that Charleville Lodge Hotel page on FB & the epidemic of morons on social media

DareGod · 14-10-2015 08:39PM #1

Long story short, there's this hotel in Dublin whose owner publicly publishes witty, quick and cutting responses to customer complaints on its Facebook page.

A few of them have appeared in my news feed over the past year when people I'm linked to on FB have "Liked" or commented on his posts. I think he was on the radio last year for one particular incident, though I can't remember what it was.

Anyway, his page now has almost 37,000 likes, so a relatively large audience.

Whenever I've read his posts, I've sometimes laughed a little, but the more they've happened, the more I'm thinking.... this guy is kind of a horrible person.

He publicly attacks customers who have complained about some negative experience or other they had while staying in his hotel.

I've worked in retail and I've worked in hospitality, and I've experienced my fair share of ridiculous customers, complaining about nonsense. But there are times when these customers' complaints are more than valid. And I would certainly never attack them publicly in front of thousands of people, just because they made a complaint.

How incredibly insecure and irritable does someone have to be to go to such great lengths to defend themselves, the way this guy does? He definitely doesn't appear to have the type of temperament required to work in the hospitality industry.

Anyway, I've just spotted another post, where a customer was kept up all night by building work or drilling that was going on nearby. The customer emailed your man and said that he is awaiting a response to his complaint, and that he won't write a review of the hotel until this issue is sorted.

In response, your man published the customer's name and email address on Facebook, and accused him of threatening the hotel and therefore that his complaint won't be dealt with at all.

I'm sorry, but this guy is an absolute c*nt, for doing that to a customer, even if they were making a complaint. And what he has done here is incredibly c*ntish. But in the 50 minutes since the post was published, it has been liked by over 200 people.

And this is my real issue: people on social media supporting c*nts not matter how big of a c*nt they're being, just because it's funny. It's really starting to piss me off.

And I'd like your opinions on it.

But mainly I'm just saying, what an absolute pr*ck this guy is.

<mod shnip.....FB link removed....../mod shnip>

and yes me talking about it is publicising it even further, and if he saw this post he would most likely have a smart response for it. Good for him.

14-10-2015 08:44PM

I must say I've never read anything witty or quick by him.

I find them all a bit...laboured and tiresome, a man desperate for any publicity.

Fr_Dougal · 14-10-2015 08:46PM

He should contact the Data Protection Commissioner.

seamus · 14-10-2015 08:47PM

There are a subset of businesses who interact on social media in a very specific way. Like that Crumlin carpet place from another thread, they know that the people who take offence are not likely to be customers of theirs, whereas the people who laugh, are.

They have a specific demographic in mind who are the lowest common denominator and they have no problems pandering to them.

Charleville Lodge are one of these. The kind of place that'll accommodate a Celtic FC-themed stag party.

DareGod · 14-10-2015 08:48PM

Deleted User wrote: »

I must say I've never read anything witty or quick by him.

I find them all a bit...laboured and tiresome, a man desperate for any publicity.

In regards the issue of travel reviews, he has just said:

"I would never dream of giving a review, because I just couldn't be arsed spending a number of minutes of my once-off life doing something so abundantly sad."

Yet he spends half has time leaving nasty comments about customers on his Facebook page.

The chap can do and say whatever he wants, obviously, but I'm just irked by the large following arseholes like this get on social media.

14-10-2015 08:50PM

At first I thought he was funny. But like you, I came to the conclusion he's just a dick. And a one trick pony, at that.

ygolometsipe · 14-10-2015 08:51PM

by including the link you just sent more views his way.

best to ignore the things you hate, then they just fade away....

MilesMorales1 · 14-10-2015 08:52PM

I actually saw that before, with the woman who complained about the food and his response was to say like 'it didn't stop you eating it' and to show a CCTV image of her eating. Its very poor form.

The_Valeyard · 14-10-2015 08:53PM

We're you the customer?

DareGod · 14-10-2015 08:54PM

ygolometsipe wrote: »

by including the link you just sent more views his way.

best to ignore the things you hate, then they just fade away....

If only that were true, but we all know that it's absolutely not true, unfortunately.

14-10-2015 08:57PM

DareGod wrote: »

In regards the issue of travel reviews, he has just said:

"I would never dream of giving a review, because I just couldn't be arsed spending a number of minutes of my once-off life doing something so abundantly sad."

Yet he spends half has time leaving nasty comments about customers on his Facebook page.

The chap can do and say whatever he wants, obviously, but I'm just irked by the large following arseholes like this get on social media.

His best work amounts to little more than "...yeah...yeah...like...but you're stoopid...". It's just...childish.

tomwaterford · 14-10-2015 09:00PM

Would you not just block/unlike it from your newsfeed??

bee06 · 14-10-2015 09:02PM

I've seen a few of his posts on my Facebook as well and the person who liked it always goes slightly down in my estimation.

liquoriceall · 14-10-2015 09:02PM

It says a lot about his personality that he read the email as a threat! The email read to me like someone seeking a response to their original query. He must be a very troubled individual

jamesbere · 14-10-2015 09:33PM

In relation to the bad review of the person eating in the restaurant, I'd would agree with him on one point, if you don't like your food say it to the staff then not wait til afterwards.

Posting the video I think is out of line. the man doesn't seem to take criticism very well, I mean telling a customer to flag a taxi on the street is unacceptable.

ygolometsipe · 14-10-2015 09:53PM

DareGod wrote: »

If only that were true, but we all know that it's absolutely not true, unfortunately.

you could just ignore the truth, problem solved no?

DareGod · 14-10-2015 09:54PM

tomwaterford wrote: »

Would you not just block/unlike it from your newsfeed??

How would that change the fact that it's still happening? I'd rather be aware that it's going on, Because I actually do believe it's become an issue at this stage.

DareGod · 14-10-2015 10:00PM

Out of curiosity, how come the link to the post was removed from my OP? I wasn't even going to include it at first but then I predicted the responses of "Link?" so I did. But it's a public facebook post, so how come the removal?

mikeym · 14-10-2015 10:31PM

He has a unique sense of humour.

Bio Mech · 14-10-2015 10:37PM

I think he is going to end up in legal trouble. A business posting the email address and name of a customer is not clever. The lady with the cafe complaint also had a video of her published along with her Facebook details with , IMO, malicious intent.

He will push it too far and it won't end well for him. What he has done in the past was harmless media trolling but lately he has gotten a lot more petty and nasty.

whatismyname · 14-10-2015 10:37PM

DareGod wrote: »

Out of curiosity, how come the link to the post was removed from my OP? I wasn't even going to include it at first but then I predicted the responses of "Link?" so I did. But it's a public facebook post, so how come the removal?

I obviously can't know, as it's up to the mod to say... but I'd make a guess at it... the link was a photo which included the customer's email address. I'd say that the company may be in breach of their data protection duties of keeping their customers' details private and safe. If this is the case, Boards may be on shaky ground if they let them be shared.

I've a fair idea that the company likely breached data protection duties, but have no real idea of other websites then sharing the link to the url which shares the customer's email address if so. So it's just a guess on my part, really.

Bio Mech · 14-10-2015 10:38PM

mikeym wrote: »

He has a unique sense of humour.

37k of facebooks finest would disagree it seems.

TheChizler · 14-10-2015 10:41PM

Careful now, if he's the guy I'm thinking of he has an account here which was used to respond to previous iterations of this thread.

jamesbere · 14-10-2015 10:44PM

mikeym wrote: »

He has a unique sense of humour.

Yeah s**t

Robsweezie · 14-10-2015 11:45PM

I would say he's every long suffering retail worker's wet dream. Saying what they all wish they could say when faced with arsehole members of the public. It's a gimmick people are buying into. The shock value of fighting back against customer complaints in such a way is what's getting him publicity.

It's almost refreshing to see someone say what they REALLY want to say instead of the usual canned, submissive responses from customer service. But you could argue the professionalism of the man in responding how he does.

vicwatson · 15-10-2015 12:01AM

Sounds like an obnoxious bully

"I might have CCTV footage of the ****er" - lovely person altogether

Haznat · 15-10-2015 12:11AM

There's a funny review on Facebook of a woman giving a bad review and the hotel responds with "pity you never actually stayed!" To which she responds "I'm staying here right now!" No response from the hotel.

whatismyname · 15-10-2015 12:14AM

He's been having a rant now about people giving out he gave out someone's email address

Lots of people are giving out about how I shared that man's private email address 'with the whole world' earlier and how this is a blatant breach of data protection and that I could be sued for damages for this serious invasion of privacy.

Naturally, it ended with 'get the fcuk over it'.

quadrifoglio verde · 15-10-2015 12:19AM

jamesbere wrote: »

In relation to the bad review of the person eating in the restaurant, I'd would agree with him on one point, if you don't like your food say it to the staff then not wait til afterwards.

Posting the video I think is out of line. the man doesn't seem to take criticism very well, I mean telling a customer to flag a taxi on the street is unacceptable.

He has a point though, the customer gets a taxi faster and pays less.
Maybe I just come from the generation that has the ability to go outside and hold out my hand, or use an app like uber.

newacc2015 · 15-10-2015 12:29AM

Bio Mech wrote: »

I think he is going to end up in legal trouble. A business posting the email address and name of a customer is not clever. The lady with the cafe complaint also had a video of her published along with her Facebook details with , IMO, malicious intent.

He will push it too far and it won't end well for him. What he has done in the past was harmless media trolling but lately he has gotten a lot more petty and nasty.

I would agree. But this is Ireland. I'm not one of these "everything about Ireland is **** kind of people". We have some excellent state bodies eg labour court or comreg. Data protection just isn't one

It's literally a room in some town as it was decentralised a while ago. It's literally a few people in an office in the middle of no where. Yet we have some of the largest companies in the world, all managing their data from Ireland ie twitter recently said all their non-american data is managed from Ireland for the entire world.

We should really be protecting the data of billions of people. But in reality it's a handful of people in a decentralised office in the arse hole of no where. Why we still have it there when all the IT companies are located in Dublin is beyond me.

That Austrian student found the data protection agency here a nightmare to deal with. I think companies dont give a **** about protecting data here. As there really is no repercussions

Billy86 · 15-10-2015 12:32AM

quadrifoglio verde wrote: »

He has a point though, the customer gets a taxi faster and pays less.
Maybe I just come from the generation that has the ability to go outside and hold out my hand, or use an app like uber.

What generation was that customer from, out of interest?

that Charleville Lodge Hotel page on FB & the epidemic of morons on social media

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