Henry and Ricardo, Pilots of Customer Service

I finally recieved an email back from the Ranting for Miles letter I sent off to the NWA Rewards Network Dining for Miles program. To my displeasure, the response from "Ricardo" was less than stellar and clearly he did not read my email. Or maybe he did read it and like every other customer service rep, he had to show it to his "supervisor" for direction. Some supervisor they are, they poorly advised him to respond from a series of canned click-box replies:

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Dear [Crazy, Hungry and Broke],

Thank you for writing Rewards Network Dining for Miles!

We appreciate you taking the time to share your comments.

We appreciate your continued patience. Should you have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely, Ricardo [if that is even his real name]

Rewards Network Dining for Miles Internet Services

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Dear Ricardo,

Your welcome. Now where's that $50 so I can go grab something to eat? Like the Dining for Miles email said, "I must be starving!"

Cordially,

The Famished Female

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I really don't understand how "Ricardo" has a job and I don't. Maybe the Rewards Network Dining for Miles Program is hiring and I can work right next to him. I am pretty sure I can handle clicking the canned response boxes, heck, I might even be able to draft a real letter!

Another fine example of true airline customer service, is one I found from Delta Airlines on the blog YourUnemployedDaughter. YUD, as she calls herself, had a little email conversation going with "Henry" regarding a mixup with the beloved $15 bag fee. I seriously don't think Henry gets it either.

There is a recession here, people, if you didn't notice. Dining out and $15 per bag fee, EACH WAY, is luxury these days. Us unemployed folk track our expenses like a dog tracks bear! Even automotive companies will "take your car back" if you lose your job, what about the airlines? They choose to do nothing but poke fun at our expense by coming up with "snappy" email marketing techniques or rip us off with the ridiculous bag fee. I bet Henry won't be to thrilled once they take that $15 out of his paycheck for being such a prick about it.

I promptly sent YUD my letter to NWA Rewards for Dining Network so she could see that she is not alone in this world of ignoramous airline customer service. Well, she got a kick out of it, and I am elated I could make someone's day a little brighter. I know I felt 100% better after writing it.

Fast forward to this afternoon, in a completely unrelated web-surfing session, I came across a job opening for a Marketing Communications Specialist. Fancy that! I figured if Henry and Ricardo can handle that kind of job, why can't I? Thank you for giving me the confidence to apply for a job I am underqualified for! Yet, after witnessing what kind of writers NWA and Delta hire, I've decided I am a shoe-in.

Thanks to the NWA Rewards Dining for Miles Network and their poor marketing ideas, I now have a primo sample of my work to share.