Another Web Site Story--from a Journalist!

[Art at ISP]

A friend who happens to be a very well known travel writer, emailed me this morning. It seems his wife had to travel from PHX to deal with a family emergency, and he had to book her travel right away. He went to the wonderful new US Airways web site, and was told repeatedly (overnight AND this morning) that PHX is not a city served by US Airways.

As posted elsewhere, with the potential decline in res (even Chairmans' as I had my first unsatisfying experience there today), and the web site which refuses to work right, how much revenue is being lost?

As of today, $500 went to United....so far......

My best to you all.....

 

[700UW]

Gee where is Eric the fisherman?

What excuse/apology are you going to use this time?

Like I said, it was never tested in a beta test and anyone involved should be fired for the millions in lost revenue.

 

[PHL]

it was never tested in a beta test

If that's true, it's deplorable. Was there actually executive buy in to the idea of NOT beta testing? Volume testing? Stress Testing? In this day and age of IT best practices that are well known in that industry, it's truley pathetic that this could have happened to a "major" airline.

 

[longing4piedmont]

Was there actually executive buy in to the idea of NOT beta testing? Volume testing? Stress Testing?

Unfourtunately the answer to the above is yes.

 

[tadjr]

it's truley pathetic that this could have happened to a "major" airline.

Hey, but it was done on the cheap!
I guess we havent learned that you dont always buy the Yugo version if you want it to work. :down:

 

[ChairmansREP]

With a merger such as this you are going to have issues
and usairways can't fix everything in one day.
Please be realistic and patient as we are working very very hard with our customers and other staff to keep this merger moving smoothly.

 

[tadjr]

Incoming!!!! h34r:

 

[longing4piedmont]

With a merger such as this you are going to have issues
and usairways can't fix everything in one day.
Please be realistic and patient as we are working very very hard with our customers and other staff to keep this merger moving smoothly.

I have very fond memories of those on the CP desk so I will be kind in my response.....

The pardon our dust and the other plethora of excuses simply don’t cut it any more. You should not expect your customers to be patient when things like this web site were released KNOWINGLY with major bugs. Those issues are not my problems and I will not put up with them, nor should any other customer. And BTW, there are many (At one point last year I added up well in excess of $1,000,000 in revenue that had taken their business to other airlines just from people I knew) who are tired of the excuses and the outright lies coming from Tempe.

That being said, the really sad thing about all of this is the front line people like you have to work with what you have and make the most of it. By and large most FF understand that and do try to cut the folks on the front line some slack. As for me, I'm past that stage. When I buy a ticket on US I expect service with no excuses. You don't get the benefit of the doubt anymore. And you are also are getting very little business from me as well

Sorry to come down on you in your first post, and it is really directed at Tempe and not you. In any case welcome to the board.

Incoming!!!! h34r:

Hey.... I tried to be nice.....

 

[Art at ISP]

I just received an update from the writer in question..he booked Southwest/ATA instead.

Chairmans REP, let me add my welcome to you as well, along with my appreciation for all you and your colleagues do for us.

Unfortunately there is no excuse for rolling out the website in the condition they did. And less of an acceptable excuse to have the same issues still present months later.

While there are some within Tempe who admit the site was not properly beta tested, some insist it was. My thinking is that IF it was, it was tested only by west people already used to the HP web site, so they would not find many of these issues.

Regardless of whether or not it was tested properly, it NEVER should have gone live like this, and I don't think you'll ever be able to count the revenue lost from the folks who just got fed up and went elsewhere. I for one refuse to book on the web site, and just call Chairmans....which up until yesterday was perfect every time.

My best to you all.....

 

[US1YFARE]

I for one refuse to book on the web site, and just call Chairmans....which up until yesterday was perfect every time.

So many of the people on the US1 desk are just rude--and these aren't overflow people. I had a manager on the desk tell me 15 reasons why I was wrong only to call me back later in the day and tell me I was indeed correct. He called my home phone and left a message knowing I was not there. And, did the message include any apology? Absolutely not. After 4 years of being a US1, this is the worst it has been on the US1 desk.

 

[EricLv2Fish]

Gee where is Eric the fisherman?

What excuse/apology are you going to use this time?

Like I said, it was never tested in a beta test and anyone involved should be fired for the millions in lost revenue.

700UW, what you said was "it was never tested". I can go back and repost your post if you'd like. Now that being said it should have been tested more throughly and was a mistake not to. I don't think you'll get an argument from anyone that knows what is going on. I've never said that it was tested enough, I was merely pointing out your claim that it was "never tested". Perhaps you should do a little fishin' yourself...it may help you out of the "darkside". Great therapy!




Okay, I went and copied your post:
"It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out the new combined page was not tested.

When it shows US not flying to and from CLT to anywhere and the same for PHL, it is quite clear it was never tested.
Stop making excuses for inept management."

 

[700UW]

No darkside here, just a realist, something that you don't have any idea about.

There are sources here that know it was never tested.

Gee, CLT, PHL and PHX don't exsist on the first debut of the web page, yep, they certainly tested it.

Time to stop apologizing and making excuses, the fiasco cost US millions in revenue.

 

[EricLv2Fish]

No darkside here, just a realist, something that you don't have any idea about.

There are sources here that know it was never tested.

Gee, CLT, PHL and PHX don't exsist on the first debut of the web page, yep, they certainly tested it.

Time to stop apologizing and making excuses, the fiasco cost US millions in revenue.

I will when you stop claiming it was "never tested". Don't let your facts get in the way. It has cost us revenue and how much is anyone's guess. Gee we could have posted an even bigger profit in the 2nd quarter.

 

[Art at ISP]

Eric,

IF it was tested, it was not tested properly. It is clear that the date was more important than the functionality. It was just a bad move, that's all, and will prove ultimately more costly than the savings they realized by rushing it out.

US1YFare please contact me off line and I will see if I can help with your CHP Desk issues. Yesterday was the first and only non-stellar experience I have had with the Chairmans Desk.

My best to you all.....

 

[EricLv2Fish]

Eric,

IF it was tested, it was not tested properly. It is clear that the date was more important than the functionality. It was just a bad move, that's all, and will prove ultimately more costly than the savings they realized by rushing it out.

US1YFare please contact me off line and I will see if I can help with your CHP Desk issues. Yesterday was the first and only non-stellar experience I have had with the Chairmans Desk.

My best to you all.....

I don't disagree with it wasn't "properly" tested. Big difference in my book between "it was never tested" vs "not properly". Numerous things went wrong cause they were trying to push it out by a cutoff date. Hopefully a lesson was learned. It's not how you start the race, it how you finish!