Above and Beyond

If you are on Facebook, chances are you have seen the viral video of the little boy who lost his toy tiger at Tampa International Airport and was reunited with his toy tiger after an associate from TIA went above and beyond to bring them back together. The boy’s mother called the airport hysterical after realizing they had left their son’s toy tiger in the airport play area. The associate reassured the mom that they would locate the tiger to ensure they would have it back by the time they came back to TIA. On the associate’s lunch break, he did more than just locate the tiger – he took pictures of the tiger’s adventure around the airport and made a picture book that shared his story of his journey in the airport! The employee went above and beyond for this little boy just because he wanted to. This is a true example of what genuine customer service is. Imagine if we were all treated this way when we go on our shopping trips to Ulta Beauty, American Eagle or even just the grocery store? What is even better is, this story took place in an airport. Not many people have “fun” in an airport and most of the time, we look at it as a hassle. Therefore, we can all learn something about customer service from this over performing associate. The customer service experience was addressed by listening to the emotions and concern of the guest, apologizing and reassuring the customer of what exactly they would do and then proceeding to exceed the customer’s expectations. When these photos and videos went viral, there was over a million likes, comments, shares, etc. all together. The audience was brought to tears on how well TIA Customer Care took care of this situation that could have been shrugged off like it was not a big deal. People lose their belongings in airports every day, right? The experience that the associate gave to the family was one that was life changing and showed millions of people that TIA is a place where you will feel comfortable and right at home!