Zero to Hero: A true story about TripAdvisor, behaviour and the value of a good reputation

My youngest son’s final A-level exam was on the 13th June.

His time at school had been disrupted, but since January, he has worked hard. So we decided to celebrate by booking drinks at a fancy hotel in London. The end of one chapter, the start of something new.

Sadly, we had a terrible evening.

We were initially seated near the entrance, not on the terrace. After asking multiple times, we were eventually moved outside to a cramped table without enough space for four people. We couldn’t get a drink or the correct number of seats. The maître d seemed to believe he was on a catwalk; ‘service’ was below him. And the staff were too busy buzzing around some B-list celeb to bother with us.

Which made me sad. And a little angry. Because what should have been a magical night for my youngest was transformed into an evening of frustration and disappointment.

So I did something I’ve never done before in my life, and wrote a damning and detailed review on TripAdvisor. If the hotel was going to treat its customers with contempt, then prospective customers should know about it.

And that was that.

Until a couple of days later, when the owner of the hotel got in touch through a personal email and asked for a chat.

He was polite and apologetic. He explained that he had reviewed CCTV footage of our evening and wasn’t surprised that I was angry. So people had been spoken to; training had happened; changes had been made. We were invited back to the hotel for the entire evening, at his expense, no charge.

To me, this was enormously impressive - and surprising. Here was a hotel owner who genuinely cared about our experience. He had taken the time to learn about what went wrong so that he could improve things in the future.

But I didn’t want to impose. A meal for four is expensive to produce. So, I thanked the owner, wished him well and said goodbye.

Until the following week, when we started to chase my son to get a summer job: “The tap is off, fella – go and earn a crust”.

“OK. What about that hotel?” he said.

So I emailed the owner: I won’t take you up on the meal, but do you have an opening for a polite, hard-working young man?

And a couple of days later, my youngest started as a bellhop. Five days a week. Full shifts. Says his colleagues are wonderful. The owner bought him a drink after one shift. He loves it.

And my son even bought me a ‘thank you’ pint – with his own money – which might be a first.

One phone call, an apology, and a gainfully employed son later, and I have been transformed from a frustrated, resentful customer to an advocate and a fan.

I now love that hotel, because the owner cares. And because he clearly understands the value of good service. And a good reputation.

I’m sure there’s a lesson there, somewhere.

Written by Simon Case

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