Welcome to my blog, or should I say to the ramblings of an old man. I doubt that my ramblings are of much value, but at least I have an opportunity to share them.  So, please be kind and humor me. If nothing else of value stands out in these thoughts, I hope that you at least sense the value I place on a daily walk with the Lord.  That walk is what has provided me with motivation and a sense of purpose throughout my lifetime.  My prayer is that you, too, are experiencing this direction and joy in daily living which is available to everyone who puts his trust in Christ.  So, thanks again for joining me.  Please don't go without leaving some comments here so I can get to know you better as our paths intersect today in this blog.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Speak Up


Have a problem with a product or with customer service?  Don't let it go.  Report your problem to the store or company. Write a letter or send an e-mail. Do it kindly and respectfully, no matter how upset you may be.  You might be surprised what happens.  I have found that very often you will receive an answer and often much more than that.  I am known for the letters that I have written over the years and I have a great record of results.  In the past few months alone I have written to complain about a problem with our trash removal service.  They responded by giving us a free month.  I have complained about some open bags of Skittles in a large box we purchased for Awana.  They sent me coupons to replace them.  I complained about a defective container of deodorant.  They send me coupons for a number of their products.  We recently purchased a jigsaw puzzle which had not been opened.  After hours of work we found that one piece was missing.  We checked everywhere for it and couldn't find it.  So I sent an e-mail to the company.  They apologized and promised us a new one of our choice.  I chose a neat one with several past presidents playing cards together (see the picture).  They sent it to us and we enjoyed the challenge of putting it together.  In the past I have also gotten free hotel nights at Marriott when I complained about problems which we encountered and once we even got a free upgrade to a room with a hot tub.  But let me tell you about our recent trip to Wisconsin.  Before we left I received an e-mail from the manager of the Residence Inn in Appleton telling us that because of construction there the swimming pool might not be available during our stay.  We were goint to use our Marriott points to stay there free for one night.  I replied that we were very disappointed because we had wanted a hotel with an indoor pool after a long day of travel.  But since we enjoyed Residence Inn we'd probably still come.  When we arrived we were told that they had decided to move us to a near by Hampton Inn which had an indoor pool.  And they would refund our points and give us a bonus 5,000 points for our inconvenience.  And if that wasn't enough, we were invited to return to enjoy their free evening meal.  So we enjoyed the Hampton pool, the RI evening meal, and a nice room. And with the return of our points and the bonus, we have enough for two free nights on future trips to Pinebrook for hymn sings.  But that isn't the end of the story.  For our first night in Wisconsin, actually our anniversary, I had booked a Marriott Farifield in Madison.  I chose it because it was new and had an indoor pool.  And, after a very long day of travel, we were looking forward to an evening relaxing around the pool and using the hot tub.  But when we went to use it, the pool and tub were invaded by seven rude teens who controlled the whole area and splashed everything, while their fathers watched, for over an hour.  We were unable to get into the pool safely so we finally left and went back to our room.  The following day I received an e-mail from the manager asking how our stay went.  I told him that everything there was exceptional except for our pool experience.  Even though it wasn't his fault, he wrote back and apologized and told us that he would not charge us for the night.  I replied and thanked him for his kindness and said that because of this service, maybe we'd stop by again at the end of the week on our way back.  Then he replied and said that if we returned he would give us our room at half price.  So we took him up on his offer and spent our last two nights there.  Net result for the week - three free nights and enough points/saved for two additional free nights in the future.  Now I certainly wasn't expecting this, but I've learned that when you share a problem kindly and respectfullly, you often get results and sometime they are more than you expected.  Now because of my success, I am considering opening a new business - Mr. K's Letter Writing Establishment.  Maybe for $99.99 I'll write a complaining letter or e-mail for you.  But for the regular readers of this blog I am willing to give a 10% discount.  So there you are!  However, I do know of one more reliable service to use and I admit that I can't compete with that.  I think the Lord said "Ask and you shall receive".  I can't make that same guarantee.

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