{"id":212,"date":"2011-05-13T18:11:52","date_gmt":"2011-05-13T23:11:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/etereman.com\/remanu\/?p=212"},"modified":"2011-05-13T18:11:52","modified_gmt":"2011-05-13T23:11:52","slug":"dont-do-this-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etereman.com\/remanu\/2011\/05\/13\/dont-do-this-ever\/","title":{"rendered":"Don't do this. Ever."},"content":{"rendered":"

My brother-in-law and his family came to visit us in Charlotte, North Carolina and I decided to rent a minivan to schlep everyone around in. So I made a reservation at the Enterprise Rent-a-Car on South Boulevard. Although Enterprise offers pick-up service, I asked my wife to drive me over since it was on the way to her appointment. Turns out there are two locations on South Boulevard (I only knew of one) and, as luck would have it, I asked my wife to drop me off at the wrong one. I kissed her goodbye and walked in to get my swagger wagon.
\nYou won’t believe what happened next!
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cHi, how can I help you?\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cHere to pick up a car,\u201d as I hand the guy my drivers license and credit card.
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cDo you have a reservation?\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cYes.\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cIt doesn\u2019t look like you have a reservation.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cHang on\u2026I\u2019ll get the confirmation number.\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cWhich location did you select?\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cThis one.\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cHere it is\u2026you actually made it at the other location on South. This is 6859 South Boulevard. They are 3324 South Boulevard. This happens all the time. You\u2019ll have to go there to get the minivan,\u201d as he hands me my license and credit card back.
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cOops. Didn\u2019t know there was more than one on South. My wife dropped me off here\u2026can you just change the reservation?\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cI don\u2019t have any cars available. You\u2019re going to have to go there.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cCan you drive me over?\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cYou\u2019re going to have to wait.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cWait for what?\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cI don\u2019t have anyone available to drive you there. This guy is going on lunch and the other guy has to go pick up one of our customers.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cI\u2019m a customer, too. Why doesn\u2019t your guy drop me off on the way to pick up the customer?\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cActually, you\u2019re one of their customers. And our customer has an appointment for a specific time.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201cI have to pick up my brother-in-law and his kids in like 30 minutes\u2026\u201d
\nEnterprise guy:<\/strong> \u201cI can\u2019t help you with that. You\u2019re just going to have to wait. Or I can give you the number of the other location. Maybe they can come pick you up.\u201d
\nMe:<\/strong> \u201c#@$#^$&*#$^%%!$%@#^$*!!!!\u201d
\n\"Don'tActually, I didn\u2019t swear. I did yell, though, and I yelled a lot. I lost my temper. I demanded to speak with a manager (which I discover is the same unfriendly, unhelpful, unwilling dimwit standing right in front of me). I told him that he would be much more successful if he started out by telling his customers what he CAN do rather than what he CANNOT do. I told him that it\u2019s a shame that he, as manager, sets this type of example for acceptable service in his location\u2026and that it is a disservice not only to his customers, but also to his employees who are forced to learn from a moron.
\nAnd then I said, \u201cCome over on my side of the counter so we can switch roles and I\u2019ll show you how to do it right.\u201d
\nHe didn\u2019t take the bait, of course, as I\u2019m sure he thought I might try to take a swing at him if he left the safety of counter. I was foaming at the mouth by now and making a real spectacle of myself.
\nI continued, \u201cFine. Don\u2019t move. Just listen.\u201d
\nMe (playing him):<\/strong> \u201cWelcome to Enterprise! What kind of car would you love to drive today?\u201d
\nMe (playing him):<\/strong> \u201cOh, Mr. Rickun, I\u2019m having difficulty locating your reservation. Do you happen to have the confirmation number handy?\u201d
\nMe (playing him):<\/strong> \u201cAha. Here it is. It appears you have made the reservation at our other location on South Boulevard. It\u2019s about three miles up the road. How did you get here today?\u201d
\nMe (playing him):<\/strong> \u201cI understand. Tell you what \u2013 we don\u2019t have any cars available here, so I\u2019m going to call the other location and see what we can do for you. Hang tight and we will get you taken care of.\u201d
\nMe (playing him):<\/strong> \u201cMr. Rickun. They have your minivan waiting for you and, actually, I asked them to drive it right over. They\u2019ll be here within fifteen minutes and will bring the paperwork along so you can get on your way as quickly as possible. Would you like something to drink while you wait?\u201d
\nThe manager just stared at me dumbfounded. It\u2019s like I was speaking gibberish. I think he just doesn\u2019t understand friendly. So I told him to pick up the phone and call the other location, which he finally did (all the while making it clear with his facial expressions that he despised me).
\nIn the end, the other location came and picked me up, drove me back to their store, had me come inside and fill out the paperwork, do the inspection, and finally handed me the keys. It took thirty minutes longer to take me back to the location rather than letting me leave from the first location and somebody driving the employee back to his store, but the jerky manager at the wrong location was not even willing to help a fellow Enterprise employee out.
\nThe kid who came to pick me up was great. He was friendly, energetic, service-oriented, and concerned that I had such a negative experience. When I arrived, the woman at the counter apologized, thanked me for my business, and ensured that she would do everything to make sure I had a great experience from here forward.
\nAbout a minute after I drove away, I felt really bad that I had lost my temper. There were other customers standing in the lobby and I\u2019m sure I made them uncomfortable. I was actually embarrassed at this point. Although the manager deserved whatever pain my yelling inflicted on him, I did not deserve the self-inflicted pain of increased blood pressure, a sweat-drenched shirt, or the lingering frustration as I replayed the entire exchange in my head over and over.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the lesson learned:<\/h2>\n

1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Never rent a car from Enterprise at 6859 South Boulevard in Charlotte, NC.
\n2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Never treat your customers like the guy treated me.
\n3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Never lose your temper (even if you are a seriously upset customer who has to deal with a jerky manager).
\n4.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Train your employees to greet and serve your customers as if your customers are actually your best friends, your family, your neighbors, or your favorite movie stars.
\n5.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Create best responses to common customer situations and practice them until everyone in your company consistently delivers extraordinary service.
\nEpilogue:<\/strong> I\u2019ve rented more than 500 cars in my travels, and I almost always rent from Enterprise, namely because I felt indebted to the company after having read Exceeding Customer Expectations years ago. It\u2019s a stellar book on delivering extraordinary service and achieving great success by investing in your employees. If you haven\u2019t read it, I suggest you order it now. Order your copy of Exceeding Customer Expectations: What Enterprise, America’s #1 Car Rental Company, Can Teach You About Creating Lifetime Customers<\/em> today<\/a>.
\nFor the most part, Enterprise lives up to its brand promise, and I\u2019ve shared many <\/strong>positive stories with my audiences over the years. If you ever rent a car in Philadelphia, for instance, you\u2019ll get a soft Philly pretzel and a bottle of water in the waiting area. I love those pretzels. And, I still love Enterprise. I hope they still love me.
\nYour turn: Got a story with a lesson for Captain Reman? Click here<\/a> and send in your story (with what you learned). If we choose to feature your story in a future edition of Reman University, we’ll send you a t-shirt and link back to you in our newsletter (and soon, on our blog). How cool is that?!?
\n
\n<\/strong>\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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