Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Categorized | E-mail Best Practices, Mobile, Social Marketing
Can your airline do this?
Posted by Sundeep Kapur | Tuesday, March 29, 2011
PTE or Passenger Terminal Expo kicks off today in Copenhagen, Denmark. Hundreds of professionals representing airlines, airports, and suppliers converge to seek out best practices. Here is a suggestion - focus on the customer, focus on their experiences, focus on getting them back. Think about Emily, can your airline really do this?Emily needs to schedule a last minute flight. The airline that 'knows' her is sold out. She searches the web for good last minute deal and is able to find the flight she needs with another airline. A first timer on this airline, she decides to set up an account.
The account set up process is simple, three simple questions, & then she is asked for her email address and mobile phone number. She sees a banner ad promoting the convenience of mobile messaging and decides to see just exactly what it’s all about. She doesn't mind trying this new interaction after noticing an ‘unsubscribe option’ if she finds the service obtrusive or not necessary for her lifestyle. Relaxed, she tells the airline a little bit more about herself.
When she arrives at the airport, she decides to check-in using a self-service kiosk that she noticed when entering the building. She is recognized, welcomed, and offered something relevant. She told them about her favorite foods & restaurants, and right there she has an offer to purchase a meal for her flight which is displayed by a banner ad next to her flight summary. It recognizes that she is flying coach, has an exit row aisle seat, and displays her proper food selections. She accepts the offer and the meal is charged to her cell phone. She is pleased that she took the time to fill out her preferences from home.
As she makes her way through security, she receives a text telling her that her departure gate has been changed to B30, where she makes a mental note and continues on.
As she settles into her seat, Emily received an email from her smart phone of her current mileage summary as well as directions to her hotel at her destination. Again, she is pleased - she took a minute to tell her airline where she was headed, & they remembered. She does get a text, thanking her for flying the airline, an offer to take a survey, & a coupon to her favorite restaurant.
Later that evening Emily logs back into her airline account, takes the survey, and then notices a banner ad promoting that she is five trips shy of getting a free ticket. She is also offered 25000 bonus miles if she gets a credit card from the airline. The airline promises her offers that are relevant and useful.
As Emily was preparing for her meeting the next day, she could not help but be amazed by the personalization and technology that she had experienced first-hand, by flying the new airline that morning.
After her initial trip, Emily called the new airline about matching her status - they did, & she became a more frequent flier on this airline due to her rewarding experience. She continues to receive emails, mobile messages, & direct mail with personalized offers and information that is relevant to her while she is looking into new ‘hotspots’ and earning points toward her incentives.
Oh, and Emily now raves about her friendly airline to her friends on her social networks. Free publicity that was well earned by an airline that cared to listen.
Two things are going to drive the future of interaction - preferences, & presence. Your airline should know what you want and keep filling up more information about you. Secondly, your airline should allow you to access them from any channel and serve you with relevance.
The account set up process is simple, three simple questions, & then she is asked for her email address and mobile phone number. She sees a banner ad promoting the convenience of mobile messaging and decides to see just exactly what it’s all about. She doesn't mind trying this new interaction after noticing an ‘unsubscribe option’ if she finds the service obtrusive or not necessary for her lifestyle. Relaxed, she tells the airline a little bit more about herself.
When she arrives at the airport, she decides to check-in using a self-service kiosk that she noticed when entering the building. She is recognized, welcomed, and offered something relevant. She told them about her favorite foods & restaurants, and right there she has an offer to purchase a meal for her flight which is displayed by a banner ad next to her flight summary. It recognizes that she is flying coach, has an exit row aisle seat, and displays her proper food selections. She accepts the offer and the meal is charged to her cell phone. She is pleased that she took the time to fill out her preferences from home.
As she makes her way through security, she receives a text telling her that her departure gate has been changed to B30, where she makes a mental note and continues on.
As she settles into her seat, Emily received an email from her smart phone of her current mileage summary as well as directions to her hotel at her destination. Again, she is pleased - she took a minute to tell her airline where she was headed, & they remembered. She does get a text, thanking her for flying the airline, an offer to take a survey, & a coupon to her favorite restaurant.
Later that evening Emily logs back into her airline account, takes the survey, and then notices a banner ad promoting that she is five trips shy of getting a free ticket. She is also offered 25000 bonus miles if she gets a credit card from the airline. The airline promises her offers that are relevant and useful.
As Emily was preparing for her meeting the next day, she could not help but be amazed by the personalization and technology that she had experienced first-hand, by flying the new airline that morning.
After her initial trip, Emily called the new airline about matching her status - they did, & she became a more frequent flier on this airline due to her rewarding experience. She continues to receive emails, mobile messages, & direct mail with personalized offers and information that is relevant to her while she is looking into new ‘hotspots’ and earning points toward her incentives.
Oh, and Emily now raves about her friendly airline to her friends on her social networks. Free publicity that was well earned by an airline that cared to listen.
Two things are going to drive the future of interaction - preferences, & presence. Your airline should know what you want and keep filling up more information about you. Secondly, your airline should allow you to access them from any channel and serve you with relevance.
Email, mobile, & social are all key drivers to achieving this interaction.
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