I recently took a brief vacation to Las Vegas, quite arguably one of the most decadent places in the world. Everything on the strip has a high price tag, and every whim is available from shopping and fine dining to entertainment and spas. In a place where you can spend serious cash on simple things like water, apples, and oxygen (yes, there’s an oxygen bar there), one thing was curiously missing; Remark!able customer service.
In a place dependent on tourism and catering to people, I would have thought customer service would be a primary focus. At first, it’s easy to dismiss the issue with reasons of anomalies, disgruntled employees, and bad moods. However, as time went on, I found myself thinking things such as “this would never fly in Minnesota” and “don’t they have training programs to help these employees learn basic tenants of customer service?” Even though I was on vacation, I felt myself wanting to step in and help people figure out how to sell each person $150 show tickets in an efficient manner, void of heckling from those standing in long lines (yep, I was in many of those lines).
Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba talk of creating customer evangelists, and Las Vegas as a tourist destination (on a macro-level) clearly has word of mouth on its side, but broken down to a micro-level, it’s mind boggling how customer service can be at best lackluster. I began to think that maybe my background in small business and marketing had me overly critical. After all, I spend my days devoted to keeping clients happy and teaching people how to listen to their customers. Maybe it was just my imagination that the waitress at the pool only yelled “drinks” while walking 15 miles an hour past people and avoiding any and all eye contact.
Then it happened.
I decided to treat my sister and I to one drink by the pool. After flinging my body into the path of the waitress, cheating death (not really, but it makes for a good story) and paying $30 for two drinks (that part is true), I declared an end to the madness. An in-depth conversation ensued about customer service being significantly more Remark!able in the rural Midwest. The topic remained on our tongues the remainder of the vacation, and I decided to dig deeper.
When I encountered a smiley clerk (shop at Caesar’s Palace), an attentive wait staff (Emerald’s at MGM Grand), or a funny cab driver, I asked where he/she was from. The answer? All from the Midwest! I kid you not. Wisconsin, Illinois, and Michigan respectively.
The point of this article is not to review my Las Vegas vacation, but to give kudos to those who put a focus on Remark!able customer service. It may not seem like a big deal, but without it, a business is reduced to a transaction; void of an experience worth telling others about. Now, go forth and tell others about your great customer service experiences. Happy Small Business Month!
photo credit: Allen McGregor
Beth… I think you are on to something. Here’s the thing, places like Vegas and other bog tourist destination (save for Disney) have put such a low premium on customer service it’s actually kind of funny. People go to places like Vegas for the experience and the staff down there needs to realize that they make or break the experience. That is the lesson we must all learn – WE can make or break the experience our customers have with us.
Thanks for sharing!
M.
It always brings me back to the thought that is way more work to find and “sell” to new customers than to simply make sure we keep the existing ones happy. We have all had experiences where we’ve felt like a “number” rather than a “person” and it doesn’t feel good. I still remember your blog post about your trip out East and the superior customer service that was received in “replacement clothing”. I looked for that post to link here, and didn’t see it.
Beth,
I’m originally from Minnesota (currently living in Michigan) and I’ve traveled all over the US. From personal experience, I can say I’ve had similar experiences depending on the coast and whether you’re in the North or South. I moved to the East coast for few years and although I miss the ocean, I do not miss the attitude.
I work with a luxury travel agency (I’m an Internet Marketing Consultant) and have had a lot of opportunity to travel because of that. I noticed a huge shift in customer service from the 4/5 star hotels vs the 1-3. Last year I stayed at the Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas. I had an amazing room, fantastic customer service and felt like a real VIP.
I think it really depends on expectations and I did expect a lot more from the Mandarin Oriental because of the price to stay. Its been the same for other luxury hotels/resorts I’ve stayed in. Way better customer service, amenities, etc. As far as outside the hotels/resorts – people definitely treat others differently in different areas of the world or even in our own backyard. I try to be “Minnesota Nice” to everyone I meet and hope it rubs off!
Thanks for sharing Nicole. I really appreciate your insight. I agree that it does boil down to how people treat others, even in our own backyard. I’ve certainly had my share of instances in Minnesota, but I do find that “Minnesota Nice” is fairly wide-spread. I’ve also heard from many people that employers in other parts of the US look for Midwest applicants because of our ethics. While I don’t know that to be absolute truth, I’ve heard it enough to catch my attention.
On another note, I am planning my first trip to Michigan this summer for our family vacation. Excited to see your neck of the woods!
The funny thing about great customer service, is that when given the authority from management, it is not really that hard to do. But I think a lot of that attitude comes from the top down. Or customer service reps simply are not given the power to make decisions and provide exceptional service. I do think Minnesota nice goes a long way. And speaking of international customer service, the best customer service I have ever received was in a small pizza parlor in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica 8 years ago, and I continue to share the story because it left such an impression on me!