Major Airlines Will Fail
- Thread starter danielsexton
- Start date
flyover
New Member
I agree. I believe very strongly that there are only two major areas that airlines need to correct to get their customer service back on track.
1) Overhaul their communication to the customer. This is necessary on all levels, but most importantly at the customer contact level. There are skills that the even the most lowly trained service rep can learn that will vastly improve how they interact with customers. For employees those that refuse to go along, out the door.
2) Decide for the long term what your product is and start delivering it consistently. This really gets back to number 1 as it goes to communication. What is it you are selling? My years in the industry have come since deregulation. I have watched the majors go througn dizzying changes in service levels, marketing, pricing, etc. etc. Because of that there are only a few brand names in the industry that really mean anything. The top two are SWA and JetBlue. For their customers there is absolutely no confusion about their product.
I think the majors have so completely botched this that they will have no choice but to re-brand. Make a clean break and start over again. It's not going to be easy.
1) Overhaul their communication to the customer. This is necessary on all levels, but most importantly at the customer contact level. There are skills that the even the most lowly trained service rep can learn that will vastly improve how they interact with customers. For employees those that refuse to go along, out the door.
2) Decide for the long term what your product is and start delivering it consistently. This really gets back to number 1 as it goes to communication. What is it you are selling? My years in the industry have come since deregulation. I have watched the majors go througn dizzying changes in service levels, marketing, pricing, etc. etc. Because of that there are only a few brand names in the industry that really mean anything. The top two are SWA and JetBlue. For their customers there is absolutely no confusion about their product.
I think the majors have so completely botched this that they will have no choice but to re-brand. Make a clean break and start over again. It's not going to be easy.
tonyw
Well-Known Member
I'm with you on the communication. They try to make things too simple and they end up confusing the passenger.
For example, they'll say, due to weather conditions, flight xxx to Poughkeepsie will be delayed. You and I know that, well, okay, even though it's gorgeous here, maybe the plane that's supposed to take me to Poughkeepsie is being held up at the place it's supposed to depart from.
Joe Average, though, says, what the hell? It's absolutely gorgeous outside. What possible weather delay could there be? The airline is LYING to me!
Let's take the US Airways example that started this whole mess. Okay, the crew couldn't get there. Why? What if they had said, due to weather problems at the city where the crew is coming in from, we can't operate this flight. All of the sudden, now Joe Average says, oh! So they couldn't get the pilots here because the weather was bad in the place they were coming from. That makes sense.
As for the long term branding, I think you're seeing United and American do that. They are stressing that they can get you anywhere. That is the biggest advantage they have over the LCCs. They need to exploit that, stress it, and go from there.
Wanna go skiing at Jackson Hole or Big Sky? Well, JetBlue and Southwest ain't gonna get you there. Wanna go see Australia? No can do on the LCCs.
United is actually doing that here in the DC area. They're stressing how they can get you wherever you want to go and Independence Air can't.
For example, they'll say, due to weather conditions, flight xxx to Poughkeepsie will be delayed. You and I know that, well, okay, even though it's gorgeous here, maybe the plane that's supposed to take me to Poughkeepsie is being held up at the place it's supposed to depart from.
Joe Average, though, says, what the hell? It's absolutely gorgeous outside. What possible weather delay could there be? The airline is LYING to me!
Let's take the US Airways example that started this whole mess. Okay, the crew couldn't get there. Why? What if they had said, due to weather problems at the city where the crew is coming in from, we can't operate this flight. All of the sudden, now Joe Average says, oh! So they couldn't get the pilots here because the weather was bad in the place they were coming from. That makes sense.
As for the long term branding, I think you're seeing United and American do that. They are stressing that they can get you anywhere. That is the biggest advantage they have over the LCCs. They need to exploit that, stress it, and go from there.
Wanna go skiing at Jackson Hole or Big Sky? Well, JetBlue and Southwest ain't gonna get you there. Wanna go see Australia? No can do on the LCCs.
United is actually doing that here in the DC area. They're stressing how they can get you wherever you want to go and Independence Air can't.
flyover
New Member
[ QUOTE ]
As for the long term branding, I think you're seeing United and American do that. They are stressing that they can get you anywhere. That is the biggest advantage they have over the LCCs. They need to exploit that, stress it, and go from there.
[/ QUOTE ]
When I say re-brand I mean no more United or American. I mean a clean break so that the customers can get rid of some old baggage too. It will likely come about as the airlines rise back out of the ashes of bankruptcy.
As for the long term branding, I think you're seeing United and American do that. They are stressing that they can get you anywhere. That is the biggest advantage they have over the LCCs. They need to exploit that, stress it, and go from there.
[/ QUOTE ]
When I say re-brand I mean no more United or American. I mean a clean break so that the customers can get rid of some old baggage too. It will likely come about as the airlines rise back out of the ashes of bankruptcy.
danielsexton
Well-Known Member
[ QUOTE ]
Three pages and it's like the thread is a 'floater' that won't flush!
Man gets burned on flight.
Man writes scathing, broad article about a single incident.
Man uses title to capture as much interest in his written hissy fit.
Article gets permalinked, crosslinked and cut 'n pasted across a few thousand aviation websites.
People backbite, feed on themselves and pontificate how right/wrong the author was.
(repeat)
[/ QUOTE ]
you know Doug, i thought this was an interesting article and expected, it would invoke a little conversation about airline customer service, which in many cases is legitimately horrid, never expected it to get 65 reply's.
Three pages and it's like the thread is a 'floater' that won't flush!
Man gets burned on flight.
Man writes scathing, broad article about a single incident.
Man uses title to capture as much interest in his written hissy fit.
Article gets permalinked, crosslinked and cut 'n pasted across a few thousand aviation websites.
People backbite, feed on themselves and pontificate how right/wrong the author was.
(repeat)
[/ QUOTE ]
you know Doug, i thought this was an interesting article and expected, it would invoke a little conversation about airline customer service, which in many cases is legitimately horrid, never expected it to get 65 reply's.
However, for the most part, service is good and we all work our butts off on a daily basis. Dealing with limited resources, tight time restraints lead (and disciplined) by people who haven't seen the 'front line' in their entire career.
Primarily why I'm a little overly sensitive when articles such as these make the rounds on the internet. Granted, yes, mistakes were made, but there is usually so much more to the story than most people realize.
The agent can't respond and say, "Well, Mesa cut out all of the agents except one and I probably hadn't had a break, a bite to eat or even a chance to visit the bathroom and empty an overflowing bladder for seven hours. I did the best I could, on my own, with NO resources." Or how the agent that was supposed to help her out decided that an extra $1/hr, weekends and holidays off was enough to make him leave the CSR job and go work at Wal-Mart as a greeter because of abhorent working conditions at the airline.
That would be a fantastic piece of investigative journalism. Instead of screaming about what happened that morning, investigate and determine why it happened. Perhaps he'd discover exactly what transpired that morning.
Like if one of my flights was horribly delayed, I usually have a pretty good idea of the chain of events and missed opportunities which caused the SNAFU. Problem is, if I got on the PA and explained to the passengers what the actual problem is, I think I'd be doing the 'carpet dance' monday morning in the chief pilots office and looking for a ticket home on Orbitz.
Primarily why I'm a little overly sensitive when articles such as these make the rounds on the internet. Granted, yes, mistakes were made, but there is usually so much more to the story than most people realize.
The agent can't respond and say, "Well, Mesa cut out all of the agents except one and I probably hadn't had a break, a bite to eat or even a chance to visit the bathroom and empty an overflowing bladder for seven hours. I did the best I could, on my own, with NO resources." Or how the agent that was supposed to help her out decided that an extra $1/hr, weekends and holidays off was enough to make him leave the CSR job and go work at Wal-Mart as a greeter because of abhorent working conditions at the airline.
That would be a fantastic piece of investigative journalism. Instead of screaming about what happened that morning, investigate and determine why it happened. Perhaps he'd discover exactly what transpired that morning.
Like if one of my flights was horribly delayed, I usually have a pretty good idea of the chain of events and missed opportunities which caused the SNAFU. Problem is, if I got on the PA and explained to the passengers what the actual problem is, I think I'd be doing the 'carpet dance' monday morning in the chief pilots office and looking for a ticket home on Orbitz.
mtsu_av8er
Well-Known Member
[ QUOTE ]
Problem is, if I got on the PA and explained to the passengers what the actual problem is, I think I'd be doing the 'carpet dance' monday morning in the chief pilots office and looking for a ticket home on Orbitz.
[/ QUOTE ]
Insensitive bastages....they'd fly you to ATL to fire you, and not even fly you home?? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Problem is, if I got on the PA and explained to the passengers what the actual problem is, I think I'd be doing the 'carpet dance' monday morning in the chief pilots office and looking for a ticket home on Orbitz.
[/ QUOTE ]
Insensitive bastages....they'd fly you to ATL to fire you, and not even fly you home?? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
flyover
New Member
[ QUOTE ]
Not sure you want to just toss out a brand that's been around for 75 years or so.
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United apparently agrees with me. They are so concerned about turning a new page and shedding an old image, they come up with Ted?
If after 75 years you've completely and utterly failed as a business, and have tried so many different combinations of marketing, service, pricing and incentives that no one really knows what they are buying anymore........it might be time for a new brand.
Not sure you want to just toss out a brand that's been around for 75 years or so.
[/ QUOTE ]
United apparently agrees with me. They are so concerned about turning a new page and shedding an old image, they come up with Ted?
If after 75 years you've completely and utterly failed as a business, and have tried so many different combinations of marketing, service, pricing and incentives that no one really knows what they are buying anymore........it might be time for a new brand.
FlyingFish
New Member
Or come up with new livery colors. That always helps... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
flyover
New Member
[ QUOTE ]
investigate and determine why it happened. Perhaps he'd discover exactly what transpired that morning.
[/ QUOTE ]
I think his whole point was that the company should have been able to tell him, it shouldn't have been a mystery.
We've both seen this many times, Doug. Something goes wrong and we can't find out what or why to pass on to the customers. When that happens I tell them that I'm in the dark, that it's not right that I'm in the dark, and I'm going to find out and let them know. When it's the company's fault and it was a dumb screwup I tell them that. I've let big D have it a number fr times on the PA, never had to do a carpet dance. Some of the things I've said "poor planning" "dumb mistake" "out to lunch" "no excuse" etc. The passengers really appreciate it when you voice what they are thinking. You want to realy piss them off take a ridiculously bad service situation and try to put a good face on it.
investigate and determine why it happened. Perhaps he'd discover exactly what transpired that morning.
[/ QUOTE ]
I think his whole point was that the company should have been able to tell him, it shouldn't have been a mystery.
We've both seen this many times, Doug. Something goes wrong and we can't find out what or why to pass on to the customers. When that happens I tell them that I'm in the dark, that it's not right that I'm in the dark, and I'm going to find out and let them know. When it's the company's fault and it was a dumb screwup I tell them that. I've let big D have it a number fr times on the PA, never had to do a carpet dance. Some of the things I've said "poor planning" "dumb mistake" "out to lunch" "no excuse" etc. The passengers really appreciate it when you voice what they are thinking. You want to realy piss them off take a ridiculously bad service situation and try to put a good face on it.