I want to begin by recognizing that in the grand scheme of significant matters, this topic doesn’t hold much weight. However, OMAAT also involves discussing the minutiae of the airline and hotel sectors (after all, I write about my favorite airline boarding tunes), so please bear with me for a moment.
Why do hotels struggle to get my last name right?
When you arrive at a luxury hotel, it’s typical to receive a welcome gift along with a note addressed to you, generally from a high-ranking individual at the hotel. Occasionally, the note may be handwritten, but it can also be printed. Sometimes it’s just a quick scribble, while other times it can be quite elaborate.
This is meant to be a thoughtful, personalized gesture. After all, luxury hospitality is more competitive than ever, focusing heavily on the finer points. However, I frequently find that my name is misspelled in the welcome correspondence (my last name is Schlappig, yet they often write it as “Schlapping”). I haven’t calculated how often this occurs, but I estimate it gets misspelled roughly 25% of the time in these messages.
To me, this shouldn’t be complicated, regardless of how challenging a last name might seem to someone. The hotel has a reservation under a specific name, and when that note is composed, the name should simply be copied as it appears on the booking. It doesn’t matter if the name is Ng or Tskhdjflkdshjfrkjeshrklesn.
I’m not aiming to single out any particular hotel, but below is an example of a message I received a few days ago at a hotel. Like I mentioned, this occurs frequently.
Why does this even matter to me, and why am I discussing it?
I believe most hoteliers would concur that it’s the small details that guests pay attention to during a luxury hotel experience. I also think that first impressions carry substantial weight.
So, when you step into your room and one of the first things that catches your eye is that the hotel manager can’t accurately spell your name, it doesn’t leave a positive first impression. Again, none of this is crucial in the bigger picture, but I assume the manager instructs the staff to focus on the little details of service, so how can you expect such precision from the staff when the manager fails to get something so fundamental right?
I doubt the manager personally writes these notes, but if he’s endorsing it with his name, I have to take it at face value.
It’s not that I’m genuinely offended or that I take it to heart. It’s simply a minor negative detail that stands out to me, and in a fiercely competitive hotel landscape, establishments strive for excellence. If it happened once or twice, I wouldn’t think much of it. But as I mentioned, it occurs quite a bit during my hotel visits.
I’m rather reserved and dislike complaining, but I’m beginning to reach a point where I’m contemplating bringing this to the hotel’s notice. It’s not that I expect anything in return; I just want them aware of their mistake, as I believe if no one informs them, they’ll remain oblivious. And I suspect that if they’re making this blunder with me, they’re likely doing the same with others.
But then I regain my perspective and realize this is trivial. Being someone who is introverted and not fond of complaining, I don’t think this will be my breaking point. When I checked out of the hotel, I was asked about my stay, which was mostly excellent. I was tempted to mention, “It was good, but the manager couldn’t spell my name correctly in the welcome note,” but then I realized that it’s just too minor of an issue to raise. So perhaps just being able to share a post about this satisfies my need on that front.
Am I incorrect for noticing this, and for believing it reflects a lack of attention to detail? Does anyone else experience this regularly? Is it entirely unreasonable to bring this to a