I swore I would never fly Frontier Airlines again after four back-to-back experiences that range from lousy customer service and delayed flights to lost luggage and everything in between.
When United cancelled a recent flight to Denver, I was stuck on a direct flight to SFO. I sat there thinking of itunes……everyone still complains about inappropriate pricing for music downloads, yet people still indulge big players like Apple and others by paying for it.
We’re such an immediate culture that we must have things early, so much so that we pay for it in the long run. If we waited and didn’t download at prices they dictate early in the game, they would be forced to respond to the market.
But, since we’re all about ‘NOW,’ we are being rewarded with rising prices, declining customer support and a country full of mediocrity, strip malls, fast food chains, large bland apartment complexes with less and less amenities, not to mention department stores that look and feel the same nationwide.
A few examples worth thinking about:
For older tunes, I used to be able to buy a single for cheaper than I can today….hmmm, I could be wrong but isn’t there more cost involved with going through the middle guys? A retail chain? The packaging? Today, I pay the same price regardless of the age of the song.
Then there’s the wonderful experience we’ve all had buying technology and electronics products? I could write a book about one HP experience alone. And dealing with the maze of SBC Global’s and Comcast’s customer service is enough to send anyone into therapy.
On my Frontier flight, there’s a cool mini-screen in the seat in front of me, you know, similar to the ones that non-American owned Virgin Airlines offer their customers for free. They offer a ton of compelling content and I leave the flight feeling ‘taken care of,’ the feeling you’d hope your customers would feel after ever corporate exchange.
On Frontier and many other airlines, they charge you for what you view. If I want to watch TV, its $5 a pop, to see a movie, its an outrageous $8, higher than on-demand in the comfort of your own home without the interruptions and double what airlines were charging for headphones.
United is now offering their movie service for free and yet Frontier, a lower quality airline (in my opinion) gets away with charging each person $13 a pop should they choose to watch a movie and TV after the movie, which is what many people do on a longer flight.
Am I missing something here or is this “just plain wrong”?
While flights in the 60s and 70s were slightly higher than they are today, travel was a great experience. Airlines would give you socks, a branded deck of cards and pens, a hot meal with real silverware, drinks on the house, free movies and fabulous customer service.
While they have clearly taken a hit post 9/11, the financial knock isn’t the only issue here. Customer service began declining long before 9/11.
Today, our travel experience goes something like this: if a flight is delayed or cancelled, instead of a Sorry, what can we do to help?, the customer is made to feel guilty for asking them to fix the problem. Sometimes, its as easy as “I’m so sorry about the cancellation, we’re going to do whatever we can to accommodate you on another flight or give you a voucher…..or something.
My modern enhanced traveling experience offers me a couple of boxed choices to eat, full of chips, cheese that doesn’t resemble cheese, crackers, peanuts, a cookie and something else that is processed, like the rest of the box. I then have to pay for a movie and the prices to view keep going up, service is worse than its ever been, most flights are crammed because of consolidation and there’s definitely no freebees of any kind. It makes me feel ‘special’ – a customer they want to keep.
Am I missing something or is this “just plain wrong?
My choices on the thruway are McDonalds, McDonalds and McDonalds. More processed food.
When I looked for a flat, agents took a cut yet I did all the legwork. When I sold a house, agents took a cut and yet, I did the bulk of the work once again. Whatever happened to real service?
Am I missing something or is this “just plain wrong”?
I have been using Microsoft Word for over a dozen years. Word and other applications have added a lot more complexity but not more beneficial features that help me reduce my time spent on my PC or increase my productivity. Frankly, I found Word ten years ago easier to use than I do today.
At a recent geek fest, I asked six engineers a ‘format’ question and none of them knew the answer or could figure it out. And I should? Did I mention that I use the exact same features in Word today than I did ten years ago. Why add more complexity and features? Simplifying my experience would be a godsend. Microsoft, do you ever listen?
Speaking of complexity, does anyone own an Olympus digital camera? While I love my 5x zoom and the design of its exterior, learning how to adjust the settings is so complicated that you would need the guy you created it to make it work.
At another recent geek fest, I couldn’t find one person out of 13 engineering types who could figure out how to change the camera defaults. All I wanted to do is lower the resolution size and it will not — for some odd quirky reason — default to a lower resolution despite my changing it in settings.
Two hours on the phone waiting for Olympus tech support and I still don’t have this resolved.
Am I missing something or is this “just plain wrong”?
If we – the consumer – don’t stand up for how we deserve to be treated and what we should pay for something, who will?
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
