The WOW Factor in Customer Experience
Heading home from Seattle, I got this sinking feeling when I was checking in for my Continental flight back to Austin when the terminal check-in kiosk message read "No record found." I had been wondering why the automatic "Check in for your flight now..." email hadn't arrived..but assumed it was because I changed my seats at the counter in Austin. It suddenly occurred to me that I might have a bigger problem, that I might just be at the airport on the wrong day. In over 50 years (literally) of flying it would be a first for me...but as they say "There's a first for everything."
I quickly searched for my itinerary on my Android, and sure enough, instead of 4/13 the departure date was 4/14. Oops. You might be wondering "C'Mon Dave, you've traveled before...didn't you look at your itinerary? Answer, "yes, but..." My 30-day travel schedule is as follows: Seattle, San Francisco, Delhi, Mumbai, Toronto, Amsterdam, New York, and then Chicago. All travel is on Continental, btw.
I walked up to the counter, where Continental agent Trini M was standing. She asked "How can I help you." I explained that I had specified the wrong date when setting up my travel (in other words, I took full responsibility for my mistake). I asked Trini what my options were. She smiled, pressed a couple of keys, and handed me boarding passes for the same flights, today. No fees, no questions. Just a smile. As I stood there not knowing what to say (other than "Thank You," which was immediate) I asked if it was normally this easy.
She said "No. I just did it for you you."
A friend sent me that article & I re-read it often. It always leaves me with one thought..."WOW"!
Think about the customers you have the opportunity to interact with today & sieze those "WOW" opportunities!
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