Comments for Steve Curtin

Comment on Mood killer by Kat Cole

Kat Cole — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:42:00 +0000

Totally agree- if Mickey Mouse took off his head and started smoking or took a quick shot of vodka, people would freak! While that’s a more extreme example- it’s similar – when you promote a brand, you’re selling an experience – and if that “experience” is inconsistent, it has a subtracting affect on the brand message and sales – a Great post!

Comment on Mood killer by Lia Huber

Lia Huber — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:45:54 +0000

Well said, Steve! I couldn’t agree more.

Comment on Freedom of choice by Steve Curtin » Blog Archive » Without competition, quality suffers

Steve Curtin » Blog Archive » Without competition, quality suffers — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:58:34 +0000

[...] do not operate from a position of fear and scarcity. They lead from a position of confidence and abundance. These companies recognize that the “pie” is not finite. The size of your slice of the pie has [...]

Comment on When companies compete, products get better. by Steve Curtin » Blog Archive » Without competition, quality suffers

Steve Curtin » Blog Archive » Without competition, quality suffers — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:57:35 +0000

[...] business operates with a scarcity mentality that suggests that there’s a finite “pie” and that, if you get a larger slice of the pie, [...]

Comment on Problems may bolster satisfaction by Steve

Steve — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:52:19 +0000

Mark, agreed. It’s similar to the dynamics that effect personal relationships. Tension or conflict may allow relationships (that had previously been superficial in nature) to go to a deeper level of intimacy and mutual understanding. It reminds me of a quote by J.W. Marriott, Sr.: “Good timber does not grow with ease. The stronger the wind the stronger the trees.”

Comment on Problems may bolster satisfaction by Mark Ravenscraft

Mark Ravenscraft — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 14:14:28 +0000

Steve:

“Spot on” and don’t forget to mention these guests that have their probelms, concerns, etc resolved in a very timely and efficient manner, can and do become some of the best “promoters” for a hotel!

Comment on Handle problems with care by Steve

Steve — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 05:42:46 +0000

Adesh, especially in difficult economic times (as hotels have been experiencing the past two years), hotels need to address their planned renovations schedule. If renovations must be deferred due to reductions in CapEx budgets, then hotels must take steps to mitigate the negative effects of a worn product on guest satisfaction. One way to accomplish that is with an aggressive general clean schedule – similar to Ritz-Carlton’s C.A.R.E. program.

Comment on Handle problems with care by Adesh Sidhu

Adesh Sidhu — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 17:26:10 +0000

Nice insight on CARE program. I am sure that this approach is extremely fruitful as customers always get to see extremely clean and kind-of-new-look rooms.

Comment on Next? by Steve

Steve — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:23:01 +0000

Rob, thank you for your thoughtful reply. Great story illustrating an exceptional service culture. I think I’ll pass the post/comments along to JetBlue via Twitter. Agree with your final comment: A culture of helpfulness makes an impact as much as a single bright star. Well said.

Comment on Next? by Rob Sanchez

Rob Sanchez — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:07:34 +0000

One of the major issues with aloof and indifferent employees is that so many people are not doing what they want in their jobs. When we (as consumers) go to purchase a product or use a service we are passionate about, we are making an active choice to engage with the product or brand. If the employees came into the position passively, instead of looking for a job/career/product they could be passionate about, there will often be that stale feel to the interaction. We are too sensitive to body language to not realize when an employee would rather be somewhere else. It really puts a damper on the interactions. Good customer service and interactions require hiring people who want to work for you, not just who want to get paid.

I did want to share one of the most positive experiences I’ve had with a major airline (and the reason that I only fly with JetBlue if at all possible). This Thanksgiving I was flying out of JFK in the evening. I had to go from mid-town to the airport and the subway I was on broke down. We were stuck in the tunnel for an hour and a half. When I finally arrived at the JetBlue terminal, my flight had already been boarding and doors would close in ten minutes. The automatic terminal check rejected my boarding pass, so I asked an attendant to help and explained my situation. She grabbed my bag and brought it to another employee so that he could process it while she took care of my boarding pass. She stayed with me until the bag was on the conveyor belt (I had to sign a Voluntary Separation tag since it was so close to flight departure).

Once that was completed, I went to the security check line. The TSA attendant told me that I couldn’t make the flight and pointed out the nearest JetBlue manager. He took me through the Flight Attendant security check and got me into the terminal. I ran the whole way to the terminal to find that the crew had held the door for me. They knew that there was a slight delay on the tarmac, so instead of closing the doors on time they used the delay to ensure that I was on board.

It took me 15 minutes to get from the bag check and onto the plane. Amazingly, the bag arrived on the other coast. Despite the holiday stress, all of the crew members where well-trained, professional, and knew exactly which rules they could bend to help me out. While no one person stood out as being amazingly helpful, the culture was one of doing whatever possible to help out.

If you know you have a company/product that doesn’t always inspire passion in your employees, at the very least give them all the tools they need to help customers. A culture of helpfulness makes an impact as much as a single bright star.