is it time to sell?

[Time2Ponder]

Perhaps there should be one for the Starwood Forum - where penalties are given for subverting a SVO thread to discuss DVC (yet again). Perhaps we should have a poll on who cares about DVC... (I vote NO).

I'm a DVC owner and I'm with ya on this one...

{enter smiley face...}

Oh, I was thinking of an entirely different "smiley" altogether, IYKWIM....

 

[ciscogizmo1]

I haven't even visited my home resort yet, so it's hard for me to know whether I've gotten a decent return on my investment. However, it's well documented that I'm becoming increasingly disappointed with the SVO leadership.

From their audacious notification to elite owners that they should no longer expect upgrades, to their continuous refusal to address the StarPoint conversion devaluation, to the scrapping of the Aruba project without even bothering to notify the owners, I am disillusioned at how callously they treat the owners who represent their core consumers.

I work for a Fortune 50 company. If Joan Smith from Dubuque, Iowa writes us a letter complaining about one of our products, she will receive a reply back from a manager. It might not be the answer she wants to hear, but her complaint will be, at the very least, acknowledged. She'll also get a coupon for a free product as a gesture of good will. Now, we sell BILLIONS of dollars of product each year and we could honestly afford to lose a Joan Smith here or there. That's not the point.

The point is, that unless management is focused on satisfying its core audience, it won't succeed. And until it figures out how sustain its core, it most certainly can't expand.

I've written to Starwood a few times with various, very specific complaints. Their response has been the corporate equivalent of social snub. They don't even bother to acknowledge my complaint. That, in my opinion, is a very foreboding sign.

So while my home resort may be a nice place, the organization that supports it is sending off a vibe of either gross incompetence or arrogance. And while I'm not ready to put my villa on the market yet, I wouldn't consider sinking another dime into SVO, or recommending it to anyone, until I see signs that management has a game plan for addressing some of the rational concerns of its owners.

Well thought out response.

Just wanted to let you know I hope you love the Maui location. I love the location. It is really nice there.

 

[TheUnitrep]

Ditto to most (if not all) of what Rocky cited.

I'm especially concerned with the rate of Maintenance Fee increases. One of our Starwood properties (SMV) went up an astounding 27 percent this year.

Another concern I have happened again to me today:

Starwood said they would email me a confiirmation of a reservation I made. But, alas, for the fourth consecutive time, no email. I guess I'll have to wait for snail mail (an additional $0.41 cents Starwood could have saved in postage had the email worked).

Maybe when they implement the on-line reservation system they've promised and promised, they can also figure out how to send confirmations via cyberspace.

While I like the Starwood resorts I've vacationed at, the overall program and customer attention offerred by Starwood leaves much to be desired.

Jerry

 

[DavidnRobin]

Well Denise, if you have OF envy, I have David-Robin envy!
FOUR WEEKS IN EUROPE PLUS ALL OF YOUR OTHER VACATION WEEKS!!!!!

No need to envious (one of the 7 deadly sins...) - it is just that every 6 years we get an additional 6 weeks of vacation (like they have every year in Europe) - this was a reason for our EOY WPORV odd purchase - and the SP pick-up. Otherwise - we have just 3 weeks per year - and rent the weeks we can't use.

 

[DeniseM]

Starwood said they would email me a confiirmation of a reservation I made. But, alas, for the fourth consecutive time, no email. I guess I'll have to wait for snail mail (an additional $0.41 cents)

Hi Jerry - I found out the fastest way to get results with a missing confirmation is to go to www.mystarcentral.com and log on to your acct., and send them a complaint using the email function there. It's worked for me.

 

[formerhater]

Hi Jerry - I found out the fastest way to get results with a missing confirmation is to go to www.mystarcentral.com and log on to your acct., and send them a complaint using the email function there. It's worked for me.

Me too. Got my confirmation e-mailed to me within 2 days (over the weekend, no less).

 

[duke]

It was soooo great during our last trip (sans family) - especially being able to go right out front for great snorkling then jump in the hot tub and then up to the room for a cocktail while watching the sunset (and occasionally dancing nekkid on the lanai - not a pretty sight... I mean me not Robin - she's pretty :whoopie

What are the dates of your reservations this year?