Thanks to the internet, anyone and everyone now has a search-engine friendly way to gripe about some perceived injustice. So let me say Thanks, which doesn’t happen often enough.

I recently attended a crisis training in New Orleans, at the Marriott on Canal Street. (Yes, it is smack in the middle of the French Quarter, and no, I had neither the time nor the warm weather to get around and sightsee.)

A couple of things cemented for me that the Marriott is doing customer service right, all the way down to the bottom.

Midway through the first morning, I realized I had been using my phone to take a lot of notes. Considering I didn’t have to drag a laptop, it was rather nice. But I knew that I would run my charge all the way down by early evening, and I wanted to keep some charge on it. So during a break I went back to my room to grab the charger.

When I got there, a staff member was in the middle of cleaning my room. I smiled, said hello, and went to get my charger. She politely stopped me, and asked me for my key. I obliged, and watched as she tried it in the door to ensure that I really belonged in this room.

That’s the first time I’ve been checked like that, and I was ecstatic she took the time and trouble. And I thanked her.

When I got back that evening, I was in for an even bigger surprise.

Everything In Its Place

She had cleaned the area around my sink, including my deodorant and toothbrush. And I found all of my personal toiletries placed nicely on a washcloth.

That was completely unexpected, and while some people might be concerned that a stranger “touched their things,” I was happy she was diligent enough about it that she wanted the room to meet her standards. Her standards dictate that the sink is clean. And that my things are organized. (My dirty clothes were left in the chair, untouched.)

She didn’t have to do it. There was no expectation that she would. But she did.

Across the board, everyone from the concierge staff to the porter were amazing and friendly. And it would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge it publicly.

As for the rest you in the hospitality industry, you are on notice. The bar for grabbing my attention has been raised. I won’t expect treatment like this every time, but rest assured I will notice it.

So wow me.