Welcome to Success on the Road, a new feature from The Success League. Success on the Road follows our founder, Kristen, week by week as she visits companies and travels for our company and for fun. She shares her amazing (and terrible) customer experiences along the way. Enjoy!
By Kristen Hayer
What’s in a name? Everything. I had two standout customer experiences while I was on the road this week in Atlanta, Georgia.
The first was with Adam, from the Hilton in Glendale, CA. I know, not Atlanta, but I was in Atlanta when I called him! One of our clients has a corporate rate and unfortunately, the normal reservations team wasn’t able to schedule my stay. They told me to call Adam “In Sales” the next week, and gave me his number. I was skeptical, but I’m tenacious and a budget-conscious traveler so I called and asked for Adam. He picked up the phone and tackled my reservation quickly and graciously, even though the software was still having issues. Knowing Adam’s name made me successful.
The second with Amber, from Cat Cora’s Kitchen in the Atlanta Airport. Amber was one of the friendliest servers in the restaurant, and took the time to ask me for my name. I generally try to use people’s names if I know them, but I have to admit that I’m not great with names in general and I’m usually nervous to ask someone for theirs. The simple gesture of asking for my name, when I know that Amber is someone who serves hundreds of customers each day, meant a lot. Knowing that someone else in an airport full of strangers remembers my name is comforting. Having a friendly, personal server while I was waiting for a delayed flight home was priceless.
Customer success is business, but it’s also personal. Using names is powerful. Great reminder this week in Atlanta!