SimpliFlying

Few airlines are known to have embraced the latest technologies to connect with their customers - specifically blogs. Southwest’s “Nuts about Southwest” is probably the only prominent blog by an airline that comes to mind.

Now, Malaysia Airlines has opened up and started a blog named “Living Malaysian Hospitality“, or Living MH for short - MH being the airline’s IATA code (nice play on words). Given that Malaysia Airlines is a government-linked company, this is a remarkable effort, and may do wonders for the brand. For a start, the airline has shown some guts in showcasing actual customer letters on the website. They also claim to accept and share both positive and negative feedback. Such transparency is sure to build trust among the customer base.

Moreover, there are about thirty bloggers from across the airline’s divisions who’ve been regularly blogging since April 2008. Reading blog posts with personal perspectives from specific people will allow the customers to connect a face to the brand - which again creates a warm feeling and fosters trust, ultimately leading to brand loyalty.

So kudos to Malaysia Airlines for daring to be different. It is such efforts that ultimately help companies leapfrog the competition, especially when the CEO of AirAsia is known to often comment on blogs.

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In service businesses like airlines, first impressions count. On my hour-long American Airlines flight last evening from Toronto to Boston, I was welcomed on-board by a cheerful flight attendant, Heather. She was genuinely pleasant (and not over-doing it) and extremely courteous, even though she was the only flight attendant on board the small Embraer jet. She played along when people were not paying close attention to the safety demonstration, and cracked jokes while serving beverages. A very pleasant experience - but that’s just one tenth of the job done for the airline when it comes to creating first impressions.

Creating lasting first impressions - a hundred million times

Air Canada’s Robert Milton mentions in his book that on average each passenger comes in contact with the airline ten times, every time he flies. This may be through the call center, website, at the check-in counter and of course, on-board the plane. So if an airline flies 10 million passengers per year, there would be a total of 100 million interactions on average! So how can airlines create a lasting first impression, every customer interaction? Here are three ways.

1. Exceed expectations. Before a customer interacts with an airline, he has certain expectations formed through advertisements, word-of-mouth or previous experiences. Airlines should aim to exceed them. Reduce the waiting time at the call center. Have pleasant check-in counter staff. Cater to the fliers’ needs on-board. This is not to say that each and every airline must spend millions in sprucing up service levels, but rather exceed the expectations they have set themselves. For example, budget airlines like AirAsia promise on-time performance and not in-flight luxuries. They then ensure these metrics are adhered to. Airlines like Thai Airways and Qatar Airways promise a pampered service for their business class passengers, and then deliver it. Prioritize, then execute and keep the word. Read the rest of this entry »

   

   Tags: AirAsia, American Airlines, Robert Milton, Virgin America
   

The recent spate of airline mergers - or merger talks - begs the question: Is it better for the industry if two airlines merge or one of them goes bankrupt. Verdict: It’s better if an airline goes bankrupt.

Here’re three reasons why bankruptcies are good for the industry overall.

1. Increases industry revenues. Many airlines are not making money because fares are too low, compared to costs. More bankruptcies mean less price competition for the remaining airlines. They can then raise fares with less fear of undercutting. This would help them cover costs, and increase profits for the industry overall. Cathay Pacific was able to optimize flight times between Hong Kong and Vancouver after Oasis HongKong went bust.By contrast, in mergers, the new combination of airlines takes long to rationalize routes, and when they do, they still charge low rates since fares never really increased the way they could have, due to sudden disappearance of competition from a route.
2. Dramatically lower costs. When airlines close for business, they lay off a large number of people. These people increase the labor supply in the market, and are hired by other airlines at lower wages. This reduces the overall wage component of the costs. When airlines go bust, they also get rid of their planes at very low prices. They are sold to other airlines, which can then put them on their under-serviced routes. Again, reducing the cost of the equipment. AirAsia is a great example of an airline, which inherited two planes with just a $0.50 down payment, and  was able to tap on the abundance of cheap labor, right after 9/11.
   Read the rest of this entry »

   

   Tags: AirAsia, bankruptcies, Cathay Pacific, mergers, US Airways
   

Despite a number of US based airlines going bust in the past few months, and all the talk of consolidation and more bankruptcies in Europe, the budget airlines in Asia seem to be doing rather well.

Tiger Airways, based out of Singapore, is expanding into Australia rapidly and there are talks of starting a Korean hub. Air Asia is doing better than ever on regional routes, and now starting long haul budget travel as well. Even though the growth of Indian budget carriers has slowed, they are still doing well, given the state of the industry in the rest of the world. The fact that ever more Asian airports are coming up with budget terminals is testimony to the fact that demand will increase in the near future. So what is it that other airlines can learn from the Asian budget carriers to be more successful?
Read the rest of this entry »

Airlines faced with a difficult economic environment and near-homogenous products in-the-air are desperately looking for new ways to woo the customer. And what better way to do this than to show that it has a heart too. Thai AirAsia did just that recently.

“AirAsia is offering assistance to facilitate the transportation of aid to cyclone-ravaged Myanmar, including sponsoring flights for aid workers and freeing up cargo space for aid materials,” a Bangkok Post article mentions. Even Bangkok Airways has stepped up and offered relief flights from Thailand to Myanmar, former being the primary entry point to the military-governed nation.

AirAsia has demonstrated true personality here by showing that it cares too. This act alone gives a human face to the airline and will be remembered by customers for a long time to come. It is actions like these that makes a company, not just an airline, stand out. It reflects agility on the airline’s part as well. Especially so, if regional giants like Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways are keeping mum. Read the rest of this entry »

With airline mergers and takeovers happening around the world, and now looming in the US too, one of the biggest “obstacles” encountered by airlines is airline staff unions. I beg to differ.

Here are a couple of the latest news about crew unhappiness in the last few days:

• Air France Agrees to Buy Alitalia for $1.2 Billion (but faces union troubles), March 17, 08 - Bloomberg
• British Airways Pilots Protest Plan to Start New Airline, March 15, 08 - Bloomberg
• Pilots have much to lose during mergers, March 9, 08 - USA Today
  

Internal branding as a strategic corporate communications tool

Airlines should ensure that they take good care of their employees in case of a merger, and not construe it as an obstacle. Having them in the fold and ensuring their happiness would help ensure that the passengers receive a superior brand experience. Some branding experts refer to this as internal branding, other claim this is integrated branding. Regardless of the terminology, it is an established fact that if the working conditions are good, the crew is happy, and that rubs off onto the passengers so that they too are happy. Read the rest of this entry »