I've complained to various hotel management three times out of maybe a hundred plus hotel stays.

At a Sheraton in Vancouver there was no bell staff to help with my luggage, I hauled my luggage to my room myself, then the next morning none of the hotel staff could tell me the location of my conference meeting rooms, instead they sent me on a wild goose chase all over the hotel including barging into a meeting of JAL executives looking for my meeting room. I wrote a complaint letter not to get compensation but to explain why I wouldn't return to their hotel, and I ended up with an apology and a $50.00 dining certificate.

At a Sheraton in Hawaii repeatedly over several days the waitstaff would ignore me and my wife when we went for evening drinks. Meanwhile they would serve everyone around us promptly. I have never experienced anything like this before or since. I e-mailed the manager in the hopes that we would be served the next time we showed up for drinks in the evening. We received an apology and a fruit plate but the poor service continued.

At a Hilton the radiator/heater fan was loud on and off all night, they wouldn't move me to another room, then they wouldn't extend my checkout time by an hour so I had to miss part of my conference waiting 45 minutes for bell staff to arrive to check my luggage. I wrote a complaint letter in the hopes that they would improve their service as a 45 minute wait for bell staff and a loud heater fan are unacceptable. As unexpected compensation I received a two night stay at their best suite.

As far as the format of the complaint letter I keep it factual but also point out something along the lines of "I generally wait no more than five minutes for bell service at ****** hotels where I usually stay when traveling" so the management gets the idea that it is a competitive business with standards of service that are expected to be met. I also point out the good things about my stay in a complaint letter.

I've found it worthwhile to complain when there is something worth complaining about, and I complain with a view to improving service at an establishment. If clients at my business felt they received poor treatment, I would really appreciate some negative feedback even if only to say "Here is why we won't be using your services any more". Whining over minor issues and blatantly requesting compensation is beneath most of us I think.