Originally Posted by
chipmaster
A general question, but first to say at least myself I have had the same ambassador for almost three years now. She can't do all my request but the things she does she does well and she responds quickly usually in 24 hours or less. I hope I get to keep her for the remaining years she is an ambassador and I qualify.
Sounds like you have a nice Ambassador "agent" and that your Ambassador status has been working out very well for you.
What is every ones expectation, do you think they should enable or execute?
1) Get you a room / upgrade / corner suite when possible the hotel is over sold?
2) Get tickets or reservations at some crazy exclusive and popular place,
3) Go between for local information/attractions/food/transportation somewhere they've never been?
4) What is your request ?
Well said.
(1) When the hotel is sold out, only entitlement would allow someone to believe that they should get a room upgrade or suite upgrade. Or even that the deserve the better room in that category (pick your battles, people)l When a hotel is sold out or close to sold out, everyone should accept reality and accept that they only are entitled to what they booked. Status isn't magic, and status doesn't create magical new hotel rooms and suites out of thin air. Other people may have paid more to get the better room categries than the Ambassador paid for.
(2) Ambassadors are not hotel concierges. Ambassadors are intended to make our Bonvoy hotel experiences and communications as wonderful as possible. But when we go outside the hotels, Ambassadors aren't experts; the hotel concierges are the experts. Expecting otherwise is just a fool's errand. When an Ambassador does happen to know a location or hotel well, that's great; but blaming an Ambassador who doesn't know a hotel or location is just nonsensical and another example of entitlement.
(3) See
#2 .
(4) The number of people who complain about Ambassadors not fulfilling their requests who never share with us what those requests are is the first hint that something may be wrong in the state of Denmark for the requests themselves. When Ambassador guests make foolish or inappropriate requests of their Ambassadors, the problem is not with the Ambasasador agents but with the Ambassador guests, themselves. And most guests never want to hear that they're the problem.
For me personally things I've asked and fully understand even with my status I'm no DYKWIA.
1) Suite upgrade for special occasions. She always responds as noted usually 24 hours, and gets back that it is confirmed, request in, or sadly not confirmed. She gets an A+ here, nothing more I could ask. Whether I get the upgrade or not isn't in her or my control!
2) Local information: Here she gets a B, many places she hasn't been, how can I reasonably expect her to be my personal admin and spend more than a 10-20' doing research that TripAdvisor, Google search or the hotel web site can't do. Generally she returns things that I could equally do. Do we expect them to be local experts.
3) Tickets/reservations etc. She generally works thru the hotel concierge. Saves me time / email work to figure out who to contact. But she can't work magic here, this is where I think too many people think the ambassador can elevate their DYKWIA thinking and blame their ambassador for desires that no reasonable person expect the POTUS or some VIP gets. I think they could do more, like direct research thru opentable/Yelp but she always seems to work thru local concierge and that is also YMMV. Some concierges are good some are well a waste, LOL, She gets an A here, A+ would be to do some direct stuff.
Sounds like you are a very reasonable and also very grateful Ambassador guest to me. Kudos!
For a different thought approach, I recent went on a business and anniversary celebration. Asked for recommendation of hotels, got them, ask for upgrade, got the presidential suite. Raved about the service and positives about hotel and service ( could have focused on the negatives, there were areas for improvement ), Got a nice bonus points from the ambassador days later, was it quid pro quo, who knows, but being positive and nice things happen isn't a bad thing even when you don't get everything you think you want, sometimes it just ain't realistic or possible, DUH
Ambassador status matters, and Ambassador "agents" can do a lot to help us at Bonvoy hotels and navigating the Bonvoy IT and loyalty issues.
Some appreciate it, and some don't. So glad to see you do!
Some are realistic, and some aren't. So glad to see you are!