CUSTOMER SERVICE

 In my current occupation, I deal with the public and dozens of venders. I believe that customer service /the way we treat not just the customer, but the relationship we have with our vendors shows who we are as a company. So it is vital that our decorum (our behavior in keeping with good taste and propriety) should always be above reproach. 

Currently our world of business, along with our personal lives is a bit off kilter, due to the pandemic. And we feel this in all we do. 

However, I do not think that a pandemic or any other interference should get in the way of common sense. 

Let me share a story....

A client called to get flights to Kauai. Her family had had vacation plans in 2020, that were canceled due to the pandemic. So, using her airline vouchers I went to rebook the flights. Unable to get it done on the website, I put a call in. A two hour hold is what the recorded message said. I held. To my surprise, Tyrone answered well before the two hour mark. He told me the trick to work the vouchers through the online system. But said, “While I’m on the line why don’t I help you with that!” Super I thought! I gave him the flights I had just pulled from the online system and all the names, voucher numbers and the corresponding pins. He then told me that the prices for that flight had just gone up several hundred dollars. I stopped, put him on hold, called the client, explained and got back to Tyrone. Who magically just found new pricing that did fit my clients voucher budget. We held the air and saw that there would be a $103 difference in the first class seats. I called the client again and took her credit card info. Returning to Tyrone, credit card info was given, voucher numbers and pins were given for all 8 clients, I thanked Tyrone and even spoke to his supervisor to let her know how grateful I was for his service. My office had already closed and I was running on forbidden overtime, so I locked up the file and went home. 

When I printed out the confirmation emails from the airlines the next morning and started building a booking sheet for the transaction, I was very confused to find that all the pricing Tyrone had given me the previous evening (and yes I do take notes on every transaction, just for this reason) were all different from what was on the email confirmation. In fact, the confirmation pricing was what was originally on the airlines website. And how did my first class passengers owe $103 more? 

I called the airlines. A two hour hold, again! I got to speak to Suzy this time, who told me that everything looked fine on her end and the numbers on the confirmation were accurate. I asked how Tyrone could give me the pricing he did but then run different pricing. She didn’t know. I asked her about the $103 charge to the credit card, she didn’t see that anywhere. By now my head was spinning. When Suzy had confirmed each passenger and pricing I hung up. And tried to get composed because my client was now waiting in the lobby to see me. I pulled it together, welcomed my client and proceeded to explain the events that brought us to this point. I reassured her that the flight are booked an asked her to let me know is a charge for $103 hits her credit card. I told her I would send out her booking information as soon as I had completed it. She asked if I could find out the remains value on each of the vouchers. I told her I would and wished her a good afternoon. 

I finished her booking sheet, sent an email copy and hard copy to her, then went back in to the airline’s site to gather each passengers remaining voucher value. 

Only to find discrepancies with each voucher. I had already built the spread sheet. So I put all the voucher information for all eight passengers back in and found the same, disturbing inaccuracies. 

I called the airline. A two hour hold time. Then, Teniqua answered the call. After explaining my findings to her, I was told that she couldn’t help me, but she would get a supervisor. A twenty minute hold. Then Dee came on the line. I started from the very beginning and told her all details. She looked for the $103 charge but did not find it. She made sure all reservations were properly paid and ticketed. They were. Then I asked, if all original seats all cost the same amount and thus were issued vouchers in all the same amounts, then new air was bought at all the same new cost ... WHY are all remaining voucher values at very different amounts? Supervisor Dee told me that the booking department pulls the amounts at will to fill the total amount due.

I was now dumbfounded. 

Yes, all the airline agents were courteous. All the monies were accounted for. My clients will get everything I told them they would get.

But this should have been simple math. Cut and dry, black and white. Why was it not???? 

There is no explanation for the bewildering process that American Airlines has used to formulate the numbers they gave. None. 

I asked my boss to sit across my desk from me and I explained my situation. I was confused, exhausted, angry and wanted to cry. After explaining the situation to him, he said “From here forward, clients will need to deal with the airlines directly when using vouchers.” He did air for a couple decades so he felt my frustration. 

Customer service.... is more than just a smile, it should also include common sense.