dianeschlicht
<font color=blue>DVC-Trivia Contest, Apr-2006: Hon
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2000
This is the letter I sent:
"To whom it may concern:
We have been very happy members of DVC for 12 years. We have always said that one of the best things we ever did was to invest in our vacations by joining Disney Vacation Club. Recently, however, we have started to question if our "investment" has kept up with what it was when we purchased back in 1997.
To begin with, I was extremely displeased with the lack of timeliness of the newest "vacation planner". Needless to say, when it arrives half way through the year, all of our 2009 vacations have already been planned and several of them already taken. Then on first look, it appeared that the new 2010 points schedule that I was looking forward to having in my hands wasn't included. Further inspection lead me to finding them tucked into the back of the book. I realize that all these things are available online, but it's nice to have something I can carry along with me to plan when I'm not at my desk. I have had to print out the point charts from the internet site, and then have to shuffle numerous papers to make sure I have everything with me for planning.
Timeliness aside, I am also wondering why there wasn't a continuation of the three ring binders we had years ago. That certainly had to be a far less costly method of updating the point charts and other information than printing and mailing out pretty picture books each year. My three ring binder had all the pertinent information I needed to manage my membership, and even answered many questions that can come up when planning. Now, I do realize there have been significant changes to that information over the past 12 years, but in the past those changes were also sent as individual pages and were easily popped into the binder. I have to believe that method had far less impact on my DVC membership dues than what is currently being done and sent out far too late to be of any use.
I realize as I type this that the answer is probably going to be to use the Members web site to access any and all information, but I have to say, that as a web site, it is not only archaic, but not particularly user friendly when it comes to finding the information you need. I use plenty of websites everyday, and DVC Member and Disney web pages are very difficult when it comes to locating something specific. There again, my old binder was a lot faster and easier, and that should not be the case.
We do have other concerns about things we see happening at our "homes away from home". The last several trips we have noticed the quality of service has gone down SIGNIFICANTLY. The cleanliness of units right down to the knowledge and helpfulness of the front desk staffs and Member services staff. Getting incorrect information from either is becoming much more likely than not.
OKW has always been our favorite place, but lately we have seen deterioration of the units and just little details that we once loved so much about WDW in general and OKW in specific. The last time we had friends with us, our unit was deteriorated and even hardware of door knobs etc, were mismatched. It just looks tacky when you start to see so much of that. Add to that the amenities that used to be there and are no longer there like the pot holders, placemats, napkins, peach colored towels, etc, etc, etc. I do appreciate the improved towels and sheets added last year, but we still have the concrete beds at OKW.
I also think there needs to be a standard for cleaning the units between guests that is double checked or at least checked by someone other than the person doing the cleaning. Everyone has individual standards, but somewhere along the line, there should be minimum standards for each unit and someone checking to make sure they are done. The last 3 visits to OKW and last visit to AKV/Jambo were very disappointing in the cleanliness department. I never felt that way the first 10 years of membership, so something must have changed, and not for the better. I hate finding the last guest's used soap in the shower and I suspect the shower doors are only cleaned when the units are refurbished. The same goes for the stoves, refrigerators and ovens in our last several OKW units. I've even found plates in the cupboard with "stuff" still stuck to them (looked like eggs), and the dishwasher in a stopped position, indicating that it was not allowed to run its full cycle.
All of these things bring me to my original idea that things are sliding. It used to be we felt DVC standards far exceeded the other timeshare units around, but that is NOT true anymore. I'm sad to say that, because we do have some of the highest maintenance fees in the timeshare industry.
There are still plenty of things we love about DVC, and I wouldn't trade it for the world, but I just wanted to express my concerns. I'd hate to have things deteriorate even more in the NEXT 12 years."
I got a call back from Shiela (SP?) yesterday. She listened carefully to everything I had to say and even answered some questions about the housecleaning practices between OKW and SSR. Since those two resorts share housekeeping services and the main service is located at SSR, I wondered if that might be the reason for the downturn in service at OKW. She did tell me that certain buildings do get more complaints than others, and that tells me that they do indeed track those things we complain about. That means that we SHOULD be letting them know each time something is sub-standard.
She was unaware of the three ring binders, so I filled her in on those, and she agreed that it did sound more efficient and less costly than what is done now. I seem to remember these pretty picture books started about the time Jim Lewis came on board, so lots of employees aren't going to remember the old binders. It seems to me that the pretty picture books are more for sales than for those of us who are already sold!
She did tell me that the concern about "happy castmembers" is something she hears a lot. I told her we were always very pleased with the friendly staff at OKW, but that we had a few issues with the Jambo house check in staff. We talked about how that might be due to being the "new kids in town" there, and how it will settle down over time just like it did at BCV and VWL. She is expecting the same to be true of BLT. She did say something that concerned me a bit. She said the complaints about the "unhappy staff" at Kidani were concerning. I haven't stayed there yet, so I have no knowledge to base anything on there. Evidently they have gotten complaints though.
All in all it was a very good conversation, and I do know that the concerns are passed on up the ladder. This is not the first time I have contacted member services, and I did compliment her on my satisfaction from the results of my first contact with Member Satisfaction back last year when we were worried about getting Club level reservations if others could "walk" the reservation before hand. Evidently few people are doing that, so the system is allowed to work as it was intended.
Anyway, I encourage anyone who has something that is really bugging them about DVC to go this route of the member satisfaction team rather than just complaining on this forum. A complaint here is an empty one, but one there might actually do some good.
DVC member satisfaction team!
"To whom it may concern:
We have been very happy members of DVC for 12 years. We have always said that one of the best things we ever did was to invest in our vacations by joining Disney Vacation Club. Recently, however, we have started to question if our "investment" has kept up with what it was when we purchased back in 1997.
To begin with, I was extremely displeased with the lack of timeliness of the newest "vacation planner". Needless to say, when it arrives half way through the year, all of our 2009 vacations have already been planned and several of them already taken. Then on first look, it appeared that the new 2010 points schedule that I was looking forward to having in my hands wasn't included. Further inspection lead me to finding them tucked into the back of the book. I realize that all these things are available online, but it's nice to have something I can carry along with me to plan when I'm not at my desk. I have had to print out the point charts from the internet site, and then have to shuffle numerous papers to make sure I have everything with me for planning.
Timeliness aside, I am also wondering why there wasn't a continuation of the three ring binders we had years ago. That certainly had to be a far less costly method of updating the point charts and other information than printing and mailing out pretty picture books each year. My three ring binder had all the pertinent information I needed to manage my membership, and even answered many questions that can come up when planning. Now, I do realize there have been significant changes to that information over the past 12 years, but in the past those changes were also sent as individual pages and were easily popped into the binder. I have to believe that method had far less impact on my DVC membership dues than what is currently being done and sent out far too late to be of any use.
I realize as I type this that the answer is probably going to be to use the Members web site to access any and all information, but I have to say, that as a web site, it is not only archaic, but not particularly user friendly when it comes to finding the information you need. I use plenty of websites everyday, and DVC Member and Disney web pages are very difficult when it comes to locating something specific. There again, my old binder was a lot faster and easier, and that should not be the case.
We do have other concerns about things we see happening at our "homes away from home". The last several trips we have noticed the quality of service has gone down SIGNIFICANTLY. The cleanliness of units right down to the knowledge and helpfulness of the front desk staffs and Member services staff. Getting incorrect information from either is becoming much more likely than not.
OKW has always been our favorite place, but lately we have seen deterioration of the units and just little details that we once loved so much about WDW in general and OKW in specific. The last time we had friends with us, our unit was deteriorated and even hardware of door knobs etc, were mismatched. It just looks tacky when you start to see so much of that. Add to that the amenities that used to be there and are no longer there like the pot holders, placemats, napkins, peach colored towels, etc, etc, etc. I do appreciate the improved towels and sheets added last year, but we still have the concrete beds at OKW.
I also think there needs to be a standard for cleaning the units between guests that is double checked or at least checked by someone other than the person doing the cleaning. Everyone has individual standards, but somewhere along the line, there should be minimum standards for each unit and someone checking to make sure they are done. The last 3 visits to OKW and last visit to AKV/Jambo were very disappointing in the cleanliness department. I never felt that way the first 10 years of membership, so something must have changed, and not for the better. I hate finding the last guest's used soap in the shower and I suspect the shower doors are only cleaned when the units are refurbished. The same goes for the stoves, refrigerators and ovens in our last several OKW units. I've even found plates in the cupboard with "stuff" still stuck to them (looked like eggs), and the dishwasher in a stopped position, indicating that it was not allowed to run its full cycle.
All of these things bring me to my original idea that things are sliding. It used to be we felt DVC standards far exceeded the other timeshare units around, but that is NOT true anymore. I'm sad to say that, because we do have some of the highest maintenance fees in the timeshare industry.
There are still plenty of things we love about DVC, and I wouldn't trade it for the world, but I just wanted to express my concerns. I'd hate to have things deteriorate even more in the NEXT 12 years."
I got a call back from Shiela (SP?) yesterday. She listened carefully to everything I had to say and even answered some questions about the housecleaning practices between OKW and SSR. Since those two resorts share housekeeping services and the main service is located at SSR, I wondered if that might be the reason for the downturn in service at OKW. She did tell me that certain buildings do get more complaints than others, and that tells me that they do indeed track those things we complain about. That means that we SHOULD be letting them know each time something is sub-standard.
She was unaware of the three ring binders, so I filled her in on those, and she agreed that it did sound more efficient and less costly than what is done now. I seem to remember these pretty picture books started about the time Jim Lewis came on board, so lots of employees aren't going to remember the old binders. It seems to me that the pretty picture books are more for sales than for those of us who are already sold!
She did tell me that the concern about "happy castmembers" is something she hears a lot. I told her we were always very pleased with the friendly staff at OKW, but that we had a few issues with the Jambo house check in staff. We talked about how that might be due to being the "new kids in town" there, and how it will settle down over time just like it did at BCV and VWL. She is expecting the same to be true of BLT. She did say something that concerned me a bit. She said the complaints about the "unhappy staff" at Kidani were concerning. I haven't stayed there yet, so I have no knowledge to base anything on there. Evidently they have gotten complaints though.
All in all it was a very good conversation, and I do know that the concerns are passed on up the ladder. This is not the first time I have contacted member services, and I did compliment her on my satisfaction from the results of my first contact with Member Satisfaction back last year when we were worried about getting Club level reservations if others could "walk" the reservation before hand. Evidently few people are doing that, so the system is allowed to work as it was intended.
Anyway, I encourage anyone who has something that is really bugging them about DVC to go this route of the member satisfaction team rather than just complaining on this forum. A complaint here is an empty one, but one there might actually do some good.
DVC member satisfaction team!
She, individually, renewed my faith in the quality of DVC. Let's hope Disney doesn't mess it up again. 
