Don't wait!

[Kaspar Houser]

Originally Posted by WDSearcher

I would love to know where you got that statistic. Could you point me toward the source? (Serious request ... not being nasty. I work in customer service, and I'm always interested in articles, blogs, etc. that have some kind of research backing them up, since most don't.)

Long term experience with costumers and friends working in different countries at Disney.

[WDSearcher]

Oh ... okay. I was hoping for something a tad more official.

I've been working in customer service for several decades and don't share your experience. I find that nearly all of the complaints I've handled have a level of validity to them. Very very few are frivolous. The complaints are often not as monumental as the guest believes they are, but that doesn't mean that they're a lie or an attempt to milk the company. The vast number are misunderstandings -- either the guest not understanding a rule, policy or announcement or an employee not understanding what the guest is asking for.

I would have to say that -- your experience aside -- your "99%" number is more the perception of a group of frustrated customer service employees and not really something that you could use to prove a point.

[DRDISNEYMD]

Originally Posted by MrStayPuft

I've read through several threads where posters make a comment and then say "I would've mentioned it but..." As a CM, my biggest piece of advice is...DON'T WAIT! If there is a problem, bad pretzel, smelly area, rude CM - find a manager and tell them. It WILL get rectified because chances are someone else has the same problem. While we try and do everything to make your visits as magical as possible, WDW is still run by human beings and sometimes stuff slips through the cracks. Please tell us so we can correct it as soon as possible.

PS You will not find "Alvin" at WDW

PPS The parking trams will NOT take you to Universal Studios or Sea World, no matter how long you ride them.

Great post! I totally agree and appreciate the advice, especially about Alvin and those parking trams, it's really tricky stuff!

[MulanMom]

Originally Posted by WDSearcher

...
I would have to say that -- your experience aside -- your "99%" number is more the perception of a group of frustrated customer service employees and not really something that you could use to prove a point.

And it's because of this perception that some are reluctant to provide feedback. We had that experience years ago with problems we experienced at a TS restaurant at our home DVC resort. The first time, getting something taken off the bill or whatnot seemed a way to rectify an issue. At that time, we went to WDW more frequently, stayed at the resort more frequently, ate at the restaurant more frequently....and ran into the same negative issues at that restaurant. At one point, the CM we spoke to was so quick to offer a percentage off our meal, we refused it because we were aware of the perception that some people might complain as a means to get something for free or at a discount. What we wanted was for the issues to be corrected, to not experience them in the future because we didn't want a restaurant we really liked have quality change so much that we'd no longer go there.

Unfortunately, sometimes it's less frustrating to just keep your mouth shut and not patronize the establishment in the future.

[Kaspar Houser]

Originally Posted by WDSearcher

Oh ... okay. I was hoping for something a tad more official.

I've been working in customer service for several decades and don't share your experience. I find that nearly all of the complaints I've handled have a level of validity to them. Very very few are frivolous. The complaints are often not as monumental as the guest believes they are, but that doesn't mean that they're a lie or an attempt to milk the company. The vast number are misunderstandings -- either the guest not understanding a rule, policy or announcement or an employee not understanding what the guest is asking for.

I would have to say that -- your experience aside -- your "99%" number is more the perception of a group of frustrated customer service employees and not really something that you could use to prove a point.

Goodmorning America.
I have the opposite experience but I think this is just something we have to disagree on.
After almost half a century working I just can shake my head over most of the complains.

[tiki23]

There are somethings that I feel are justified as complaints for which I will want restitution - shoddy products and bad food, for instance.

But for most things, I tend not to think of them as complaints but rather as constructive criticism. If it was my establishment, I would want to know about the situation so I could rectify it.

[larryz]

Originally Posted by MrStayPuft

I've read through several threads where posters make a comment and then say "I would've mentioned it but..." As a CM, my biggest piece of advice is...DON'T WAIT! If there is a problem, bad pretzel, smelly area, rude CM - find a manager and tell them. It WILL get rectified because chances are someone else has the same problem. While we try and do everything to make your visits as magical as possible, WDW is still run by human beings and sometimes stuff slips through the cracks. Please tell us so we can correct it as soon as possible.

Thanks for posting. If Disney put this advice on the free maps they hand out, there'd be a lot fewer complaints on this board.

[shalom]

Originally Posted by WDSearcher

The complaints are often not as monumental as the guest believes they are, but that doesn't mean that they're a lie or an attempt to milk the company. The vast number are misunderstandings -- either the guest not understanding a rule, policy or announcement or an employee not understanding what the guest is asking for.

Ditto. And I think some people have a legitimate complaint, but don't articulate it well -- late or poorly prepared food may be the fault of the kitchen staff, but some people get so testy about that they end up complaining about a much more minor fault with the wait staff, and only mentioning the real problem if you pursue it a bit.

Although I think some company policies attract the scammers more than others. My brother did some repair work for a place with a "no questions asked" return policy for a year or so, and he was regularly repairing things the store didn't even sell. Some people would buy "a piece of junk" somewhere else, then, when it broke, trade it in at this place for something that would work.

So my guess is that, since Disney has such a "the customer is always right" attitude, they may get more false reports than some other places.

Still don't believe, even with places like that, that 99% of all complaints are false, though!

Originally Posted by MulanMom

Unfortunately, sometimes it's less frustrating to just keep your mouth shut and not patronize the establishment in the future.

True. But there are some problems that could be easily resolved if a customer just brought it to the attention of someone with the responsibility to do something about it. Maids can miss a lot of little problems (that may be big problems to certain customers) in hotel rooms, for instance, and, unless there's a very regular inspection program (which Disney does not seem to have), the only way management will know about it is if someone complains.