No two words hold more power in the English language than “I’m sorry.” This admission of fault or wrongdoing, if delivered sincerely, can douse the most heated of situations and disarm the most aggressive of foes.
I saw this in action Wednesday evening at Houston George Bush Intercontinental Airport as an angry mob assembled at gate B-35. Our flight to Cleveland, now in its fourth hour of delay, had still not arrived to the terminal, and speculation began percolating it would be canceled indefinitely.
That’s when a brave airport attendant strode calmly to the check-in desk to take to the microphone.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” he began calmly, “your inbound aircraft is set to land within the next 15 minutes. That’s more than four hours later than planned, which I know has created a number of headaches and missed connections. I’m truly sorry for the inconvenience, and we’re going to do whatever it takes to make it right. If you have any issues or questions, please step up to the desk and I’m happy to assist in whatever way I can.”
He proceeded to do so, with assistance from another agent. Within 10 minutes, the angry horde that had first rushed the front desk dissipated—their conflicts apparently resolved or satiated.
It was remarkable to behold, this shift in mood from the crowd. And when I analyzed it further as I boarded and awaited takeoff, I gleaned three key takeaways that might benefit every front-desk associate or hotelier facing the ire of an angry guest:
1. Saying “I’m sorry” matters. I don’t care who’s wrong or right. Your guests won’t either. What’s important are the words themselves, which acknowledge not only the wrongdoing (perceived or otherwise) but the guest who’s raising it.
2. Follow up with resolution. Had that airport gate agent said, “I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do about it,” the scene might have ended much differently. (I’m picturing an angry mob with torches and pitchforks.) But instead he acknowledged wrongdoing and immediately announced he would do whatever it took to address each issue. Granted, he only had so much power to actually resolve them, but simply addressing them individually seemed to quell the most irate of passengers.
3. Don’t make excuses. Was the airline delay the gate agent’s fault? Of course not. Houston suffered that day unprecedented rain and flooding that delayed nearly every aircraft coming in or out. The agent could have easily pointed to the weather issues and told passengers to deal with them. But he never mentioned them. For one, any passenger who looked out the window would have deduced the cause of the delays. And for another, no one wants to hear an excuse, no matter how rational, four hours into a delay.
Now on to the usual stuff …
What’s making me happy this week?
La Quinta’s new Del Sol prototype. Full disclosure here: The company flew me out and paid for the cost of accommodation at its first Del Sol hotel in College Station, Texas. All things being equal, I was impressed. The exterior façade makes for a unique silhouette that stands out from its select-service competitors. And the value engineering within makes for an enticing opportunity for investors.
I do have concerns about consistency across the portfolio. (The prototype looks nothing like other La Quinta hotels from the outside.) But overall I’d call it a win for this brand of one.
Stat of the week
$2 million: That’s the bottom-line savings La Quinta reaps in its 352 corporate-owned hotels for every one minute squeezed from operational efficiencies. (With that kind of savings, it’s no wonder the company’s executive team was so keen to explain all the thought that had gone into the back-of-house layout in the new Del Sol prototype.)
Quote of the week
“Focus is absolutely critical. Strategy is as much what you say ‘no’ to as what you say ‘yes’ to.”
—Carlson’s recently appointed CEO (and former COO), David Berg, in describing his No. 1 priority at the company.
Berg took the reins from outgoing CEO Trudy Rautio, on 1 May. To learn more about his strategic priorities, read “Berg brings renewed focus to Carlson.”
Reader comment of the week
“When interest rate goes up for commercial mortgages, fun will begin. Just wait and watch. There was a time Japanese came and bought lots of trophy assets and every one knows how that ended. Greed is Great and fear mixed with greed causes these flood of overseas money in to USA. Good for us though . Let them bring it on to all remaining towns too.”
—Reader “K J Shah” acknowledging the flow of foreign capital into New York City in “Global investors flood New York City market.”
Email Patrick Mayock or find him on Twitter.
The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hotel News Now or its parent company, STR and its affiliated companies. Bloggers published on this site are given the freedom to express views that may be controversial, but our goal is to provoke thought and constructive discussion within our reader community. Please feel free to comment or contact an editor with any questions or concerns.