Up-selling and Valentine's Day

So Valentine's Day is always a busy time in the hospitality industry. Thanks to the Hallmark and other greeting card companies, men and woman all over the world are convinced that if they don't do something special for their loved one on that day, it will appear that they do not love him/her.

I take this stance: that if you have to wait for one day a year to do something special for your loved one, then you probably have no business being in a relationship.

Relationships are full-time and take momentous effort, which is why I am currently not in one. I can't tell you how many guys called in the day before and the day of Valentine's Day, desperate to find a room at one of our properties. Phrases like "she's gonna kill me" or "I'm so going to be in the doghouse" were all too common. I admit that for one millisecond I felt sympathy for these guys whose wives/girlfriends were expecting something special. Then my sympathy switched to annoyance when they would yell at me for ruining their weekend because I couldn't provide them with a room.

I have one thing to say to these guys: next year, perhaps you should plan ahead or better still, come up with something a little more inventive than a night at a nice, expensive hotel or dinner out. I think I am in the minority, but I certainly would not be woo'ed by either of those.

But enough about Valentine's Day, let me relay one of the most comical phone calls I had ever heard of. I did not take the call, but one of my co-workers whose desk is near mine was the lucky recipient of the phone call from a gentleman simply referred to as "the idiot."

This man called in wanting to reserve a weekend for his parents to celebrate their 50th Anniversary. Normally we are to use top-down selling, which means offering packages or suites (which cost more) before we offer traditional rates. Dave, my co-worker, feeling very generous for this couple celebrating such a momentous anniversary, decided to skip the top-down selling technique and quote an extremely low price for this couple:

Dave: Well, sir, I have a special promotional rate available at 209 per night.

Man: Oh really, well I see online that you have a rate of 229 per night.

At this point Dave was not sure what to say. What could he say? Obviously this man just proved what we agents knew already, the man was not listening to what Dave had said. He had a preconceived notion that we were going to try to rip him off in some way.

Dave: Sir, I understand you see the rate of 229, but I just quoted you the rate of 209. But if you would like me to honor the online rate I would be more than happy to.

Man: Oh, sorry I wasn't even listening. (Gee, you don't say)

When Dave told me this story I laughed so hard. Dave was very nice about it and told the man that he had offered him a lower rate. I on the other hand would have just said "I'd be more than happy to honor that online rate for you sir." If he cant be bothered to listen to me, he deserves to pay more. This goes along with a solution my mom came up with to help the current economy, "Just tax the stupid people!"

So a word to the wise, pay attention to what's going on (and not just when you are making a room reservation), you never know when someone will try to cut you a break.

Ode to Oprah

I wish the phone would stop ringing! Not just at work, but here at home as well. I think it is a pathetic side effect to working in a call center, the very idea of talking on the phone and not getting paid for it is appalling.
Speaking of phone calls, I had an interesting one the other day. An older gentlemen (and yes folks, I am able to approximate your age just by talking to you on the phone) called making a reservation for May so he can watch his son graduate from medical school, a fairly boring call until that fateful question...
"Does your resort allow pets?"
"No sir, unfortunately we do not," I reply.
He laughs. "What's so unfortunate about that? You will still get my money."
Oh good, I think to myself. A clever caller, I'm just in the mood too.
"Well, sir, I guess I should say it is unfortunate for you that you cannot bring a pet if you have one."
He laughs again. "Well if you consider a two pound Yorkshire terrier a dog, then yes I do have a pet."
"Two-pounds, sir. Yes we would consider that a dog." As if it were only one pound we might consider him bringing it.
"Did you ever hear the story about Oprah Winfrey at the Ritz Carlton in NYC?"
I opened my desk drawer and took out my nail file. Nothing like a good Oprah story to waste my time (note: that was sarcasm).
"No sir, I've never heard that story."
"A few years ago Oprah had a reservation at the Ritz Carlton in NYC. When she showed up to check in, she had her dog with her. It was just a little thing, but the managers said that they were a pet-free facility and that they could not allow her to keep her dog there. she argued with them and when they didn't cave in she left and went to the Four Seasons. After her stay there she raised so much hell that now the Ritz accepts pets."
"Well that's a good story," was my simple reply.
I wasn't sure what my response was to be. Of course I thought I should inform him that while I know that God loves him and maybe his wife and children do too, he is not Oprah, therefore I could care less that he wants to bring his dog. Even if he was Oprah I wouldn't care.
In the end, he did make a room reservation, but not without his smart comments. I often feel sorry for people who talk like that to me. More so I feel bad for the other people in their lives because I wonder if I am the only sounding board for them or if their families have to listen to them all the time. For the sake of their wives and significant others, I hope it's only me.
And as for Oprah, I have this little message. While I appreciate all that you do to make the world a better place, please don't bother coming to our resort. People with more money than manners drive me crazy, especially when they think their money entitles them to treat others how they wish, and that policies (that are for the good of everyone) do not apply to them.

Well that's it for now! Happy Friday everyone!

Happy 2009!

It's a new year and many people are making New Year's resolutions. I, however, am not one of those people. I have never been one to make resolutions, simply because I don't feel like making a plan to better myself knowing that I will probably not keep it. Why deal with the disappointment?

I could resolve that I will get my backside back into school to get my teaching certification so I can leave the job that I currently have now, but I'm not.

I could also resolve that I will work harder to lose those pesky 20 or so extra pounds that I currently drag along with me everday, but I'm not.

I could resolve to stop procrastinating so that I can get things done in a more timely manner, but I'm not.

I could resolve to keep in better touch with friends that live in the farthest parts of the country, but I'm not.

See, there are several ways that I could better myself this year, but I'm not planning on it. Everything happens in perfect timing whether or not I make it happen. Didn't a famous author or philosopher once say, "why force the inevitable" or did I just make that up? Who knows.


But I digress, the reason for this blog has to do with my crummy job. You see I work in a call center, one of those 1-800 numbers that people call for various reasons. My job is to make room reservations for two of the country's premier hotel resorts (and when I say premier, I don't mean 5-star, more like 4-star resorts that people on a 1-star budget try to frequent). While my job suits me in many ways, as in the hours are great and I'm paid fairly well with phenomenal health benefits, I do something that makes no difference in the world whatsoever. I don't want just a job, I want a vocation. I want to do something everyday that makes the world just a little bit better.

It may seem like I have no personal drive in life, especially since I spent the first paragraph of this post describing why I don't make resolutions, but I do have a need for purpose, like we all do. Currently I have a job that serves only one purpose, to help people spend their money. Call it what you want, but that is the root of it all. My job is not just to put a reservation into a computer, I am supposed to sell over the phone, a vacation experience for the whole family to enjoy but which involves the consumer to be parted from his or her hard earned (or maybe not so hard earned) cash. Thats the long and the short of it.

In this blog I hope to chronicle some of my most memorable experiences along the way, and perhaps some minor philosophizing about the world. I hope you have some chuckles, maybe a few gasps of surprise, but also so that you remember the next time you decide to yell over the telephone to a reservations agent, they happen to be a person too, and deserve at least a little respect.


Till next time...