Hampton Inn’s 100% Satisfaction Guarantee
A couple of weeks ago we stayed in a Hampton Inn on the way from our old house to our new house. We got in late and crashed immediately. The next morning when we awoke, I decided to hop on the free wireless internet to check my e-mail, read a bit of news, and check hotel prices at the next stop along the way. Much to my chagrin, it was down. I’ve stayed at that particular hotel in the past and have sometimes had a tough time picking up a signal in the room, but the connection itself has always been great.
When we (and by we, I mostly mean my wife) got the kids dressed and headed down for breakfast, I stopped by the front desk and mentioned to the clerk that the internet was down. He replied that he was aware of the problem, and that hopefully they’d have it back up later in the day. Having been deprived of my morning internet, I was a bit grumpy, and replied that later in the day wouldn’t help us much as we were headed out within the hour.
His response? “Would you like your room for free? I’d be happy to take care of that for you.”
I responded that a free room seemed a bit excessive, as everything but the internet had been great. But he persisted. “No really, it’s not a problem. Let me just take care of that for you.” And so he did.
While the room had started off at something like $119/night (plus astronomical taxes), we walked out without paying a dime. Not only had we slept perfectly well, but we also took advantage of their complimentary breakfast (for six, no less). To be honest, it felt kind of slimy, as if I had somehow pulled on over on them. As it turns out, this is just business as usual for Hampton Inn, where they promise:
Friendly service, clean rooms, comfortable surroundings, every time.
If you’re not satisfied, we don’t expect you to pay.
That’s our commitment and your guarantee. That’s 100% Hampton.™
I’ve always felt that every little snafu is actually a tremendous opportunity for a company to win over a customer. In this case, it definitely worked. Not only am I now a huge fan of Hampton Inn, but I’m also singing their praises publicly.
Published on June 13th, 2006 - 8 Comments
Filed under: Travel
email this article
- add to tip'd - stumble it - digg it - bookmark it
About the author: Related articles...
» Carnivals - Week of 06/19/06» From the Archives (June 10th - June 16th)
» The Best of FCN — Selections from 06/06
» Solving Dish Network Customer Service Problems
» Withdrawing Funds From Upromise
» Health Insurance: HMOs vs. PPOs
» The Dish Network Runaround
» U.S. Treasury Insurance for Money Market Funds
Was this article useful? Please sign up to receive our content via e-mail:
Articles via RSS
Not only are you singing their praises publicly, but you will probably convince at least a few people to actively look for their accomodations in the future.
Comment by Blaine Moore — Jun 13th 2006 @ 10:30 amI always stay with them on business and have had to use the “free night” only twice.
The first instance was when a fire alarm went off in the hotel and woke us all up at 4 am. We had to go out into the cold in shorts, t-shirts, etc. There was no fire. Reason for the alarm: a malfunction.
The next day, my traveling companion asked if we could get a discount for the inconvenience. The hotel clerk said “no problem” and promptly gave us a free room!
The second time, I had problems with the web connection and got zero help from the “too busy to talk to you” front desk. I contacted HQ, and they gave me a free night.
Great company, great service (usually) and always a good breakfast. I recommend them 100%!
Comment by FMF — Jun 13th 2006 @ 12:12 pmI agree with your feeling that a free room is sometimes too much. We tend to stay at Hampton’s exclusively when traveling, so we have lots of experience with them.
In the last year they have been very aggressive about the free room. There have been times where I feel almost embarrassed when they offer since the problem was so minor.
They do bend over backwards to make everything ok for your stay.
Comment by Patrick Grote — Jun 13th 2006 @ 12:14 pmYou should call their Customer Service line and let them know how well they took care of you. More people that call in will probably keep perks like that alive.
Comment by Steve — Jun 13th 2006 @ 1:05 pmGood point by Steve, I’ll have to try hampton inn next time! Their policy is getting customers already!
Comment by jim — Jun 14th 2006 @ 4:01 pmI have a friend who works at a Hampton and I couldn’t agree more.
They will do anything for you to make you happy. She told me they are prepared for virtually anything you can throw at them.
Forget a bathroom item… they will give it to you free. (Note: Hilton Garden Inn which is also part of the Hilton family of hotels like Hampton charges you for these things… and it’s supposed to be a classier joint.)
Need some gift wrap? Just ask.
Batteries… they have them.
Cut your finger? Bandages are available.
She told me they even have tickets to local events they can give away if you have a problem as well. One time I think she may have even metioned a certificate for a manicure as too. These last two things are probably rotated out and might be someting the manager at her location does that is above the norm, but all in all I consider Hampton to be the best value out there.
The free breakfast is great too… and it’s more than just the “Continental” deal that’s available at most places.
Oh yeah… at Hilton Garden Inn you have to pay for breakfast too.
Comment by Brandon — Jul 26th 2007 @ 11:58 pm