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Everyday application: the power of personal networks
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It says "Complimentary day passes," right?
It should have been so easy.
I was staying in a hotel in Redwood City for a single night, spending a couple days on either side doing the Sand Hill Road VC pitching thing with a client.
I chose the hotel (America's Best Inn) because the more elegant places were packed full, it was close to where we needed to be, and the website said they provided day passes to Gold's Gym nearby.
So after a long day of travel and talks, I picked up my pass from the hotel front desk and caught a ride to Gold’s, ready to get in a good workout. The guy working the desk told me the pass was only good for local residents, not out-of-town visitors. Calmly, smiling, I replied that the hotel website said I could use the gym for a workout. Desk guy told me he’d go ask for more information, and disappeared for a good seven minutes.
When he finally came back to the front, it was only to tell me I still couldn’t use the pass. I was welcome to shell out $20 for a day pass, if I wanted to stick around and get in a workout.
“Look,” I said. “I only need 45 minutes.” I was standing there in my shorts and sneakers, iPod in hand, ready to go. “I don’t need a day pass. Can’t you guys just let me get in a workout? Is there anything you can do?” I even brought my own towel.
“Gym rules,” he said. And shrugged. I told him my ride wouldn’t be picking me up to take me back to the hotel for another hour.
“Jog," he replied.
You’d think someone in Silicon Valley would know better than to commit poor customer service in such a highly communicative environment.
I know I’m not the most influential guy on the planet, but between my Twitter followers, my Facebook friends, and my blog (where my tweets also show up), not to mention this milieu, it’s safe to say that somewhere around a thousand or two people will know that I was treated poorly at Gold’s Gym that night. You may or may not remember, or mention it to others, but the negativity is out there in the aether.
Will it make a difference to Gold’s Gym? I doubt it.
But at least I could whine (and Yelp) about it.
Epilogue (AKA online communities tie-in): One of the best things about the hotel where we stayed, maybe THE best thing, was chatting with the young woman at the check-in desk. She had just started working at a start-up, but still managed marketing for the hotel, which was her family’s business. Of course I friended her on Facebook and connected to her on LinkedIn (don’t get the wrong idea—she’s married), She just happened to read this column on my Gold’s Gym debacle and wrote me a message on Facebook:
I just read your post about what Gold's Gym did to you. Our agreement with Gold's Gym was that they would give us passes as long as we advertised for them on our website and to our customers. I will be speaking with the lady who gave me the passes and let her know what happened. In the worst case scenario, we will have to take down the passes.
In the meantime, is there anything I can do to fix this?
I'm so sorry you had this experience. The last thing I want is a bad experience connected with a stay at our hotel.
Ah, the power of building a personal network.
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