Complaining and Why You Should Do It

Yes, readers, you read the title of this post correctly. People should complain when they are unhappy, and here's why.

This morning, a guest came to the front desk wanting to change rooms. When someone wants to change rooms, I will ask if there's a problem with the room, so maintenance can take a look if there is, but otherwise I don't care why. If people want to move, they can move. Whatever.

So this guy came to the front and tells us his neighbor must have sleep apnea because he kept him up all night with his snoring. Our walls are not that thin, so this neighbor must have been really loud. I find the guest a new room in a corner, so only one neighbor, and he thanks me. I then took him on the shuttle, and he thanked me again. He seemed somewhat apologetic about wanting to move, but he shouldn't have been. I was happy to move him - because I want the guests to have an enjoyable stay.

Look, people, you go and stay at a hotel, eat at a restaurant, really anything in the hospitality industry - the staff there want you to be happy. Do you think I want a guest to leave having had a miserable experience? No. And that is why you should complain - so we can fix it promptly and you can leave happy.

There was a woman who came to the front Monday morning with a laundry list of complaints - no refrigerator in the room, the tap water wasn't clear, and a few other things that aren't important enough for me to remember. We look up her bill and I see she was comped Friday night due to the New Year's Eve noise next door. Then the front desk person who comped her Saturday morning came by, and I tell her this woman came to the front to complain.

"She came down to complain again?" she said incredulously. "About what?"
I shrug. "She said there was no refrigerator in her room."
"She never said anything about that to me!"

Of course she didn't. Either she was biding her time so she could get more money taken off, or she didn't want to complain. I'm guessing the former is more likely. But had she complained, she would have either been moved, or the issues in her room would have been fixed. Then she wouldn't have had such a bad experience during her 25th* (her words) stay at our hotel.

So, please, complain. That's kind of why we're here.

*How many times did she actually stay previously? Five.