Lifestyle

Master The Art of Complaining To Save Money (Or Just Generally Get Your Way)

Ok, I get that no one likes a complainer – but if you legitimately have a poor experience with a company providing a product or service, you have every right to be “one of those people” and have them rectify the situation. It’s crazy to me how many people are faced with disappointing service and simply just accept it. Hells no  – a little bit of complaining can go a long away, and is ALWAYS worth doing. Here is a quick rundown of how to master the art of complaining to save money:

Prime example: I recently was on a 6am flight from Miami back to New York. Everyone sleeps on this flight – it’s probably the most painful flight ever… So you can imagine my horror when my seat would not recline. Of course the gentleman in front of me had a perfectly functioning seat that reclined fully – right into my knees. I felt like a trapped, tired wild animal. I was miserable. I told the flight attendant to please note the problem, and as soon as I landed I emailed American Airlines. They replied the very next day.

The communication was as follows:

 

 Most people would have just been pissed off and grumpy, paid for a massage to rub out the kink in their neck and left it at that. I was pleasant and straightforward and noted my loyalty as well as made it clear that I fully expected something to be done to rectify my poor experience. I took five minutes out of my day and was adequately rewarded. Totally worth it.

I want to share one more communication to illustrate that it’s not only big companies like airlines who will strive to make things right when things go wrong. Last month I received a bouquet of roses from a very fancy schmancy florist in the city, and they lasted only one day before drooping over and dying. I knew these suckers were expensive, so I looked up the email address of the florist online and wrote the following email:

That afternoon I received not only a new bouquet of roses but an incredible terrarium as well (a terrarium is a globe of cactuses, which I promptly killed. Don’t even ask me how). This florist knew that there are tons of competitors that we could be using, and wanted to keep us happy.

You know when you’re not receiving the kind of service that you deserve, and when that happens, just find that inner complainer and make sure the company fixes whatever they screwed up. If you’re faced with indifference from the first representative you speak to, ask to speak with a supervisor – there is always a hierarchy of customer service and someone higher up with more power who can better handle your complaint. Businesses want to have satisfied customers, so just a little bit of time out of your day can quickly turn a crappy episode into you being a happy camper (you can even use your new miles!)

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