Disappointed

[wdwfanaustria]

Service going down in the USA?
Well, then you have to come to Europe and you know how glad you can be in America!
During my annual USA vacation I really feel like a king (not only in Disney, but also in Restaurants, stores, other hotels etc.). Sure, there are some black sheep but that's the minority.
I have never seen a better customer service than in the USA.

In Europe in many stores you have the feeling that you have to apologize for disturbing the employee because you want to buy something.

I am European, have been in most European countries and know what I'm talking about.

 

[lebeau]

Having worked in customer service for many years, I can tell you that most customers don't realize when they are getting service that is "above and beyond". Most customers just expect everything to be perfect all of the time. And unless you are handing them something free and completely unexpected, they will see it as business as usual. And then the next time when they don't get that free item, they will be disappointed.

"Above and beyond" is in the little things. It's in the things that didn't go wrong. It's in the things you never notice. It's in the efficient correction of mistakes or in disguising the mistake you never noticed. And occassionally, it's in the free and unexpected gift.

 

[hls1023]

I think it had gotten very bad and seems to be heading back but still needs work. We were at Columbia Harbor House on our recent trip and I was waiting at the counter for my food to come out. A man came out from the back with a can of ice that he was shovling into the soda machine which I guess is how it either cools it or is the ice that comes out when they fill the drinks. Not sure which but anway, the was shovling fast and then stopped and looked at some kid in line and said, "There is something wrong about shovling ice when you are sweating, ain't it"? "Ain't I could not believe that he used that word.

Might sound silly to some but to me someone working at Disney should not be saying Ain't.

It is in the dictionary.

 

[wannab@dis]

People in general are too quick to knock something and not quick enough to give praise.
I'm sick of reading threads and viewing photos which go to great lengths to point out that such an attraction has paint chips missing on the ride cars or on the walls, or someone else noticed a light bulb which wasn't working.
For goodness sake Disney is a theme park which attracts thousands of guests each day. The staff are human and get as p*ssed off at guests as we do with other guests.
Cut them some slack, if someone does something to offend you then by all means report it.
If these were not isolated incidents then nobody would return and the staff would be out of a job
Thats it - I've had my rant for this morning, I'm going to return now to be a normal human being and wish everyone "Good Morning"
:wave:

Nice rant... Couldn't have said it better. :wave:

My favorite posts are those trip reports where someone points out everything wrong they found and that's it. They say little about the good. Why do they even go if they can only see the bad? I rarely notice things out of place unless it's blatant and then I'll figure it will probably be fixed as soon as possible.

I also agree that cursing by a CM on stage should be reported. It shouldn't be done by the CM or by the guests. I can't stand to be behind someone and they are cursing around all the kids. Use a little courtesy please!

 

[mrtoad]

You are correct it is not just at WDW, but everywhere. Not sure why it has happened but it has. And I agree most Disney employees are awesome but I have seen a few that are not but they are few and far between.

I have to say its not just Disney World were service is the problem. Its everywhere I go. I thought it was just the people in the NJ area but many people dont care. They have a job and a paycheck and thats it.

As for younger kids in there teens and low 20's the kids today lack the respect that people older than them.

An example for you is, I am 30 back in 94 I went to woodstock for the Anniversary 5 years later they had another one, and what were the kids doing. Rioting, burning things, that did not happen when i was there 5 years earlier.

Parents today tend to not raise there own child, in some cases its not possible but some parents just have kids because its a status symbol just like having a boat is in certain places.

So dont knock all Disney Emloyees because some people still have class.

 

[mrtoad]

Just to educate you....ain't is now a word.

The link if you want proof.Proof that ain't IS a word.

Yes but if you go and look at that same site f*ck. and s*it. are considered words as well and they should not be used either at WDW in my opinion. Doesn't have to be anybody elses though...

 

[LaughingGravy]

I make it a point to always be courteous with anyone I'm dealing with, by trying to look them in they eye when I say Thank You with a smile, even when I'm thanking them for taking my money.
If there's a problem at all; for instance, something was rung up incorrectly that I purchased, I approach it with a friendly attitude to resolve it.
A previous poster from Europe mentioned how good the service is in the US, compared to Europe.
I think part of that comes from a respect most of us here have for anyone else working, no matter what their job. We are all trying to do something to get paid to be able to eat and live.

That's not to say I wouldn't complain to Guest Services if I saw such a verbal fight of cleaning personnel as mentioned. But, I would choose my words carefully and at the very least start out with a smile.

 

[mrtoad]

Second, CMs are human beings. I'm sure you talk with your co-workers, and i'm sure you discuss all aspects of your life. I'm more than positive you don't always speak proper english and you don't use the cleanest language either.

With that in mind - we've got a dissapointed thread about not gettign a towel animals.

Yes you are most likely correct about the language but you would not be able to or should do that in front of a customer at any job. Doesn't matter if it is construction, a food store or WDW.

Not sure if my tipping thread is the one you are talking about with the animals. I was just asking if there is something special you need to do to get them, not expressing dissapointment at not getting them. Just wondering how to get them was all. But I am not sure if that is thread you are refering to anyway.

Mike

 

[PigletIsMyCat]

I agree with mousermerf on many of those points. Having only been to WDW once so far, and not really remembering too much beyond the rides on all my trips to DL, I know I'm not terribly qualified to comment on service at WDW. But I will Mind you, I'm a fairly cynical New Yorker who feels the day was a waste if I don't get to scream naughty words at at least one driver who cuts me off.

We stayed at AKL for eight days. Everyday our room was vacuumed, the ashtrays emptied, the towels replaced, we even got one of those towel animals! (we=me and DH) The service in The Mara, while slow, was exceptional. Slow because, hello, there are tons of children who want eggs and bacon, no wait a Mickey waffle, no do they have pancakes? And I can honestly say I have waited longer for a Big Mac at my local McD's.

I found most CMs to be nice, except for that one who stole Alice and the Mad Hatter from me just because it started to drizzle.... I thought the parks were clean, and I had no problems with any CM or their language. On the contrary, they were all attentive and polite, some even beyond polite!

It's not an easy job to work with the public, but I feel that no matter what your job, you should take pride in performing it in excess of expectations. I shoveled mashed potatoes at a Boston Market for a long time, and I loved every minute of it because I did my job well, and I knew it. And my managers knew it. And my customers knew it. Now if we could only get these spoiled little bratty teenagers to realize that.

 

[HMGhost13]

The lack of quality service comes from having to hire people who just want a "job" and don't care - as if they were working at McDonald's.

hey i work at McDonald's and i do care...even after 5 years. now 90% of the people who come through i may not care about cause they treat me as if i'm lower than dirt...as if what i'm doing is nothing but crap and i am a slave for them to push around.

anyway.

it's always been my dream to work at WDW. it stinks how most of these people don't seem to care anymore. i'd almost hope that mangment would step in at some point and take those that look at it as another paycheck and they just go about doing their job until it's quittin time but thyey don't DO their job and get rid of them.

sad really.

 

[brich]

Nice post mousermerf...

If I could just add.
Disappointment is a direct result of expectations and while we may set our expectations at a level in which we can't possibly achieve satisfaction, it's often times not our fault. I have read numerous posts on here that have set my expectations at a level that is not a reflection of my own tastes. Therefore, the result is often times negative. So a site like this offers so many great things, it can also align us for setting false expectations. One person's opinion of a great meal is not always up to par with your own opinions and therefore, you'll take an opinion, set an expectation and then when the meal is not all that it was said to be in your eyes, you are disappointed.

Sure, we all have this idea that WDW is a magical place. A clean place. A larger than life place and yet many of our ideas where etched in our heads as youngsters. Now I know the Castle didn't shrink but it sure looks smaller than it did when I was a kid. And sure, some of us get to go every weekend to the parks and can compare week to week but in doing so, you are bound to see flaws.

I think it's great to set high expectations of WDW. They deserve it for all they have provided over the years but compare it to your own experiences from other vacations or trips to other theme parks and you'll see that despite the occasional CM chat about partying and using words you don't incorporate in your own daily vocabulary, I think you'll see that WDW is a very special experience. One not many of us would change at all.

My only comment on the word ain't is this. We all come from different places and just because the word "Y'all" is not used up here in Boston does not mean it shouldn't be used elsewhere. And just maybe, the gent dumping ice for a very, very low salary may not come from an affluent upbringing and just maybe his education did not bring him to the proper use of the word "ain't" should not be a negative reflection on a WDW experience. It should be a positive experience in that diversity is one of the great elements of Disney Magic.

 

[Fido]

A few things:
Abe_bb: Awesome avatar. Fullmetal Alchemist is terrific.

As far as rude employees go, I was on the monorail after the park closed a few years back with my sister and nephew. There were some cast members sitting there talking about getting drunk on duty as lifeguards at one of the All-Star resort pools. They weren't on duty at the time, but they were talking about being employed there and trying to impress each other with their crazy exploits.
They were also talking a lot of crap about a co-worker (who wasn't there at the time obviously), and making jokes about her weight.

It was just normal jackass public behavior, but I didn't appreciate it and didn't like my nephew to hear it, either. They especially didn't have to talk about working for WDW for everyone to hear!

On the other hand, I am not one of those nitpicky people that get discouraged at chipping paint and full trashcans or whatnot. I have been going for many, many years, and I travel 20 hours or so to get there. I honestly don't really notice that stuff, and am happy to be there for the stuff I want to see. I think that level of scrutiny comes from local residents/workers who have the time and opportunity to see things in greater detail and at a higher frequency.

 

[MouseearsDeb]

After reading several comments on both sides of the fence I feel the need to post my two cents. My first visit to Disney World was in 1977 at the age of 10 and WOW! was I in love at first sight. I am proud to say that all of these years later, I still am. Any body can be 'picky' about anything from your best friends car to the rides at Disney, but I have to say the look on my 3 years olds face when he first saw the bear on the Maelstrom ride at Epcot will be something I will never forget. To me, the little things do matter, but not in the way that I'm looking for something to complain or gripe about. But, in how my now 4 and 13 year old put their differences asside to ride the Haunted House or PoTC without bickering. And how as a family in whole, we grow just a little bit closer than before. I think in this day and time, little things do matter. But, sometimes we should look for the Pixie dust and not the chipped paint because you never know how much time we have with the ones we love.


That said, this is my first post. I have found a world of info here and enjoy reading everyones comments. We are headed back to WDW Sept. 17 and my 4 year old is so excited I think he will explode.

18 days and counting!

MouseearsDeb :wave:

 

[Fido]

Welcome MousearsDeb! My post right before yours actually had a similar point! Whether the new versons of some rides are disappointing to us adults, the kids still tend to love them. When I hear complaints about Star Tours being outdated and stale, I remember that every time I ride it some group of kids (and adults) are laughing and having a great time. The same thing actually does not apply to the new JIYI.

PS: We have been visiting WDW for almost the same amount of time as well!

 

[jeff_in_FL2003]

Hearing this kind of thing makes my blood boil. I can imagine the steam blowing out my ears right now! I'm a seasonal CM at WDW and it just makes my heart sink to hear of incidents like this. But I have to agree 100% that there is a problem that needs to be dealt with. It's been years since I had my initial training where we learned the history of the company and everything but I often find myself fantasizing that I could lead some of those classes and try to instill from the very beginning that feeling of love and respect I have for Disney. I wish I could fill every CM with pixie dust the way I am! I know to some people it might sound like a weird cult or totally old-fashioned to be SO devoted to the guests to the point of completely exceeding expectations, but to me, that's what Disney has always been about and always should be. More and more often I see CMs hired who don't understand how to or why they should treat every guest like royalty. CMs who just show up to clock in and get paid. I would do my job for free!!! I mean, this is WDW! I happen to know that we aren't getting the kind of applicants we used to and I don't know if it's the pay or what, but it's hurting us to be hiring just anyone. I feel like I'm just ranting now, but I just want to express to you how much I feel your pain! It just depresses me to see these kinds of thing happening to a place that is so important to me. Don't get me wrong, there are always CMs around who truly exhibit the Disney magic. I just wish every CM was like that. Sorry for babbling!

Pirate/Custodian Jeff °o°

 

[tigger_rox00]

There are some really great posts. WDW is great. Yeh, they have some problems, but compare them to other theme parks in the country. I recently went to Six Flags over Texas and man, was the park a nightmare. I saw the ckicken wire used to shape the rock formations in a certain ride. The walkways were very dirty and there never seemed to be any food stands open. Now compare this to Disney. The rides are very well maintained (even if there is a few minor things paint chips...etc), there are always CM's around, there are always food stands open, the CM's usually always have a smile, they are most of the time very helpful, the parks are cleaner (though i will agree, not like they used to be,but still the best), there are more people in one Disney park than there are in other theme parks at any given time.

Are there problems at Disney...yeh, sure there are but most of them are very minor when compared to some of the things that could be real problems.

Also, I would like to mention that customer service is a POV. For example, I work at a high end dept. store. We are supposed to greet customers on our salesfloor w/in 30 sec. of them walking onto it. Now some people (most) find this to be the great customer service, but some hate it. I actually got a complaint letter saying that I was too pushy, but in reality I greeted her w/in 30sec like im supposed to and then checked on her 5 min. later after she had picked up about 10 shoes from my department. Now from her POV, I was rude, but most customers love that type of treatment. So next time something isn't what YOU expect, ask yourself, "is this my pov that it isn't to your expectations or is it something that Disney is really lacking in".

TTFN

 

[MSTINKHERBELL01]

Hearing this kind of thing makes my blood boil. I can imagine the steam blowing out my ears right now! I'm a seasonal CM at WDW and it just makes my heart sink to hear of incidents like this. But I have to agree 100% that there is a problem that needs to be dealt with. It's been years since I had my initial training where we learned the history of the company and everything but I often find myself fantasizing that I could lead some of those classes and try to instill from the very beginning that feeling of love and respect I have for Disney. I wish I could fill every CM with pixie dust the way I am! I know to some people it might sound like a weird cult or totally old-fashioned to be SO devoted to the guests to the point of completely exceeding expectations, but to me, that's what Disney has always been about and always should be. More and more often I see CMs hired who don't understand how to or why they should treat every guest like royalty. CMs who just show up to clock in and get paid. I would do my job for free!!! I mean, this is WDW! I happen to know that we aren't getting the kind of applicants we used to and I don't know if it's the pay or what, but it's hurting us to be hiring just anyone. I feel like I'm just ranting now, but I just want to express to you how much I feel your pain! It just depresses me to see these kinds of thing happening to a place that is so important to me. Don't get me wrong, there are always CMs around who truly exhibit the Disney magic. I just wish every CM was like that. Sorry for babbling!

Pirate/Custodian Jeff °o°

You are AWSOME! I can tell from your words that YOU are VERY passionate about your job...it's CM's like you that make MAGICAL moments for me and my family. I've had a very hard last few years...from sadness to heartbreak...When I go to WDW I always forget (even for a minute) all of my problems and it's def. because of people like you. Thanks again Jeff!

 

[AbsolutDiznee]

I'm very suprised to see the responses on this forum of people making excuses for Disney's faults. Disney wrote the book on customer service...literally. I just did a search on barnesandnoble.com to find books on Disney's customer service. The Disney Institute has written a book entitled "Be Our Guest: The Art of Perfecting Customer Service." In addition, numerous books have been written about Disney's exemplary committment to customer service. Disney does not consider itself in the same league with other theme/amusement parks and should not be compared to them. When I go to Disney I expect to be treated special, because that's what they pride themselves on. To see that this service is slipping is an embarassment to the values that Disney was built on.

 

[wannab@dis]

I'm very suprised to see the responses on this forum of people making excuses for Disney's faults. Disney wrote the book on customer service...literally. I just did a search on barnesandnoble.com to find books on Disney's customer service. The Disney Institute has written a book entitled "Be Our Guest: The Art of Perfecting Customer Service." In addition, numerous books have been written about Disney's exemplary committment to customer service. Disney does not consider itself in the same league with other theme/amusement parks and should not be compared to them. When I go to Disney I expect to be treated special, because that's what they pride themselves on. To see that this service is slipping is an embarassment to the values that Disney was built on.

You're right... but...

As someone has already pointed out, customer service is in the eye of the beholder. Someone may be getting exceptional customer service, but they think it should be better. Having said that, I think cursing around guests is wrong and should never happen. Seeing CM's arguing or fussing around guests is wrong. In addition, some people's idea of service is overwhelmed by their attitude. I believe I see things with an optimistic attitude. From my experience, saying that finding a "good" CM is rare may be stretching things a bit. Getting upset that someone says "ain't" just ain't that big of deal to me. Not having towel art is not going to make me look back on my trip as unmagical.

What I'm trying to say is that some people have put their expectations at a point where they will be disappointed because it's over-the-top, but that's not Disney's fault. Seeing chipped paint should not lessen your trip and I hope it wouldn't be the only thing noticed on that trip. To me, chipped paint is not that big of deal. I've got it at my house and if it bothers someone, they can come over and paint it for me. We can't expect the parks to be perfectly pristine AND affordable.

In fact, I have a hard time believing the parks were ever as good as some people "remember" them. The internet wasn't around for "fan" sites to display chipped paint pictures and call it "bad show" nor were forums around for people to pine about it ruining their vacation. I also have a feeling that most of these "good old days" memories tend to be more positive than the situation actually warranted.

 

[Tigger1988]

In fact, I have a hard time believing the parks were ever as good as some people "remember" them. The internet wasn't around for "fan" sites to display chipped paint pictures and call it "bad show" nor were forums around for people to pine about it ruining their vacation. I also have a feeling that most of these "good old days" memories tend to be more positive than the situation actually warranted.

I don't think we dreamed up the way the parks used to look, the way CMs used to act etc...thats how things were. Now, the parks are seriously lacking, I'm not going to go cry over chipped paint, but seeing the parks in such a condition is saddening. The "good ol' days" really happened, and I for one miss them alot.