These days, especially with the social media scene being what it is and real-time, most companies understand the value of great customer service and how it can make or break their business. This is especially true during an emergency or major weather event such as the east coast is experiencing as we speak. Well, apparently Motel 6 didn't get the memo. Below is a letter recapping the experience a dear close friend of ours just went through. To say I was horrified reading this is an understatement, this is simply inexcusable and the parties responsible should be downright fired at a minimum. This is just humanity at its worst. What happened to doing the right thing or just simply being kind to others? If you are as outraged by this as I am, I encourage you to link back to this post and spread the word via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and every other social media outlet known to mankind. While we are at it, let the CEO & COO know how you feel as well:
Mr. Poirot can be contacted at 972-360-2528
http://www.motel6.com/about/accor_profile.aspx
Olivier Poirot - CEO
Jim Amorosia - President and COO
Lets let Motel 6 know that this behavior simply will not be tolerated. Kunle (referenced below) is the manager in this incident and "Singh" was the employee that chose to represent Motel 6 so poorly that evening.
Motel 6 Guest Service
497 Quince Orchard Road
Gaithersburg, MD 20878"Kunle" (I wasn't sure how to address you as this is the only name I was given and didn't know if it is your first or last name),
I was a customer on the night of February 6, 2010. As you may recall that was the weekend we had a terrible blizzard in the area. I was thankful to find a room as the power had been out at my house since 7:00 that morning. My husband and I have two small children and one had been sick with a fever all day in our powerless, cold house. At around 7:00 PM I was coming back from having to walk to the grocery store that is about a block from the hotel. I stopped in the registration area and asked the desk clerk, Singh, if he could please heat a cup of water in the microwave for me. My two-year-old daughter had a fever of 105.6 and I was trying to heat up a cup of macaroni and cheese for her to try and get her to eat something. Earlier I had noticed an employee break room right next to the registration desk that had a microwave on the counter. He refused and said he could not do it. He said if I told people that he did that for me he would have to do it for everyone. I said I would understand his reasoning if the registration area was filled with customers, but I was the only person there. After a very hard day I was very emotional and started to cry. I begged him to please heat up the water for me so I could feed my sick child. He again refused saying he could not make an exception. He then suggested I walk over to the gas station and ask them. After walking through the snow to the grocery store, I was too cold and exhausted to go anymore. I left the office very upset. I had reserved our room for two nights, but after being treated that way we checked out the next day and will never stay at a Motel 6 or any chain affiliated with it again.
I know that rules and policies exist and are meant to be followed. What I do not understand is how an employee of a company that boasts hospitality could be so cruel and cold-hearted during an extreme circumstance (our governor had even established a state of emergency for our area!). I was not asking for an extreme gesture, just to heat a cup of water in the microwave. I understand that Singh was probably very stressed as well with the phone ringing off the hook, but what I asked would have required only minimal effort on his part.
I am sending a copy of this letter to the corporate office of Motel 6 in hopes that something can be done to prevent this happening to another customer. I also have a suggestion for a change in your logo.
"We'll keep the light on for you, but don't even THINK about asking to use our microwave!"
Regretfully yours,
Joleen Johnson
North Potomac, MD
