Why United Airlines needs to spend 12% of their budget on marketing
When your business policies are unethical, there's normally an additional cost of business; public relations, false advertising (often with a green tint), and philanthropy in the sorts of activities that give the appearance that you care about humans.
That's what happens with bad companies. For instance, the major airlines. I like picking on United because their employees seem the most miserable and the experience of dealing with them is the most institutionalized. With the other airlines, every once in a while some rogue employee acts up and does the right thing.
Today's wonderful policy: trying to change the return flight on a ticket I paid for 45 days ago--for a flight in three weeks.
The original ticket on business was $1103 and returned to Newark. I needed to switch to Logan in Boston. The new ticket, including the $200 change fee, was $2471. Yup, that's right...the increase was more than the original ticket. And they've already had my cash in non-refundable form for 30 days. Dudes: stop hiring MBA's from Rice or wherever. They're destroying you!
So of course I did what any intelligent person facing a potential beating from thugs would do--I handed over my wallet and bought a single one-way return, throwing out the value of the return ticket I already owned (if any one from United has the audacity to say you can use the value of un-used tickets later, please ask them to conduct the transaction for me. Because no normal mortal traveler can...YOU try to figure out the rebooking system, you stupid Wharton MBA dweeb!).
Cost of the return ticket on the flights I tried to change to? $404.
To this I say: you suck United (and American and Alaska/Virgin--Delta's not quite as terrible since they have a "find voucher" button to check if you have unused credits). By the way, I love your new advertising campaign...discover friendship. That's so CUTE! Maybe you could donate to save the pandas too...that's not very expensive.
That's what happens with bad companies. For instance, the major airlines. I like picking on United because their employees seem the most miserable and the experience of dealing with them is the most institutionalized. With the other airlines, every once in a while some rogue employee acts up and does the right thing.
Today's wonderful policy: trying to change the return flight on a ticket I paid for 45 days ago--for a flight in three weeks.
The original ticket on business was $1103 and returned to Newark. I needed to switch to Logan in Boston. The new ticket, including the $200 change fee, was $2471. Yup, that's right...the increase was more than the original ticket. And they've already had my cash in non-refundable form for 30 days. Dudes: stop hiring MBA's from Rice or wherever. They're destroying you!
So of course I did what any intelligent person facing a potential beating from thugs would do--I handed over my wallet and bought a single one-way return, throwing out the value of the return ticket I already owned (if any one from United has the audacity to say you can use the value of un-used tickets later, please ask them to conduct the transaction for me. Because no normal mortal traveler can...YOU try to figure out the rebooking system, you stupid Wharton MBA dweeb!).
Cost of the return ticket on the flights I tried to change to? $404.
To this I say: you suck United (and American and Alaska/Virgin--Delta's not quite as terrible since they have a "find voucher" button to check if you have unused credits). By the way, I love your new advertising campaign...discover friendship. That's so CUTE! Maybe you could donate to save the pandas too...that's not very expensive.
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