Mark, I enjoyed this post and story because it's a perfect example of departments/silos having their own processes and data sources and not communicating. If everyone was looking at the same set of data, chances are they wouldn't be giving erroneous information to customers. Of course, there are other issues such as training and hiring that come to bear in creating a consistent customer experience.

Break down the silos, get everyone in the company (across different channels) on the same page with a shared repository for customer data. It's harder than it sounds, but a very worthwhile endeavor.

Paul: Here's the part that really gets me though. When you call the hotel directly to ask them a question, as I did to confirm my reservation, I was transferred back to the reservation line. So instead of speaking to someone who would have a direct hand in influencing my stay, I had to speak to someone else a country away.

As a customer, it just feels weird to be rerouted like that. And then, when there's an inconsistency between what your told and what's real, it just compounds the flaw in the process even more so.

End result: frustration.

Great post!

I am sure many of you have already heard of it but there is a great book that covers, as part of its topic, the consistency of customer experience through systems:

The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It
http://www.amazon.com/E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213139162&sr=8-1

The book seems to focus on small business but I think the ideas are applicable to companies and organizations of all sizes.

As a former Torontonian, I won't provide any editorial. However, I'm curious to know whether the hotel front desk staff comped you in any way for the negative experience. Since you weren't the only one in that position, it wasn't made up, and the hotel should have compensated you with something. Then it would be up to the GM to tackle the overarching issue with head office.

Yes, Elaine, that's exactly what happened. Our issue had to do with price. The reservation line told us that the hotel accepted a discount card that actually wasn't accepted. We were billed the full amount and the GM at the hotel honoured what we had been told on the phone after we talked it through.

In our situation, he had to take our word for it. For all he knew, we could have been making up a story (we weren't!). In the case of the other woman, there was no way she was making up her story. She had specifically asked for a suite with an adjoining room that had two queen beds and was told that it would be no problem. However, the suites at this hotel only connected to rooms with king beds. And she had booked there based on being able to have the extra room with two beds.

Much different situation, and I'm not sure how the hotel handled it.

I had a non-smoking hotel comp me a night because the person in the room next door (breaking the rules) smoked in their room. The noxious smell seeped into my room and this was a very old, all wooden hotel. Needless to say I was annoyed enough to call down stairs.

They came up immediately and knocked on the neighbor's door.

The next morning the desk staff looked at the "log" and was all apologies and I was comped a night. They something like this is a non-smoking hotel and you did not get what you paid for so you get a free night.

That was impressive. I must write a thank you note to the smoker in the next room some time.

Mark,

I like to call this "one hand not knowing what the other is doing" the BELL syndrome. There is no more infuriating experience then trying to get a straight , consistent answer out of those silos. By far the worst.

Neil: Thanks for the link and the story. I read the first page of the book (on Amazon) and my reaction was, "I believe that!"

Jamie: Could be Bell. Or Fido. Or Videotron. Or Marriott. The list goes on!

I had a similar sitch to Mark in terms of being routed to someone who wasn't on the site. I lost my bag so tried to call the local grocery chainstore where I thought I might have left it.
I got through to a call centre, who then called the store "on my behalf" - which is what I has set out to do myself! WHY WHY WHY!!!!???

This felt like the left hand being so under the thumb of the right hand that it was not able to act on its own. V frustrating!

Great post. I think the most important thing in any business is communication.

But if front line staff have problems because customers have been given the wrong information, is there an easy way that they can get that information changed? Or do they just get on with it? The right internal communication processes need to be developed and put in place.

I also have an example. While having my car brakes replaced at an independent garage, they said the headlights were faulty and gave me a quote. No problem, the price was OK and it would save me a job (replacement is very difficult). When I went to pick up the car hours later, the mechanic said they couldn't change the lights in my Renault - it would only be done by a main dealer! The service co-ordinator didn't know and the head office computer system didn't tell him either - the mechanic knew and was only 8 feet away!! Decent service quickly turned sour. It was more of a case that the finger didn't know what the thumb was doing!