Motel? Hotel? Definitely the Holiday Inn

I recently returned from a week in Central America, for the Central America Travel Market, in San Salvador.

I knew very little about this part of the world, save what I picked up over the years: political unrest, violence, scary gangs, Mayan ruins (that’s me in Copan, Honduras, site of one of the most intricate Mayan ruins in the world), banana republics etc.

And although a lot of this is based on truth, in just a week I had all my preconceptions blown apart.

We started in Costa Rica, the so-called Switzerland of Central America (no army, no historical political unrest), where due to appalling intra-country flight connections, we were forced to spend the night.

Reading the itinerary on the flight over, my heart sank when I read where we would be staying – the Holiday Inn Express by the airport. Do I need to write those words again for full impact? – Holiday. Inn. Express (not even a Holiday Inn). Airport.

I swear it could not have been more welcoming, efficient and comfortable if it was a Four Seasons.

Let me list the things I loved about it in no particular order:

– Free (and fully working) Wi-Fi

– clean

– well-stocked mini-bar

– good products in the bathroom

– free international calls (I kid you not)

– free water

– coffee-making facilities and excellent local coffee

– comfy bed

– packed breakfast for early flights

– flight departure board in the lobby

– friendly, helpful staff

I could go on, but you get the idea. This is an airport hotel which by rights should be simply functional, yet it somehow transcended that and instead was a real haven for a weary traveller.

In fact, my companion and I liked it so much that on our return (during another interminable layover), we booked it again for the day at an incredibly reasonable $10/hour.

I wish I had taken a picture of the place to share with you!

By contrast, the previous 10 hours on a flight from Madrid to San José with Iberia were brutal.

I’d flown Iberia many times short-haul and apart from the odd brusque flight attendant, I really had nothing bad to say about it. Smart fleet, OK food, comfortable seats.

I’d heard vaguely that it left something to be desired long-haul, but nothing prepared me for what I was about to experience.

First the plane: no seat-back TVs, just TVs hanging from the ceiling. Frayed, uncomfortable, cramped chairs. Beaten up old toilets.

Just a feeling of neglect. Then the crew: rude, surly, indifferent and at times offensive.

I repeatedly had to ask for a glass of water – not unreasonable on a 10-hour flight– and was repeatedly told to get back in my seat and wait for trolley service.

When we did beg a bottle of water feigning illness, I had the temerity to ask for another glass and was told to finish what I had. I kid you not.

And the food was hands down worst I’ve ever had on a flight. Purporting to be chicken, it did not look, taste or smell anything like it, and I gave up after one mouthful.

So, the moral of this story is…? I won’t let pre-conceptions blind me again. Oh, and if you are ever in the region of a Holiday Inn Express I urge you to stay there.

Trust me, you will not be disappointed.

Spain: The End of the Affair

I’ve just come back from Spain and I’m reeling.

The country I travelled to extensively in my youth, wrote several guidebooks and articles about and have visited countless times with family and friends has officially priced itself out of the market.

OK, admittedly I was staying in and around Marbella and also went to Puerto Banus, but even taking into account the lousy exchange rate the prices I paid for meals and drinks were way more than I’d expect to pay in London.

Let me give you a couple of examples: two coffees, one fresh juice, one giant churro (like a doughnut) – total cost 20 euros (and in case you are wondering half of that was the price of the doughnut!).

This was in the Plaza de los Naranjos, which I guess is the Marbella equivalent of Leicester Square, but almost £20 for a tiny breakfast seems extraordinary.

Example 2: one spag bol (kid size), one spag bol (adult size), one salad (adult size) two cokes, one beer, one apple juice – £80, again in Puerto Banus. £80?!? – I can’t remember paying that for a dinner for two in a posh restaurant in central London including wine and three courses!

Example 3: various tapas dishes, plus a bottle of house wine, water, two cokes – go on, guess – £100.

This was in a place ironically called “The Beach Shack”, on a beach near Marbella. Quite rough and ready, nothing fancy.

Yes, we ordered a lot of tapas dishes, but still. There was a time when tapas meant just that – a small plate costing perhaps 2.50 euros, maybe three. These “tapas” started at 10 euros…and just went up and up.

But the most iniquitous example and one which if I had not been so dazed after a sleepless night of child care I would have queried was a room service delivery charge at the Kempinski Hotel we stayed in near Estepona. Of 18 euros. Per person. Not per order – per person. That’s 56 euros to bring up the food to the room. That is on top of the price of food.

Full disclosure here – I stayed in the hotel for free as a visiting journalist, so I did not pay for my room. However, I did enjoy a few drinks at the bar and had dinner (one shared starter, two mains, one bottle of wine – total cost 80 euros) – which I paid for.

My total bill (taking off the charge for the doctor call out) was just over 200 euros.

I spoke to the communications and marketing director about guest demographics and I learnt that pre-crisis the hotel had about 80% Brit visitors. That figure is now roughly 20%. I asked what they were doing to entice the Brits back and she said various advertising and marketing campaigns.

I’ve got an idea – why not lower your prices? That’s what will entice us to come.

But the other point is value.

Value is very important to people, however rich they are, and there is no value in charging for room service delivery per person.

There is a word for that, and it is greed.

Anyway, the point I am making is that Spain needs to watch out. It used to be our favoured destination in Europe for a summer break.

But at these prices it’s simply no longer affordable.

The long promised switch to holidaying in Turkey, Bulgaria, Morocco and Egypt – in fact anywhere hot and sunny outside of the Eurozone – will take place – however much marketing and advertising is used to counter that.

Harnessing the power of social media

So, imagine you are a boss of a large company. Something goes horribly wrong that may or may not be your fault.

You watch in horror as the story goes viral and you are left scratching your head, thinking how do I contain this?

As I commented last week on United’s approach to the YouTube hit United Breaks Guitars (last count: over four million views and rising…), there are two ways you can deal with it.

You could opt for the traditional. Call a press conference. Churn out a press release. Hope it will all die down.

Which is exactly what United did, and what many corporates do (Burger King opted for the press release approach following the video release last year of an employee taking a bath in a kitchen sink).

To be fair to both, when something does go viral on the web it is overwhelming – and not a little bit scary – to watch quite how fast it happens.

For many executives who perhaps are not as up to speed with new media as others the default reaction is to revert to what you know.

The problem with this is the original videos will be watched endlessly on YouTube (I bet you clicked on the links above), whereas the press release, though no doubt archived somewhere, will not be.

The alternative is to try and turn the whole disaster to your advantage or at least contain it via social media.

As Augie Ray argues on experiencetheblog about the BK incident:

“By launching an informative and favourable video on YouTube with the appropriate title and tags, people searching for “Burger King sink” could have come across and viewed the company’s own video.”

But for every United Airlines and Burger King there’s a Ford Motor Company, whose approach to an ugly viral campaign last year is often used as a case study of best practice by many corporates when dealing with a social media PR disaster.

In a nutshell, Ford sent a cease and desist letter to a fan site called The Ranger Station demanding the owner Jim Oakes surrender his url and pay $5000 for the privilege.

Oakes immediately posted the letter and within two minutes it went viral.

Ford quickly became the subject of vitriolic attacks for its apparently heavy handed approach.

So what did it do? Their new media man, Scott Monty, spent the day on Twitter sending out Tweets and getting his followers to “re-tweet” and clarifying the incident in a calm and measured manner.

And by the end of the day it was under control (it transpired that there was a lot more to the story and the site was selling counterfeit Ford goods).

Case closed. Well not quite. It might be sobering to look how using social media can sometimes backfire.

Starbucks launched a Twitter campaign last year encouraging people to send in pictures of posters it had put up in six major US cities.

But the campaign was quickly subverted when documentary filmmaker Robert Greenwald encouraged people to post pix of themselves outside shops holding placards criticising the company for their alleged anti-union practices.

Starbucks abandoned the campaign that afternoon.

So, should big corporates fight a new media fire with fire or is it a bit embarrassing, like watching your dad dance at a wedding?

Well it may not have escaped your notice that one of the biggest and arguably most unwieldy organisations in the world – the NHS – is being supported via a very effective Twitter campaign to counteract the lies and mistruths coming from the US about our health service.

And although it’s not the NHS doing it, but rather its supporters, the campaign does appear to be working pretty well.

My view is that a corporate may seem big and unwieldy, but it is made up of individuals – many of whom will use social media as second nature.

So instead of wheeling out the CEO to make a tedious speech defending the brand, get someone who is already involved in social media – who perhaps writes a blog or tweets – to put together the response.

One thing to bear in mind though: you have no control of where it will go.

As Paul Anthony, a blogger commenting on the Starbucks debate, said: “It’s time major brands learned that they can’t control the social media conversation – the crowd does.”

You have been warned.

United Breaks Guitars

Go onto the United website and type in United Breaks Guitars into search and you won’t find a match.

Instead there are a few suggestions (United breaks guides? United breaks stars? And my personal favourite United breaks guests?).

To me, that says everything you need to know about how the airline has managed possibly the worst non-accident related PR disaster in its existence.

For readers who don’t know the story: Canadian singer-songwriter Dave Carroll had his $3,500 guitar broken on a flight with the airline.

He tried for a year in vain to get compensation, then finally, exasperated, he wrote a song about his experiences, posted it on YouTube and it went viral (almost four million views to date).

United backed down two days later and offered to pay.

As John Dodge, social media commentator, says on his SmartPlanet blog:

“United breaks guitars” is the most powerful example yet about how social media empowers consumers and tarnishes images of big companies.

“Now, United has a PR nightmare of its own making and Dave Carroll is a rock star.”

I would argue that the airline here was presented with a prime opportunity to redeem itself in the eyes of the public (who, incidentally, have almost universally vilified it) and perhaps turn this sorry tale into a PR success.

So what exactly has it done?

Well, apart from making the gesture to pay up for the damage (way too late as Carroll says on his response), it’s described the video as a “unique learning opportunity,” and has pledged to use it in internal training.

Um, that’s it.

But think of what it could have done… some bright spark in the marketing department might have said:

“Hey guys, look at all the negative publicity we’ve generated from this sorry fiasco – why don’t we try and turn it to our advantage?”

So for example, the airline could have countered humour with humour and taken a leaf out of Dave Carroll’s book, harnessed the self-evident power of social media, and put together a song apologising for the whole thing – and watch that go viral.

Or, it could have turned Mrs Erlwig (the customer services assistant mentioned in the song) into a YouTube star.

Or it could have launched a special offer for musicians or people carrying guitars and put a banner on its website highlighting the fact.

Or at the very least it should recognise the issue on its website.

Instead it reverted to the traditional fortress of huge, bloated out-of-touch companies and carried on as if it was business as usual, ignoring the customer.

Well before social media this is exactly what they could have done – and usually got away with it (interesting fact: this is not the first time a disgruntled passenger has written a song about airlines breaking guitars, but this was before YouTube).

But it’s not business as usual.

As UBM’s digital director John Welsh says: “Social media means that brands no longer control the conversation about their product.

“Instead they can only monitor what is said through sites such as Twitter Search or Addictomatic and try and influence the debate.”

What Carroll has done is tapped is a wellspring of resentment towards the airline (and to be fair, it’s not just United, they’ve just got caught in the firing line: it’s corporates in general).

And what is staggering is that out of more than 14,000 comments posted online hardly a single one is in support of the airline.

Of the ones fit to print, here is a sample:

“United is one of these companies where employee management relationships permanently deteriorated years ago.”

“All United needed to do was to get their people to be careful with luggage and treat people with respect.”

“Social media is a powerful tool to bend the backs of high-headed organizations and their malpractices.”

It is indeed. How many times have you or I been faced with appalling customer service and said nothing, or perhaps said something but been met with equal indifference by a manager.

Too numerous to count I warrant.

As the Visible Measures blog states:

“Unless customer service starts getting better quickly, we can be sure to see more creative responses to similar frustrations.”

Indeed: Dave Carroll will be releasing two more videos on the experience, the next one about Mrs Erlwig. Can’t wait!

Post-inauguration hangover

Sometimes things seem to fall in place without you really trying – and that’s exactly what happened to me yesterday. I’m not ‘connected’ in anyway, but I am fortunate enough that my friend who lives here in DC, Liz, and her friend, Allison, and her boyfriend, Sean (OK you get the idea), are! – and this time they managed to wangle tickets to get into the Rock Industry Association of America’s Inauguration Ball with guest star Rihanna as star performer…Because somebody, knows somebody etc. When we arrived at the Ibiza Club we got in line (a recurring motif all day), in the sub-zero cold (remember this point – it will become relevant later), and then lo and behold we see the organiser and we are ushered in past the crowd – pretty well all of whom had come straight from other black tie balls – my heart went out to the girls,standing shivering in thin dresses, bare legs and open heels. Inside there was a cordoned off VIP section for DC dignatories and the great, the good and the hip from the RIAA, including Jay-Z, Beyonce, Shakira and Courtney Cox – who was representing the chosen charity for the night, Feeding America. At midnight we had a short presentation from the organisers and then a speech from Miss Cox – who then introduced her husband. Oh dear. Big mistake. I don’t know what he was on, but David Arquette was wide-eyed, hands shaking and generally manic which is maybe why he made the following comment – “We whites are very happy Obama got elected – it takes away some of our guilt.” Cue nervous laughter and disbelief from the crowds. He stumbled on, apologising for going off script and then stumbled off, fluffing his intro to Rihanna. She was stunning, both in voice and looks, but after four songs the power went and the organisers could not get it started again. The reason: the generator outside had frozen up in the cold. We went back to Allisons and drank red wine and talked politics till the wee hours. What a trip. Sometimes things just fall into place.

Me and Obama

It’s the crowds that really hit you. They estimated four million people descended on DC for today and I believe it. I was lucky enough to get hold of a ticket which allowed me into the grounds of Capitol Hill to watch the inauguration. But getting there proved to be a challenge. The whole area round the Capitol, down the Mall, the freeways, along Independence Avenue – people, standing on top of portaloos, trees, lamposts, gates, wherever they could get a vantage point. It was mobbed and it took me more than two hours just to get to the gate to get into the grounds. I was sending updates via Twitter to www.ttgbusiness.com as well as pictures and winding up friends where I was. My friend Dinah said: “How did you wangle that?”. My biggest blag ever!

Once inside the whole thing was over so fast. Various senators and dignatories were introduced, prompting different levels of screams. Then, liking waiting for the main act at a rock concert, the other support bands came on: his daughters, his wife..er George Bush – who’s appearance elicited an enormous boo from the crowd. The Senator Biden came on and was sworn in. He was followed by Aretha Franklin. We had prayers and a wonderful speech from Dianne Feinstein emphasising the significance of the US’ first African-American President. Then the main act came on stage and was swiftly sworn in followed by a huge rolling cheer from the crowd, which stretched from the steps of the Capitol to the end of the Mall. His speech brought cheers and tears from the crowd, particularly the moment when he said 60 years ago his father might not have been served in a local restaurant. My friends were stood behind Minnie, a 92-year-old black woman whose father was a slave. The significance of this moment and the eruditeness of his words – certainly compared to the man he replaces – were not lost on the crowd. And then it was over and I drifted into the crowds, on my way to meet my friends, warm up and do some serious celebrating!

My day in DC

I arrived in Washington yesterday from New York. The city was buzzing – every conversation I heard had the word Obama in it – but this is something else altogether. The mood here is electric. The station was mobbed; people everywhere of all ages and colour all wearing Obama T-shirts, caps, pins and badges, waving the Stars and Stripes with pictures of the future president and his family. The station was cordoned off, as is a large part of the city: all the bridges from the city are closed. The city is in lockdown, cops everywhere. The level of security here is extraordinary. Traffic is crawling round the perimeter of the Capitol building where the swearing-in ceremony takes place in a few hours. The last time I felt anything like this was May 1, 1997, but that was a UK thing: this affects the entire world. People are so hungry for change, so desperate to see the back of Bush, the most unpopular President in US history, and to welcome Obama, the most popular incoming President in US history.

I’m here to share this slice of history (this generation’s ‘Kennedy moment’), with my American friend Liz who lives just outside of DC. The most I expected coming down here was to be in the city and watching it on big screens in the Mall with a million other people – and then today she told me that a friend of a friend of hers has got me a ticket. I will be watching the inauguration live – from the steps of Capitol Hill!

Hello world!

I arrived in Washington yesterday from New York. The city was buzzing – every conversation I heard had the word Obama in it – but this is something else altogether. The mood here is electric. The station was mobbed; people everywhere of all ages and colour all wearing Obama T-shirts, caps, pins and badges, waving the Stars and Stripes with pictures of the future president and his family. The station was cordoned off, as is a large part of the city: all the bridges from the city are closed. The city is in lockdown, cops everywhere. The level of security here is extraordinary. Traffic is crawling round the perimeter of the Capitol building where the swearing-in ceremony takes place in a few hours. The last time I felt anything like this was May 1, 1997, but that was a UK thing: this affects the entire world. People are so hungry for change, so desperate to see the back of Bush, the most unpopular President in US history, and to welcome Obama, the most popular incoming President in US history.

I’m here to share this slice of history (this generation’s ‘Kennedy moment’), with my American friend Liz who lives just outside of DC. The most I expected coming down here was to be in the city and watching it on big screens in the Mall with a million other people – and then today she told me that a friend of a friend of hers has got me a ticket. I will be watching the inauguration live – from the steps of Capitol Hill!