A Customer Service Letter to Hampton Inn Hotels

When traveling on business, I usually stay at Hampton Inn hotels. They are clean, relatively inexpensive, usually have decent workout rooms, and offer a free breakfast every morning. In addition, they have a 100% satisfaction guaranteed policy. If you're not satisfied with your night's stay for any reason, it's free. I've only had to use it twice in the bazillion times I've stayed there.

I recently stayed at a Hampton Inn and overall had a decent experience. But there were some problems that I wanted to see corrected, so I sent them this note:

Hi. I recently stayed in the hotel noted above and overall had a great experience. The staff was great, the room was nice, and it was an overall good experience. But, it could have been better. And since I and my co-workers will be staying there quite frequently, I thought I'd mention these few items so you could have them taken care of. Here goes:

• The stairmaster in the workout room does not work. I tried it with no success (it stayed at one level only and then started to smell "hot" and "burning", so I quit). Another person had the same issue the next day while I was in on the bike. I like the stairmaster (or an elliptical) as an alternative to the treadmill and bike, so I'd appreciate a repair/replacement.

• The high speed internet was slow -- the slowest I've ever had in a Hampton Inn. Not sure what the issue was, but it's not high-speed internet.

• The variety of the breakfast was weak for someone eating there three mornings (as I was). Only the hot food changed daily -- which was just a couple items -- everything else was exactly the same.

Thanks for hearing my comments. I love staying at your hotels and hope this helps make this one better.

So, what do you think? Could I have written a better note? How do you think they'll respond?

Comments

[LAMoneyGuy]

Did you contact anyone regarding the internet during your stay? If so, I would have mentioned the steps that were taken to attempt to resolve it at the time.

I would either be more specific about the type of changes you would like to see in the breakfast, or leave it off entirely. I have stayed at Hampton Inns several times, and go downstairs knowing that I'm not heading to the Ritz Champagne Brunch. But there's usually some reheated freeze dried eggs, some kind of nuked frozen breakfast mean, and bagels and cereal. It is what it is, a discount hotel chain's free breakfast.

That being said, they should still provide a refund, given that you were not "100%" satisfied.

[Lazy Man and Money]

I think you did well with the letter. I imagine that a lot of hotel chains don't get a lot of feedback. I wouldn't expect them to change the breakfast much, but they should definitely look into the other two. Those seem like legit problems.

[G.]

It's a good start, companies like feedback and will try to improve upon service. Maybe you'll get a voucher or a free hotel stay out of it, but I agree with LAMoneyGuy it is better to be specific, next time take down names and exactly what you want changed.

[fivecentnickel.com]

You should've suggested that they avoid Sears when replacing the exercise equipment. ;)

[Terry]

I like your letter because it is laid out the way a complaint letter should be... good experiences first... complaints later. I agree with what what LAMoneyGuy said about being more specific in detailing the breakfast improvements. I think you might get a refund or a voucher for a future stay or a bagel.

[tlange]

I think that they will respond favorably, not exactly sure, but they do not want to offend or disrespect a repeat customer.

[Brad]

I can only comment on the breakfast since I have never stayed at a Hampton Inn, though I do deliver the food to them. Yes, the eggs, bagels, muffins, etc. are frozen, but they do get fresh fruit. They don't have a chef or much of a kitchen, and the room prices reflect that. For a free hotel breakfast, it's alot better than just a box of donuts.