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Boy that’s got to hurt!    Especially now with the way the economy is and the beating that the Tourism and Hospitality industries are taking.

But…something caught my attention that I think deserves mentioning. Even though the hotel  ( The Crown Plaza in Quarto D’Altino, in Venice)  may loose as much as 90,000 euros ($129,000),  a spokesperson said that it will honor the one cent rate for guests with a valid confirmation.

Now that’s something that deserves a bit of respect and recognition, not to mention loyalty from those guests that in essence, caught a lucky break.

I think this is a prime example of an institution that decided to make the best of it, even knowing that the blunder was irreversible. So why not gain some social capital in the form of positive publicity by extending full courtesy at their inadvertent expense.

Some would say,  Well they didn’t really have a choice!

I say there is always a choice. I’m sure had they put the breaks and said that it was a mistake by a low level employee, that they are very sorry but couldn’t possibly honor the rate. Yes! some ppl would’ve been upset but I think it would’ve been pretty much an understandable situation. The PR backlash would’ve been minimal and the incident would’ve been eventually forgotten.

But they didn’t!  They didn’t make excuses… and I don’t think the guests will ever forget the time they spent a weekend in a 4 star Hotel near Venice for a 1 cent rate!

Lesson?

We should always be thinking strategically on how to better our position. Regardless of present status or whether outcomes are positive or negative.

What’s on your mind?  I know I didn’t say it all…