My wife and I’s favorite hotel in Las Vegas used to be The Cosmopolitan.
We were there when the place opened for New Years Eve in 2010 with a concert featuring Jay Z, Cold Play, John Mayer and Beyoncé.
The next year we were invited back for the New Year’s celebration with Stevie Wonder.
We have had so many fabulous experiences at the property over the years. Since we were such frequent guests over the years, we even established friendships with the staff both in the restaurants and in the casino.
I have brought clients to the property as well as friends and family.
I will never, ever do that again.
We were seriously loyal to The Cosmopolitan because it was always one of the most personalized and friendly experiences, and I think those are the types of experiences that every human being craves.
The Cosmo has historically done a legendary job creating personalized, friendly, authentic and hassle free experiences.
In four years of cumulative experiences, they have been nothing short of outstanding each and every time.
This includes small details such as room service, bar staff, waitresses and housekeepers being fast, fun, friendly and authentic.
We know many of the employees families and pets.
Unfortunately, it is a place I will never step foot in again.
You may wonder what it takes for someone who is so loyal and has so many positive memories vow to never return to the place.
Before I tell you how years of loyalty were destroyed in minutes, I must caution you the very same thing can happen to you and your business.
This New Year my wife and I were out of the country, but returned to Las Vegas January 2. One of the first things we typically do is go see Mary at Jaleo, which we did the first night we arrived. I think one of the most fun times you could have is to sit down and ask Mary to take care of you and be inspired by the food she presents and the wine she pairs with it.
The following day was equally awesome seeing familiar friends and faces all over the property.
I usually tip the staff more than I bet, so people remember me.
I also typically bet for strangers as I find that to be wildly entertaining.
In fact, on this night, I stopped a new friend John as he was heading up to his room and put the chair at the roulette table under his rear end.
I guaranteed him his number 00 would hit and that I would bet it for him.
He said, “No, I have $15. I’ll put that down.”
He put his $15 and I put $25 on 00. Of course 00 hit.
He took his stack and was ready to go to his room.
I said, “No. It’s going to hit again. Let me bet it for you.”
I threw $25 on 00, John laughed and started to take steps towards the elevator bank, but then stopped when he heard everyone cheering.
Now he said he was back to even, and was headed out of the casino.
I gave him a high five, and then proceeded to lose everything else I had on the table!
My wife and I go to Vegas mostly to socialize. Sitting at the tables, we follow the dealers not caring what type of game they are dealing. Even if it is a silly game where the odds are incredibly against you, we still sit there because we enjoy the company of the friendly people.
The first two days of this stay, we pretty much laughed the entire time. It was quite infectious as those around us also had a memorable experience.
This even included the staff.
If you think about it, nice is the new black.
With all the craziness, complexities, apps and technology, I think people more than ever crave nice, friendly, human beings.
For years, this is what we experienced at The Cosmopolitan.
Unfortunately, on Sunday around 4:11 PM, this changed forever.
After playing some roulette with our new dealer friend Robert, we decided to go up to our room to watch the Dallas / Detroit wild card game.
It is not 4:11 AM. I’m talking about 4:11 in the afternoon.
We are in our room, having a glass of wine, watching the game and yes, screaming and yelling our heads off at the television because Detroit was kicking Dallas’ butt and we both wanted Dallas to cover.
Why are we never going back to The Cosmopolitan?
All of the sudden, security pounded on our door and stormed our suite like a seal team.
Five large security men slammed the door open, causing my wife to do a windmill and almost fall onto the couch with the force of their entry
I was already standing because I rarely sit, and was immediately told to sit down by two of the security officers.
I asked why they were even here and they said they needed to inspect the room for property damage.
This was crazy!
I said, “You can see there is nothing wrong with the suite. Why would take five of you forcibly entering our room?”
I was told once again to just sit and not say anything.
Security proceeded to turn over our room like they were looking for a lost treasure or a golden bar.
They tore through our room like they were looking for a clue to a murder mystery and left everything disrupted.
Once they realized there was no damage to the room, they left as rudely as they entered with no apology or information provided as to why they invaded our privacy and treated us like street thugs.
Again, this was 4:00 in the afternoon in Las Vegas.
If you can’t scream and yell about a football game in Las Vegas, where the heck should you go?
Here is the answer:
Go any place BUT The Cosmopolitan.
They are mean, they are disrespectful and I would not want my friends, family or customers to stay in a place where people are mean, disrespectful and rude.
As I said before, you and your business need to provide fast, friendly and hassle free experiences each and every time.
One failure can cost you and your company a customer for life.
Just like this huge failure cost The Cosmopolitan two customers for life.
If you want to go to Las Vegas and have fun, you may want to think twice about entering The Cosmopolitan.
If you want to hear how lame their “attempted apology” and later “attempted service recovery” were, check back for my next blog.
The Cosmopolitan’s advertisements use the motto, “Just the right amount of wrong.”
I’m here to tell you The Cosmopolitan is ALL wrong.
Mean, rude and disrespectful loses.
Nice is the new black.
Click here to view the graphic below:
Republished with author’s permission from original post.
