#1009 in the Project comes from an article in CNN called, “Airlines sometimes bring joy, solace by going the extra mile” by Katia Hetter. The article is part of a five week series called, “The Travelers Psyche.”
Here is an excerpt:
It could have been a travel nightmare for Jon and Elise VanderMeer, who were flying Delta from Atlanta to Tokyo for their first trip without their child. From Tokyo, they would be taking a 15-day cruise to Alaska.
The couple was pretty unhappy when three of their four bags didn’t make the flight. Despite not having luggage for five days, Delta customer service employee Yoshiki Itahashi managed to keep their business with “the best airline service I ever experienced,” wrote Jon VanderMeer, in an e-mail.
How did this Delta employee do it? “He was very concerned and acted like he truly felt bad for the situation, he worked on alternate arrangements and options for us to consider, he stayed 4 hours past his shift until (the cruise ship) offices opened and we could get better information,” he wrote. “He granted us credits and return flight upgrades as Delta’s apology, (and) he made sure we got to the ship using Delta’s car service.
Marketing Lagniappe Takeaway: To steal a classic lyric, “Nobody’s perfect, not even a perfect stranger.” Mistake are part of doing business. How you handle the fumble determines whether or not you will recover the ball (or business). Showing a little empathy and a willingness to go the distance can make all the difference.
Today’s Lagniappe (a little something extra thrown in for good measure) – Here is Chrissy Hynde and The Pretenders singing about, “Time the Avenger”:
