the hour had grown quite late, we agreed that it would be inappropriate for her to initiate engagement with the guest at that time, but that forewarned was forearmed.  (Eight-armed is an octopus, but that's another story altogether.)

Here's the thing:  a corollary to the expression "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" might be "I can't fix it if I don't know it's broken."  I firmly believe that, just as it is the responsibility of a service provider to exceed expectations, it is the consumer's duty to point out shortcomings calmly, professionally, and at the point of service - when corrective action can be taken.  Waiting only exacerbates the matter, not only for oneself, but also potentially for others.  

Would you have given your competitor a friendly "heads up," or would you have just gone about your own business?  Have you ever done something like what I described above?  How do you handle things when you are dissatisfied?  Please feel free to share your experiences in the comments below.