Recent "First Impressions"

One thing that is cool about traveling with my friend, Mark Waltz, is that he is always analyzing his customer service experience everywhere he goes. Perhaps that's the reason I've been reflecting on my recent experiences with various companies:

• Sirius -- Love the satellite radio stations, hate the customer service. Took me 3 hours on the phone to get them to agree to send me a replacement radio. Six weeks later I still don't have my replacement, but supposedly it is in the mail.
• Doubletree Hotels -- their cookies have always been great, and their new "Sweet Dreams" beds are to die for.
• Equifax -- Someone stole my credit card and used it to download my credit history from this company. Their customer service was less than helpful...they took the attitude of "sucks to be you."
• PayPal -- The same "someone" also used my credit card to buy gold through PayPal. They were very helpful and immediately reversed the charges. They seemed like they were genuinely concerned, which gave me warm fuzzies.
• Hertz -- in Orlando, they didn't have the promised car, but upgraded us to a very nice Lincoln Navigator. Two thumbs up for Hertz.
• Country Inn & Suites -- very unimpressive hotel in Ocala, Florida.
• GoDaddy -- suggestive commercials notwithstanding, this website hosting company has great customer service and you can find a "live" person if you have a question.
• Marriott Waterway in the Woodlands -- Butch is my ticket to this fine hotel. He knows the general manager, so we got a room on the top level. It has 12' ceilings and automatic drapes. I like Butch's friends.