They talk about the power of the blog and I guess I just semi-proved that was true.
A few days ago I was going on (and on and on and on) in a post about some of the companies I used while I was traveling. Well, someone was watching. Hertz Rent A Car to be specific. I'm guessing someone at Hertz is smart enough to run a search on blog postings about their company. If the press is bad, a customer rep contacts the blogger and tries makes amends.
This is what I'm figuring, anyway, because a supervisor (and a very nice, well spoken one) sent me an e-mail telling me he was very sorry for "the situation described in your blog." He went on to answer all the questions I'd had about their Fuel Purchase Option (FPO) plan and was "concerned that our corporate office was unable to correctly answer your questions regarding the charges billed for your rental". Then he asked for the dates, times, and numbers I'd called to see if they could help retrain their agents on their service offerings.
Pretty much everything I wanted to hear.
He also credited my account for $57.40, which was the amount I paid for the Fuel Purchase Option (which is, essentially, buying gas in advance so you can return the car to Hertz empty).
I've already written him back, thanking him for the excellent customer service and telling him that the credit wasn't really necessary. I really just wanted to let them know I needed some more information about their product and was unable to get it from their site or reps.
I'll let you know, it makes me a little uncomfortable getting a credit for something I used (in this case gas during my vacation) just because I was posting it on this blog. I hadn't filled out their customer satisfaction survey, so I have no idea how this issue would have been resolved otherwise. Either way, the money will go into my favorite charity if and when it's posted to my account.
I do think it's interesting, though, that Hertz has taken an interest in fishing through blogs to find negative publicity. It does make me wonder if Heather Hamilton, over at her popular Microsoft blog, would have gotten as much attention from Alaska Airlines corporate had she blogged about her incident in 2007 instead of 2006. (Sorry to bring it up again, Heather!)
Here's the $57.40 question, should more companies (especially ones that deal with repeat customers) be paying attention to the blogosphere when they get negative press?
Thoughts, anyone?
(photo by way of Flickr)
With my Alaska situation, I'm not even sure that the people I dealt with knew that I was a blogger. I recall seeing a ping from one of their servers but nothing was ever mentioned in my conversations with them that made me certain that they knew I was blogging it. Frankly, they got off pretty easy, just giving me a free ticket and getting rid of the contractor. I was approached by a well-known reporter in the Seattle area but I just didn't want to turn it into a bigger deal.
I've had a situation similar to yours with Avis. The gal told me I would be refunded for the gas still in the tank when I returned it and that it would show up on my credit card. I think she would have said anything to not have had to have answered my question in a stright-forward manor. I also had the guy at the booth on the way out treat me in such a rude manor that it makes my blood boil. It was really bad, but they are our corporate car rental option. Needless to say, I am not a fan.
But remember my post about wine.com? My only bad experience with them was a lack of responsiveness on one of their web pages (which was more a busienss error than something that offended me personally) and they sent me a bunch of nice wine?
I'm not sure if the passage of time impacts this as much as company's general philosophies about how to treat people. I bet you could look back in time and find companies doing the right thing by their customers. Granted the interwebs make the whole word-of-mouth think x a gazillion. But I still kind of see companies falling into categories of those that get it and those that don't.
I'd forgotten all about your wine.com situation until you reminded me. And, you're right, Alaska Airlines got off easy. Weirdly, they're known for their exceptional customer service and it seems odd to me they didn't pursue it any further.
So Avis has a similar deal, huh? It does seem odd that it's not well explained by their customer service folks. When that happens, I immediately go into: "something fishy is going on here". Perhaps they always get push back on this option and the customer service people have decided to not talk about it at all rather than dealing with irate customers. I don't blame them, they're the folks who have to deal face-to-face with the public. At that point I think it's up to Avis and Hertz to figure out a better way to present the option.
You're right, companies either get it or don't, but they need to make it a priority to all their employees, or they won't get it at all.
Thanks for posting!
I sat next to someone at a wedding who worked for your favorite charity and I was so captivated by the concept. My tears that wedding weren't joyous tears for the couple, but rather tears of amazement for such a noble cause. Is that bad? Ha!
Bethany, it's not bad at all! (Though maybe you were drinking a bit too much champagne?) I love Heifer. For anyone who is not familiar with them, they provide animals and training to people all over the world to try to help end hunger and poverty. Each family that gets animals must in turn share the offspring of those animals, as well as their knowledge, to another family in need. (Click here if you're interested.) Thanks for posting, Bethany!
Hertz So Good? i could kiss you. i have so many "i got screwed over my the retail man" stories i would need a blog of my own every day for a month. i guess that is why i think everything's a conspiracy... that and the aliens...
Emily, aw how I miss you. And your "retail man" stories. Maybe I could turn the blog over to you for the next month? I mean, if the aliens haven't gotten to you by then, I mean. If so, the deal's off.
To follow up, I just heard from Lance at Hertz Corp. Here's his take:
While we do not have specific individuals monitoring the Internet for issues related to Hertz rentals, we do try to respond when Hertz rentals are mentioned in blogs or forums. Items mentioning Hertz are normally brought to our attention by Hertz employees at various levels throughout the company.
Please be aware, we have notified the department that oversees the information posted on our website, as well as the City Manager of our Philadelphia location regarding the issues mentioned in your blog. Be assured, this information will be reviewed and the proper corrective action will be taken. We sincerely apologize for any misunderstanding regarding this issue.
We have issued the credit for $57.40 to your Visa account and the credit should appear on your next monthly statement. Please accept this adjustment as gesture of our concern, due to the misunderstanding and inconvenience you experienced in contacting the various Hertz offices.
Thank you for the opportunity to review this matter. You business is appreciated and we hope to be able to serve you in the future.
Don't know if I've seen a company go to these lengths to take care of what is a minor dispute. I do think it's great that they see it as a bigger problem and they've taken it to a wider level. But did I expect them to do that? Not in a million years.
I hope they're able to iron out those issues I have. But, honestly, just him making the other parts of the company aware of the issue is really above and beyond.
Yes, they'll be getting my business in the future.
(And yes, that money is still going to charity, in case you're wondering.)
i am ONLY renting from HERTZ from NOW ON! they rule! mission accomplished! HURRAY! wait, are those aliens i see...?
Okay, I rarely LOL.
But LOL!
Dang it.
It's not a minor dispute once you blog about it.
Heather, I guess that's the ongoing perception. Is it the same at Microsoft?