I went to Los Angeles last weekend for a quick little get-away and based on the recommendations of several of my friends, I flew Virgin America. I had heard about how “cool” the airline was and how they made the travel experience just a little bit nicer.

(Nicer. Sounds great huh but then of course with travel, the bar isn’t all that high!)

Boarded the plane and a nice, clean and modern plane it was, and yep, I think there was even a bit of extra leg room too. (I’m just about 5’2″ so that leg room is nice but not a necessity!)

I watched a very cool safety video set to rap music (not everyone’s cup of tea I know) and then eagerly accessed the personal entertainment system found at my seat. I figured that I’d do a little work and then indulge in watching a couple of movies to pass the time.

So, imagine my surprise when I pulled up the movie screen and saw that there was an $8. charge for each movie, new ones, old ones, basically across the board.

Yikes. I’ve taken many flights on way less “cool” airlines and didn’t have to pay to watch a movie. I clicked to the television option and yes, there was a charge for many of the TV shows as well.

Heck, this wasn’t what I expected and yep, I felt a bit ripped off.  The flight was pricey and I had been under the illusion that the cool airline had it all going for them.

Expectation….high. Reality…not so.

So right now think about your business. Are your client’s expectations dashed by your deliverables or do you live up to what they expect and do so on a consistent basis?

Can’t say that I would dis Virgin for their parsimonious ways BUT I also don’t think I’d go out of my way to fly them again either.

By the way, they provided coffee and soft drinks but not even a bag of pretzels. Had to fork over money for that too.