craz

The OP did say they recently changed where they worked

jmd4211

I know.

I havent had the time to be very active on here since transferring.

craz

then no need to switch

BTW I had similiar experiences with Marriott in China and Chile

But I just dont see NA coming into such a fold or most of Europe, unless you booked a non-Standard Suite which you are paying $$$$$ for, and then I believe Europe deals with a person differently

Sort of like Vegas, where if you are a Whale they cater to your every wish. If you dont drop the $$$$ at the Casino forgetaboutit

most of NA is a mass production, unless a person is willing to ante up and stay at the top of the line Hotels as I said before or a boutique Hotel that might lend more to what youd like as they are small enough to do it

thomas199023

I saw you had a few posts over in the le Meridien London threat so I suppose you work there now.

The experience with the personal greeting of the manager on duty I described earlier was at the Le Meridien Frankfurt property. I believe as well that the best thing you could do is to train your staff to know a lot about SPG and the benefits Elites are entitled to.

moulder3

I wasn't planning on commenting, until I realized that the manager asking was James, who was so amazing in helping me set up my reservations at the Sheraton Cork last fall.

So (just for you, James!), here are my suggestions. I'll try to keep them broad, so that hotels with many plats a day could still implement these ideas:

Check-in

I agree with other posters who say this is the first interaction we'll have with the hotel and in many cases it can "make or break" the stay. In addition to having a friendly & helpful front desk agent, a few suggestions (I admit to lifting some from previous posts)

1. Recognize my status and check on the room type. If the hotel has a club floor, ask whether I'd prefer a standard room on club floor or suite (on non-club floor). During the week, some of us don't care about room size (since we're not in it much) and would be happy to leave it for another plat member who may want it, but on leisure stays this is typically the most important benefit to us.

2. If room is not available yet, offer to rush the cleaning (if empty). Another easy thing that should be done is to check and see if any other incoming plats (who haven't checked in) have the exact same room type as me. If so, swap our rooms. This sounds like common sense, but I can't think of one agent who has offered to do this! As a previous poster mentioned, it sure would be nice to give a few drink coupons while we wait. Obviously not a required benefit, but the low cost (since the real 'cost' would only be ~$2 a drink) and high reward (it helps us stay relaxed after traveling to the hotel, especially since flying seems to get worse by the month). A hotel that did something small like that to me would be guaranteed my repeat business. I wouldn't care if the Marriott or Hilton across the street was $75 less per night.

3. Extra amenities at check-in are very nice (again low cost & high reward), and will be remembered, but obviously not a *wood requirement.

4. Recognize how many times we have stayed at this hotel. For every 5 or 10 stays, offer something special to recognize us. Every 25th stay (for the few that stay that often) should also get a call from the hotel manager and a complimentary dinner certificate. These kind of touches recognize us and are things we would genuinely care about! I hate the generic "thank you for staying" email. Every time I get that I think "wow, I just spent $xxx at this hotel and all they can muster is a generic, spam email?!?"

During the Stay

1. Have room service bring up a bucket of ice as soon as we enter our room (maybe even offer a soft drink choice on check-in?) but make it policy for them to refuse tips on this trip. This allows us to evaluate the room service (speed & correct ordering) since many of us may be considering room service later in the stay. It would also allow a room service attendant to tell us any daily/weekly specials the chef may be preparing.

2. Give all plats free internet--no exceptions. Nothing makes me feel more nickel & dimed then being asked to pay $12.95 for slow (practically dial-up speeds, at 90% of *wood hotels) internet. Note: (in case *wood corporate is reading this thread) we're getting to the point where there should be a required minimum speed to offer internet at *wood. 25kb/s is NOT even in the realm of 'high speed' internet!

3. Make sure the maids don't knock on the door to clean the room before 11am, unless the plat has checked-out. This is becoming a MAJOR annoyance to me. I'll get in to a hotel around 2am, with the plan to sleep until 10am only to be woken up with a knock on the door as early as 7:45am! Granted, I try to remember the do not disturb sign, but there should be a *wood standard on what is too early.

Check-out

1. Ask if everything was satisfactory at the desk. If it was, say so and they can log it in the reservation (the best feedback management could receive!). If not, explain why not and allow the agent to file it. If it's something like "the bathroom needs to be updated" it will let the management know that their most valuable customers are having second-thoughts about their hotel. If it's something like "the tv didn't work" empower the agent to resolve it right there. This used to be done with the Service Promise, but in the past few years reps have gone back to not dealing with issues (unless we complain enough for them to feel obligated to get a manager...etc.).


While most of us are commenting on how to deal with negatives, know that it's because of the inconsistencies in resolution that we feel obligated to point them out. Starwood is a good chain, but brand standards and inconsistencies among individual hotels can make it frustrating when we're the "most valuable customers" as plats.

Best of luck at the new hotel, James. I'm sure you'll shine there, just as you did in Irelandl!


Addendum: I firmly believe that (in addition to free internet) all plats should be given free breakfast (either by club lounge or if closed/not on property, then via certificates). I rarely use the certificates, but on the times I do it is a welcome benefit of being their most valued traveler. Although James didn't ask for that, I'm putting this in my posting because I'll hope SPG corporate will also take note of this thread.

Flews

Congrats to jmd4211 for taking this initiative. Well done. I expect you wouldn't be asking for feedback if you didn't intend to try to implement some of it.

First, I'd be pretty well satisfied if I just received all the Plat benefits I am entitled to without having to fight for them - whether they be upgrades, 500 amenity or even just the points/stay credit. Nothing drives me nuts more than having to waste my time and energy contacting properties and/or Plat Concierge to get my points.

Second, please answer your email.

I often email ahead of my stay with queries or expectations. I have cancelled stays because I got no reponse. I also often email after my stay to provide feedback on my stay. Not always the bad and ugly, but the good as well. This too drives me nuts, when I don't get the curtesy of a response. I have given up on properties that fail to acknowledge my feedback. If you list an email address on your contacts site, the answer it. If you don't intend to answer it, then don't provide an email address in your contacts. It's akin to failing to return a phone-call.

Finally, think of something unique to your property to welcome your SPG elites on arrival. They are your most loyal customers, so surprise them with a little something.

Bottled regional water, some local fruit, a couple of locally-themed cookies or chocolates or flowers. Whatever. Doesn't even matter how much or how many. Just a little something - the more localized and unique to your property the better.

Then accompany that little something with a hand-signed, one line welcome note. It just takes a minute. It may get you a customer for life.

Those are three simple things I believe set one property ahead of another. And they certainly influence my own buying decisions, even when choosing between SPG properties.

Cheers,

CP@YOW

It's interesting how consistent the responses in this thread are.

The key for me is the check-in staff. They are not only the first impression, but the only guaranteed interaction with a hotel employee. I first made Plat at the end of last year, and, 15 stays later, I've rarely been made to feel that my status was appreciated. Status should be recognized politely and sincerely, not ignored, but also not fawned over in a scripted or insincere manner.

Please tell me I've been upgraded, but do not make it out to be a big deal if the "upgrade" is only to a marginally bigger room. Instead, recognize the stated benefits of the program and say something like "As a Platinum guest, you are entitled to the best room available. I'm so sorry, but all our suites are already occupied today. Unfortunately, the best I can do is upgrade you to xxxx" If you've done all you can and there is no upgrade, I'm fine. But most of the time I'm left wondering whether they even considered upgrading me, and I hate asking because it makes me feel like I'm greedy or asking for a favor.

I've found that the Platinum amenity is often offered matter-of-factly and rarely explained. They just cryptically say something like, "Would you like the points"? This happened on my first stay as a Platinum, and I would have had no idea what they were talking about were I not a knowledgeable flyertalker.

If there is a lounge, please say "As a Platinum guest, you have access to our club lounge which is on the xth floor and open during these hours." I find that most of the time I have to ask about the lounge.

Small gestures/gifts are appreciated and don't necessarily need to be costly. ("It's the thought that counts"). For example my most memorable experience this year was actually at a Hilton Garden Inn airport hotel (I'm HH Gold). Waiting for me in my room was a bottle of water and some cookies, along with a welcome letter (addressed to me, not just "Dear Guest", and hand-signed). It was a nice surprise.

One of the best experiences I've ever had was at the Westin Calgary a couple years ago. Every interaction I had with an employee was exemplary. On top of that, one evening, they had a manager's reception for SPG members, with drinks and hors d'oeuvres, basically creating the equivalent of a lounge. But it really was literally a managers' reception, with managers of various departments mingling with the guests -- a very impressive commitment to guest satisfaction.

If I could have one thing beyond the SPG program's standard requirements, it would be free breakfast. Hilton does this for even its Gold (16 stay) members.

ac777

An award stay is NOT free! We did pay for it. If I am flying F class on my awards I get treated like another F class passenger, so why should the award stay treatment be different? Also, if I am flying "el Cheapo" on an airline that I have status with, I get my status benefits on the ground and am treated like other passengers in the same class.

envgeo

I guess I am easier to please than some, but here are my thoughts (same as others)

Front Desk
- Recognize my status and tell me if I am upgraded or not. It's ok if the hotel is full and a simple explanation will suffice, but I hate asking (makes me feel like I am trying to big time the staff). I also agree with a previous poster that a suite upgrade is not always an improvement to a standard room on the SPG floor.
- Ask what I would like for my amenity and make sure they post, if I request the points
- Let me know if there is a platinum lounge or other options

Room
- free bottle of water
- free internet
- a welcome letter (sounds corny, but it lets me know my business is appreciated).
- deliver the paper, if I have it requested in my profile.

Oddly, I find that the 4-points and Sheraton's treat the Platinum's much better than most of the Westin's and W's. The first two almost always have a free bottle of water, free wifi, and a letter from the manager welcoming me.

Perhaps you could create a survey with some of the top 15 or 20 suggestions and see statistically what people rank as the most important? I would be happy to participate and you might see a lot more people participate in a survey than write a post.

Trustguy

This pretty much represents my experience and attitude -- as much as the "politeness and sincerity" are important, consistency is perhaps even more important. Given that there are so many brands serving so many price points, this is a much more difficult proposition.

That said -- I am really happy that this manager is probably manager of LM Piccidilly, where I am staying in about 2 weeks!

BigBopper

Honestly, I'd just like the staff to be friendly and show an effort to make us feel appreciated. Whether that's a TY, a smile, or extra amenities.

Too often staff don't realize that traveling as much as many of us do is tiring and stressful. Showing a little effort or giving us a moment to vent without assuming we're asking for compensation goes a long way in my book.

VetteLover

As a 5 year Platinum SPG, I have been very dismayed at the increasingly dismal recognition of the Platinum Status. Platinum Status at Starwood was previously an incredibly good feeling whenever/whereever you went. However, recently the magic is completely evaporated. I checked in with a friend at the W Hotel Times Square--my friend is SPG preferred member, but not Gold or Platinum, and he got an upgrade to a nice corner room on the 54th floor. I got nothing. My room was on the 20th floor across from the elevators. When I complained, I was told someone else would have to be moved for me to have an upgrade, and that the W Times Square was too popular for Platinum to mean anything. My repeated experiences over the past 8 months confirm this to be a pattern at most Starwood properties where I have stayed in 2009. Having stayed hundreds of times at Starwood over the past 5 years, I can only say my experience with Starwood at this point is one of complete disillusionment. I wonder if the advertising for Gold and Platinum benefits rises to a legal definition of misleading, and if sufficient numbers of people are having the experience I am having, would consideration of class action against Starwood be warranted.

ws8n

What matters most to me:

1. Free internet
2. Breakfast

I can do away with everything else, even with 1 bar of soap...
As for bottled water, i'm not too fond of it as I know it will end up in a landfill after use....perhaps Starwood can install drinking water dispensers....imagine the amount of plastic bottles they can save....

The one thing that irk me the most was at the Le Meridien Etoile where they charge for getting hot water

German-FLyer

If this is true, would you mind passing some of the suggestions to your peers at the other London properties. I stayed a lot in London, exclusively at *W properties and found the Meridien to be on the better side.

2 out of 3 times I was upgraded to a great suite, I was always walked to my room and the one time they didn't have a suite for me they arranged to have my things moved to a suite the next day. When I came back from work, Ulrika (or was it Ulrike) gave me my new room key and I found myself in a suite with an office, a living room, separate dining area and a very nice bedroom. (Thanks again, Ulrika!)

CNWO4LIFE

WOW! Did you forget to add a free pedicure from the spa and free NY strip dinner?
Just give me what has been spelled out in the T&C for Plats and I will be very happy.