Your employer, Engineerian Services of Columbus, Ohio, has had an excellent year, and the CEO, Sydney Owen, would like to reward the troops for their hard work with a rustic yet comfortable winter retreat but also provide a team-building opportunity. The CEO wants Engineerian Services to host a four-day combination conference/retreat/vacation for the company’s 55 engineering and tech professionals with their spouses or significant others at some spectacular winter resort. One of the choices is Whistler, British Columbia, a famous ski resort town and former Winter Olympics venue with steep slopes and dramatic mountain views. As you investigate the options in Whistler, you are captivated by the Westin Resort and Spa, a four star property with an outdoor pool, indoor and outdoor hot tubs, ski-in/ski-out access, a ski concierge, an acclaimed gourmet restaurant, and an amply equipped gym and fitness center. Other amenities include an on-site spa with massage and treatment rooms, a sauna, and facial and body treatments. For business travelers, the hotel offers complimentary wired high-speed Internet access, complimentary wireless Internet access, and multiline phones as well as the use of two desktop computers. The website of the Westin Resort and Spa, Whistler is not very explicit on the subject of business and event facilities, so you decide to jot down a few key questions. You estimate that your company will require about 50 rooms. You will also need two conference rooms (to accommodate 25 participants or more) for one and a half days. You want to know about room rates, conference facilities, A/V equipment in the conference rooms, Internet access, and entertainment options for families. You have two periods that would be possible: December 15–19 or January 12–16. You realize that both are peak times, but you wonder whether you can get a discounted group rate. You are interested in entertainment in Whistler, and in tours to the nearby national parks. You wonder how your group would travel from Vancouver Airport. Also, one evening the CEO will want to host a banquet for about 85 people. Ms. Owen wants a report from you by September 12. Your Task. Write a well-organized direct request letter or e-mail to Teagan Smith, Sales Manager, 4090 Whistler Way, Whistler, V0N 1B4, British Columbia, Canada.

Yelp, the social network for consumer reviews and local searches, logs approximately 104 million monthly unique mobile visitors and 74 million monthly unique desktop visitors. The platform has listed 205 million reviews at this time. Many users rely on what they hope to be real reviews by real people, as the company claims. They wish to make more informed buying decisions based on Yelp reviews. Businesses would do well to monitor their status on Yelp because anything less than a four- or five-star rating might be a blemish costing them sales.
Richard Hall, owner of Falmouth Sail & Canvas in Falmouth, Maine, watches his Yelp reviews. Currently, he has six reviews, all five stars. Imagine his surprise when he recently received a rating of one star from Annabelle T. : Falmouth Sail & Canvas does good work, but it seems to have become a casualty of its own success. The company is unresponsive when you call and e-mail. I will take my business elsewhere because after 3 weeks, I still haven’t heard about that estimate for new sails and weather cloths. I had left a voice mail message and sent an e-mail. No response. I called again and was received as if my request were outlandish when I expressed the hope of getting a quote that same week. Since then, silence. Not cool. And I am a repeat customer. . . .

People, fortunately there are other businesses out there! The writer says she is a returning customer. Richard sighs because he is really shorthanded. His administrative assistant has been sick a lot lately, and inquiries have gone unanswered; communication has not been flowing well. Business is booming, and he does not have enough qualified installers; as a result, weeks elapse before his small crew gets around to completing a job. Barry searches his files and finds the job the company completed for Annabelle four years earlier. Falmouth had made a dodger, sail cover, and other smaller canvas items for Annabelle’s 30-foot Catalina sailboat.

Your Task. Consider Richard’s options. Should he respond to the one negative review? What could be the consequences of ignoring it? If you believe that Richard should respond, discuss first how. He has the disgruntled customer’s e-mail, phone number, and street address. He could post a reply on Yelp to provide a commentary to the bad review. If your instructor directs, plan a strategy for Richard and respond to the customer in the way you believe is best for Richard and his business.