What do you do when the inevitable delay occurs?

We may experience delays every week. In some cases it's as simple as a traffic backup on the way to work. It can also be a delay in active projects or delivery of parts from a supplier that impacts our ability to deliver our product on time.

The way we handle delays can make or break our efforts to retain customers. Hence the tie-in to marketing and this blog.

Keeping your customer's in the loop by actively updating delivery information provides them with the information they need to keep their business running and on schedule. And it gives them a reason to keep coming back.

Make your Customers a partner in your business with regular communications.

Case in point . . .

This week finds me back in Las Vegas. It's my second trip in the past three weeks. I flew Continental Airlines for both trips.

The first visit lasted close to a full week for the ConExpo/ConAGG trade show. One of my newer Clients, a business started in August, was displaying their wares for the first time. ConExpo/ConAGG covered over 2.2 million square feet of display space combining all of the Las Vegas Convention Center, The Hilton Hotel Convention Center, a couple of temporary tent structures and a number of outdoor lots. Hence parking was a challenge for attendees and exhibitors.

This week it's time for APEX, the electronics show from IPC.

My trip to and from ConExpo/ConAGG was fairly uneventful with the exception of full planes and the large row mates on one of the flights. Everything about the air portion of the trip was 'normal' by most standards.

The flight to Las Vegas yesterday was closer to the new paradigm of travel - a departure delay that was ignored by the gate staff.

Inbound equipment delays for my flight from Newark to Vegas may have been exacerbated by the previous flight pushing back less than 45 minutes before the scheduled departure time. Yet as we moved closer to that time, it was evident to all of us in the boarding area that we would leave the gate late.

Adding to the delay was an unusually high number of 'Elite' status flyer's complete with multiple pieces of carry-on luggage apiece. The gate area all but emptied when theses customers were called to board the flight. This resulted in a massive backlog down the jetway. Hence an additional delay. With no order to the boarding, passengers in the middle of the cabin were in front of passengers in the rear. Forget about stepping into the row to let others pass, these frequent travelers are special, with high mileage rights to tie up the entire process.

Some airlines have a policy that kicks into action when the number frequent flyer's on a given flight exceeds a given threshold. They get to board by rows like the rest of the passengers. Continental apparently does not agree.

As a member of the traveling public I expect that the carrier will keep me informed of anything that has a negative impact on a trip.

What do you think should have been done by the airlines in this situation?