Friday, July 11, 2014

TVC Office - Day # 4 - How May I Help You?


After three days off, for me,  one for TLE, it was back on duty in the TVC office for the two of us.  Our shift, Thursday, began at 9:30, meaning we would be free to head for home at 6 pm.  In between those times we spent the day answering a continuously ringing phone, greeting customers in person, assisting same customers in the registration process, and solving problems.  It's the same in any service related business.  In my prior workaday life I dealt with my customer's insurance needs.......now I deal with my customers camping needs.  In the insurance business you provide your customers with peace of mind.....you protect their assets with an insurance policy (car, home, life, health).....in the camping business you help them restore their peace of mind by renting them a small piece of land surrounded by pine trees where they may pitch their tent, or park their RV for a few days, a week, or a month.

In your first meeting these customers often have a stressed look about them......their eyes are glazed over, they have driven anywhere from a couple of hours to 10-12 hours through traffic to reach this destination, and they just want to hear you read their name off your check in list, which means they are in the right place.  Where they came from it was hot, maybe humid too, and they have come here to escape their workaday lives, the associated stress, and problems related thereto.  The next time you see them, a day, or two later, they are smiling and content and so happy to just "be" here in South Lake Tahoe.....they have cleansed their minds of their workaday lives, if only for a few days.  The restorative powers of this place are quite remarkable.

When a customer comes into the office with a problem, and a big frown on their face the satisfied feeling that comes over you when they leave a few minutes later with a big smile,  and their peace restored is well worth the 8 hours you just spent on your feet.

Would I want to do this 12 months out of the year again?  Naw, probably not, but for 3 days a week for a few weeks in one of your favorite places on earth.....you bet!  Our crew on Thursday consisted of the ever present Billy (manager), Ruth, Eric, TLE, Deb and moi.  We were probably a little overstaffed for the workload Thursday, but that gave each of us a chance, on occasion, to head out in the golf cart into the campground to solve problems at their source.  In one case I had an elderly gentleman come in who is scheduled to bring his 40 motorhome into the park in a day, or two.  He was concerned with how to approach his site when he arrived making it as easy as possible to back into his somewhat tight spot.  We got in the golf cart and drove over to his site so he could get an idea of which interior road would work best for him.  He came in quite unsettled, and left with confident smile on his face.  Normally his wife would be there to assist him while he backed in, but she is in the local hospital where she had emergency surgery a few days ago, so he is on his own while she recuperates.

Late afternoon a family arrived to check into one of our three cabins....as it turned out his name was on the check in list, but not for a cabin.....for a 40 foot RV site with full hookups........well they had no RV, just suitcases.  Their reservation, made by the call center that handles reservations for many campgrounds, was for 3 nights.........how we solved that problem, with Billy's help, is a longish story, but the short version is we were able to get them into a cabin and save their vacation......it involved a little bit of juggling, but we got 'er done.

Once again, the 8 hours flew by, and TLE and I found ourselves walking home with smiles, still intact, on our faces.....4th Saturday is in the books.

We took an hour to decompress, then I fired up the BBQ to cook some chicken while TLE made some baked potatoes and salad.

Thanks for stopping by!

1 comment:

  1. OH boy, what fun you have there in the office. It takes pleasant people like you to make people happy.

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