Because Love is having to Say You're Sorry! Writing The Customer Apology Letter/The American Airlines Case Study

The Customer Service Apology Letter:

It was bad.  It was annoying.  It was frustrating. And Yes, somebody sure better apologize and American Airlines did!  This past week the airline saw canceled flights, stranded passengers (including one 93 year old grandmother, I know of, forced to camp 0ut in an airport for 15 hours) .  Well,  today I received the letter below in my e-mail  and even though I was one of the lucky ones last week and was not traveling, I received this formal apology letter as a frequent flyer and hopefully valued customer of American Airlines.

Okay, so the only pain I experienced was watching weary AA travelers on CNN. However, if I was traveling (and I'm usually on a plane every week) The American Airlines "I'm sorry Letter"  would make me feel better. What makes a good customer service apology letter?  I think you have the ingredients in the letter below:

--Be brief and include a heartfelt "I'm sorry" to the customer.

-Don't make lots of excuses but rather indicate clearly when the problem will be resolved and express  empathy for customer inconvenience.

-Most importantly, express your understanding that your business is important to us and cut the crap! Tell us "what you have learned" from the experience and promise that you will do better in an effort to keep our business.

Take a peak at the letter below---Does your Company say it's sorry when it needs to and is that apology letter good enough to take the pain away of your poor customer service?   

Rosemary Rein has authored the chapter on WOW Customer Service in a new book entitled "Blueprint for Success" with Dr. Stephen Covey and Ken Blanchard.  Order the book at www.gowildgogreat.com or bring Now to WOW Customer Service to your Organization---1 day Customer Service SAFARIS that bring your service levels from Now to WOW!TM

April 11, 2008

Dear Rosemary Rein,

As one of our most valued customers, please accept my apology on behalf of American Airlines(R) to you, your family and your fellow AAdvantage(R) customers for disrupting so many peoples' lives with the recent flight cancellations related to the inspection of our MD-80 aircraft fleet.

As you can imagine, American's decision to cancel thousands of flights this week was difficult, and it undoubtedly created concern among our best customers - even those who had no travel plans during the period.

If in your travels you were among the many who have been personally affected, I sincerely regret the inconvenience you have experienced. Our employees will continue to work around the clock to accommodate all who still need to reach their desired destinations. We anticipate returning to a full schedule by Monday.

While the media reports have documented the reasons why American took this action and the steps we're taking to re-accommodate and compensate affected customers, I've also attached an explanation of the events for your understanding.  It's a bit complex, but at the end of it all, please know this:

First, your safety and the safety of our employees remains our number one priority.

Second, we will learn from this experience and we will get better.

Finally, we wholeheartedly appreciate your loyalty to American Airlines, and we remain committed to earning your business each and every day.

Respectfully,

Dan Garton
Executive Vice President
Marketing

P.S. You may have already contacted us via AA.com(R) or by writing directly to Customer Relations.  Let me reassure you that we will respond directly to your contact just as quickly as practical.

****************************************