It’s the long weekend in many countries. Canada, US, most of Asia-Pacific are on a holiday. Yet, it’s very nice to see that airlines are listening. Chris Brogan tweeted today that he’d pay JetBlue $7,200 for one year of unlimited flying “pass”. And @JetBlue immediately replied that they’re “listening”.

Somewhere else on Twitterland, Christi Day of Southwest Airlines was dealing with an outburst from @TheKevinSmith, on Valentine’s Day eve, which finally involved Southwest’s VP calling Smith personally.

Though these may seem like normal twitter conversations, to me they reflect a paradigm shift in the way airlines have started to deal with their customers. It wasn’t too long ago, where I had to print out and post a letter to an airline for a missed-connection claim, because their email inbox was full! And the matter took over 5mths to get resolved (in the end, I didn’t get my $$).

JetBlue and Southwest have both been beacons of change in the industry, and they’ve shown a more human side of airlines – generally considered faceless corporations. Kudos to their efforts to connect with the customer directly, and truly listen. I think it shows where the future of customer service is heading.

What do you think? Has your favorite airline been listening to you lately?

• Why do I regret having never flown Southwest? It’s the humor!
• A Southwest Airlines employee goes out of her way to help a distressed passenger
• United Airlines brand may go for a spin as customer feedback line is terminated
• Making ancillary revenue work with brand strategy – my interview
• Five steps to Customer Service Excellence for United Airlines (with real-life case study)

A special day in aviation

Two important events took place in aviation today – both of which conjored mixed feelings in me.

1. The British High Court declared illegal the potential X-mas strike by British Airways‘ Unite union. The good news is that this promises hassle-free travel for almost a million BA travelers over the holiday period. The downside is that the union is keen on re-grouping to go on strike early next year.

2. It was the last day at work for Paula Berg, the force behind the successful new media brand strategy of Southwest Airlines for the past decade. She’s leaving to move back with the true love of her life – the mountains. So again, a bitter-sweet news. (Watch Paula’s video interview on SWA’s media strategy here)

What’s the link between Southwest Airlines and British Airways?

“So, what’s the connection”, you may wonder?

Paula had emailed me about her move last week and in her note included 68 reasons why she loved working at Southwest over the last ten year. Can you imagine an employee putting in so much affection and effort while she’s leaving? This only happens when the company has treated her like family.

This is not just something Paula expressed, but also what Southwest’s outgoing President Colleen Barrett confirmed over a year ago in her final interview – that the airline’s prime customers are its employees. And keeping them happy keeps the end-customer happy too.

Now, Southwest Airlines has some of the largest number of employees who’re in a union. But they seldom have employee trouble. Probably because they feel loved and give love back. Whereas at British Airways (and many other airlines), there often seems to be employee trouble. I think two things need to happen here:

1. The airline needs to think more about the employees like family, rather than numbers. If they’ve been promised something, they should be granted it on time

2. The union and employees shouldn’t just think of the airline as a golden goose they can hold hostage on a whim. Think of the long term too. If the Unite strike had gone through during the holiday period, it would have probably brought British Airways to its knees!

And even now, when customers fly British Airways over the holidays, do you think they’d feel the love? Probably not. And this would reflect in their lower service delivery standards too, which already isn’t the best in the world.

Hence, I’d like to share with the world, and especially anyone who works at British Airways, a classic from Southwest Airlines’ Paula Berg , which I’ve sought permission for re-publishing from her email. I hope this warms some hearts and melts some hot-heads and make life better for everyone this holiday season.

Quoted from Paula’s personal email…

68 REASONS WHY I’VE LOVED WORKING AT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

1. This puddle.
2. The response you receive when you tell someone that you work for Southwest Airlines.
3. Free flights.
4. The People – There are times when I pass folks in the halls that I don’t even know and am overwhelmed with the feeling that any one of these people would give you the shirt off their back if you needed it.
5. Bags Fly Free – It just feels good to work for a Company that tries to do right by its Customers.
6. The Freedom to move about the Company – I love that several of our VP’s began their careers on the frontline – loading bags, working the ticket counter, and servicing aircraft.
7. On business trips with colleagues, I can look around the dinner table and think, “There’s no one else I’d rather be with right now.”
8. Halloween – how many people can say they’ve seen their CEO in platform boots and a cod piece?
   
9. Having a team of Schedule Planners on hand to “optimize” our Halloween performance schedule.
10. The view from the deck.
11. Having a personal weather man to let you know when to head home or hunker down to avoid bad weather.
12. Lunch in the cafeteria always feels like a high school reunion.
13. The Button Man (sometimes known also as The Magnet Man) – because every Southwest event needs a souvenir.
    
14. Hearing the Southwest Choir practice in the atrium behind my office.
15. Casual Dress.
16. Hand-written notes from Colleen Barrett.
17. Kisses from Herb Kelleher.
18. That Warrior Spirit.
19. Parties in the hanger.
20. Rapping, singing, flipping, and beat-boxing Flight Attendants.
21. Aviation bloggers and enthusiasts.
22. Employee lanes at the airport.
23. Eight percent 401k match.
24. Best corporate blog three years running according to PR News (…and if I do say so myself).
25. The Culture Committee.
26. There is no shortage of peanuts or peanut references.
27. There is never a dull moment.
28. The Spirit Jr. Costume.
    
29. This photo.
    
30. Texas – From the hospitality to the maverick spirit, and all the folks that call you honey, sugar, and darling.
31. Southwest swag – like the Southwest Airlines lint roller, the Cargo koozie with the crab arms (“we ship your catch”), the flip-flops that leave the Southwest logo imprinted in the sand, and the Southwest bike (one of these days, I’m gonna get my hands on one of those bikes).
    
32. Fred Taylor and Proactive Customer Service.
33. Employees first, Customers next, Shareholder’s last.
34. 36 years of profitability.
35. Profit sharing.
36. Free parking in the Employee lot at the airport.  With the upcoming renovation of Dallas Love Field, this option in no longer available.  And, technically, being that I wasn’t actually an airport Employee, I was never really supposed to park back there anyway.  But, oh the good ole days!  (NOTE:  To the owners of the red Camero and the black Porsche that are still parked over there, you better move your cars ASAP or you’re gonna get towed!)
37. Crazy email strings – Like the one a co-worker accidently sent to hundreds of people that revealed highly confidential information about a new city.  Doh!  Or the one that someone intended for a few friends, but accidently sent to the entire company, asking what they wanted her to pick up for a Bar-B-Que.  Everyone responded.  Not everyone thought it was funny.  I think you know where I stand on this one.  It still makes me giggle.
38. Weekly emails from Carla looking for her missing mail cart (…I love you, girl!).
39. Daily emails announcing that there is queso, Bar-B-Que, or birthday cake in the breakroom.
40. Parking next to a Boeing 737.
41. That new plane smell.
42. Driving into work with the planes taking off on the runway along Denton Drive.  Sometimes I want to race them, but the potholes and my less than favorable standing with the police always stop me.
    
43. Stuart Thomas’s abstract Halloween costume illustrating RASM and CASM.
44. Countless “Wanna Get Away” moments – like the time I took a fly ball to the chin at the Customer Relations/Rapid Rewards softball game and had to come to work for a week with a black and blue goatee.  Or the time that I split my pants from seam to seam and walked around all day in chaps.  Or the time I walked into a plate glass window escorting Jim Wimberly to a photo shoot.
45. The joy of looking up someone’s phone number in the online Company Directory and discovering a ridiculous employee photo.
    
46. The “no drinking before 5pm” rule.
47. The Freedom to be yourself – In 2002, while working in the Customer Relations Department, I went nearly three months without washing my hair, just for fun. In the third month, my supervisor called me in to his office and gently suggested that I may want to “keep our Customers in mind.”  I love that it took that long.
48. Secret project codewords like Sockeye, Wyatt ERP and Tipper.
49. The crossword puzzle in Spirit Magazine.
50. Brainstorming sessions in the Magic Factory.
51. Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride from Headquarters to Dallas Love Field on the Southwest shuttle bus.
52. On any given day you might see a live Texas longhorn, NBA Legend Bill Walton, the Stanley Cup, or a margarita machine on campus.
53. The Southwest cans of water.  I mean really…how cute are these things!
    
54. Doug Lawson – our resident “Viv Engineer” who, among other things, studies the movements and behavioral patters of animals (like ants, bees, and herds) and applies that knowledge to algorithms that make our airport operations more intuitive and efficient.
55. Linda Rutherford – without Linda, there would be no blog and no Emerging Media Team.
56. License plate frames that say “my other car is a Southwest 737.”
57. Bob Jordan’s Mustache.
58. Sitting on a plane and listening to the folks around you talk about how much they love Southwest Airlines.
59. Amazing people like Bill Owen, Anne Hancock, Brian Lusk, and Carole Adams, who, for me, will always epitomize the Spirit of Southwest.
60. Dallas Love Field – just 15 minutes from my apartment to the gate.
61. Lunch at the PR table.
62. The view from the window seat.
    
63. Getting a thumbs’ up from Gary.
64. Chetto Drafts in the Landing.
65. James Tibbons and this video.
66. The Southwest Communications Department – I’ve spent nearly every work day for the past six years with the same group of people.  They know me as well or better than anyone, and they have loved me, nonetheless.
67. My very good friends, who have taken care of me when I was sick, had me at their homes for holidays, allowed me to loaf on their couches when I didn’t have a television or a home, and were on call to bail me out of jail if I were ever arrested.
68. Bloody Marys on a plane – they’re just better up there.

Much LUV, my friends.

• A Southwest Airlines employee goes out of her way to help a distressed passenger
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• What makes Volaris from Mexico the world’s happiest airline? Interview with COO, Andres Fabre

When it comes to social media branding, Southwest Airlines has been the trendsetter for quite some time, and is looked upon by competition and even other industries. From their very successful blog, “Nuts about Southwest” to its over 700,000 followers on Twitter – they’ve got their act together. And behind these efforts is a very hardworking team led by Paula Berg. I had the pleasure of meeting Paula at the Inbound Marketing Summit in Boston, where she delivered a keynote on Southwest’s social media branding strategy and I led a session for airlines/airports in social media.

What makes Southwest Airlines so successful on social media?

So, what do you think about Southwest Airlines’ efforts on social media? Isn’t it refreshing to learn about such a visionary team in gloomy times? How can others replicate Paula’s success? Let’s discuss in the comments or over on Twitter (@simpliflying)

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• Five and a half secrets for airlines to drive revenue from social media: Keynote presentation from LCC Summit in Al-Ain
• Social media mogul Chris Brogan joins SimpliFlying’s Board of Advisors
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This is a cross-over article from Rohit Bhargava’s Influential Marketing Blog. When I read it, I couldn’t help but request for it to be posted here. His views resonate completely with mine and this is a perfect example of how authenticity is key in branding. Especially so in airline branding – because it’s so easy for the customer to switch if the brand expectations are not met. And in this case, United seems to be getting it wrong.  I’ve also commented on these previously, in my article entitled “Airlines, stop putting lipstick on a pig!” Meanwhile, enjoy Rohit’s ideas.

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Over the course of two days, I saw two stark examples of what could easily be considered the best and worst of airline advertising messages encompassed in two ads done for domestic US-based airlines. Let’s start with the worst from United:

What makes this ad so ineffective? First of all, the call to action to experience their first and business class has almost nothing to do with the visuals and storyline of the animated character. She could just as easily be in economy class. Or on another airline. And the last thing I want to think about is all the creatures in the sea when I’m on a transcontinental flight. If I’m lucky, I won’t see any – which means my plane stayed in the air where it belongs. The beautiful animated characters and music have little relevance to our lives and have been a random choice for as long as United has been running this campaign.

The choice of Gershwin for the music has become a signature for United and most consumers would recognize it as their “theme song” – but again there is no built in message or purpose for this beyond brand awareness. And as one of the largest airlines in the United States, I think it is safe to say that awareness isn’t really what United needs in the first place. Ultimately, as a United customer, I end up watching that ad and wondering to myself what else they chose not to spend money on so they could produce this ineffective message and buy expensive media time to show it (it first aired during the Beijing Olympics).

In contrast, here’s the Southwest ad:

What makes this ad so effective? The first reason is that it is topical. At a time when most domestic US airlines have started charging passengers to check their bags, Southwest is one of the few that has not done this. The ad smartly focuses on one attribute that actually DOES set Southwest apart from their competitors: that your bags fly for free. The execution of the ad is strong as well, featuring a man who is presumably a real baggage handler smiling and generally looking happy to be taking care of your bag. The voiceover humanizes your bag – noting at one point that your bag can even bring its “little bag friends” for free. I love my bag – so I respond to that message. Chances are, you do too. At the end of the ad is a simple, yet effective call to action to pack your bag and go on that trip that you might have been planning for some time, because you’ll save money with Southwest and your bag will fly for free.

Clearly the audiences for these two spots are different. Southwest is going for the leisure traveler on domestic travel while United is targeting the business and first class crowd for international travel. Yet their different approaches underscore the shift that is taking place in marketing today. The more authentic message focused on something people actually care about will trump the artistically created piece of fluff that lacks any strong insight or message any day.

The irony, perhaps, in this post is that because I live in the Washington DC area – I travel all the time with United and rarely on Southwest. In the past I have often pointed to United as the brand that I would most like to work with because they have such a clean slate of possibility. If they could rethink their entire approach to marketing, add more personality and use social media more effectively – they could completely reinvent people’s perception of their brand.

There are some early signs that this is starting to happen – including United starting a twitter account. What it truly needs is a vision from the highest level of marketing to rethink their advertising and pour more internal support into the nacent social media activities starting within the company that have such big potential but are likely underfunded and underappreciated. In case United is listening, drop me a line … as a loyal customer and hopeful marketer, I’d be happy to help.

• Are location-based services a blessing for the airline brand?
• Southwest Airlines’ success secrets on social media revealed by Paula Berg
• The day airlines’ Twitter accounts were hacked, and three steps to reverse the brand damage
• How can legacy airlines, airports or hotels make an entry into social media? Start from within
• Rohit Bhargava feels that United Airlines lacks a brand personality. Is he right?

I had a great laugh watching this latest advertisement by Southwest Airlines. It’s the baggage handlers who take a dig at other airlines (they’ve even censored a United Airlines tail) who charge bags and don’t take good care of them. It’s a refreshing perspective from the tarmac, and I’m sure you’d enjoy it too.

Airline branding at its best! And no, they don’t break guitars.

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• Southwest vs. United: Why Authenticity Wins, Even In TV Advertising
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Three airlines, three rockstars

Heard of Morgan Johnston? On Google, “Morgan Johnston Jetblue” produces over 37,000 results, as compared to “Dave Barger jetblue”, which returns 26,800 results. Dave Barger is the CEO of the airline, and Morgan Johnston leads JetBlue’s social media branding strategy. Morgan was into video production, before he joined JetBlue’s Corporate Communications department in early 2007.

Heard of Christi Day? She was voted the Employee of the Quarter earlier this year at Southwest Airlines, because of her tremendous efforts in leading the airline’s brand on various social networks. It’s not very often that a personin the PR dept. of an airline gets such a prestigious award.

Heard of Elliott Pesut? He was featured as the Geek of the Week, in one of Seattle’s leading daily this summer. Why? Because he is the “Head Twit” for Alaska Airlines. Elliot is a trained pilot, who was earlier at Flight Operations in Alaska Airlines. He volunteered for this new role, when the opportunity arose.

Why should YOU lead social media branding for your airline?

See a common thread in the stories above? All these people have no background in IT or new web technologies, yet have created an in-formidable stature for themselves in their respective companies. They’re crucial to each airline’s success in engaging their customers, and are most likely to keep their jobs, even in these difficult times.

In June, when Elliot was taking me around Alsaka Airlines’ HQ in Seattle (watch his video interview), I was pleasantly surprised to note that almost everyone knew him (even in different buildings!), people were asking him questions about Twitter and Facebook and what they could do to help him, and congratulating him for his Geek award in the newspaper. I personally have not seen such rockstar-status for anyone under thirty in an airline before.

Morgan, Christi and Elliot have positioned themselves as an asset to their airlines; by leading an effort that airlines want to get into, but are often reluctant due to a lack of proven models, and just the “newness” of the practices. So, how can you help your airline (and become a rockstar in the process)?

Eleven steps to becoming a rockstar by bringing your airline brand on social media

1. Familiarize yourself of what businesses (not just airlines) are doing on social media. A good place to start is Chris Brogan’s article on 50 ideas on Twitter for Business, and the 360i social media playbook.
2. Learn how airlines around the world are using social media to engage their customers. My recent keynote presentation on the topic at the Aviation Outlook Summit in Sydney features over 25 airline examples. You can view it online here.
3. Gather a couple of your colleagues in the airline, who’re interested in doing something in this area. Generally, these people would either be young, forward thinking or open to exploring new ideas. Tell them it’s just a personal effort, with no official backing as yet. They may even not be from your department, and may be people who’re already active on social networks personally.
4. Listen. Get onto a few key social networks and start listening what’s being said about your airline. For a start, use Twitter search, Google blog search and search YouTube. Do this for at least a week.
5. Plan to Engage. Together with your colleague, come up with a mini-plan to engage these people talking about your airline brand online, and list the benefits and risks of doing so. Also include what will engaging them help the airline do.
6. Email the bosses. Depending on how open the communication channels are in your airline, write an email to the highest-ranking executive you feel comfortable writing to, and CC it to the Marketing and Corp. Communications Heads. In the email, seek an appointment with them, and tell them that you’d to share your findings listening to conversations about your airline online, and propose a plan to engage these people.
7. In the presentation tell them you’d like to lead the effort by allocating just an hour a day to this activity, which can be increased over time. Remember to outline the risks + mitigation of this initiative, and key milestones. Make this plan reviewable every 30 days.
8. Establish a presence. Start with the medium where most of your customers are talking about you. If it’s Twitter, start a Twitter account. If it’s on Facebook, start a Fan page for your airline, or start participating on the official one.
9. Get Cracking on the plan. Start engaging the people who’re talking about your brand, by responding to their queries and talking personally about the airline.
10. Announce and track. Work with Corp. Communications to figure out what can you announce first to your online fan-base, before announcing to the traditional media. Make this announcement, and track who re-tweets or forwards your message to their friends. Then, pamper these people with more love in your subsequent conversations.
11. Review the plan every 30 days, see what are the lessons learnt and discuss with the management where to take this next, ultimately as a full-fledged marketing strategy.

There you go! Those are the steps to becoming one of the most valued assets for your airline, and have fun while at it. Airlines like people who take initiative, and take part of the risk the company doesn’t want to take on its own. And this is where you can help. This list is especially useful if your airline is not yet on social media, or doesn’t have a very strong presence.

If you have questions about the process, or would like to seek personal help in making this work, feel free to reach out to me by email: shashank[at]simpliflying[dot]com. Meanwhile, I’d love to hear your thoughts on your efforts in social media in the comments or over on Twitter (@simpliflying)

P.S: Morgan, Elliot, Christy are teaming up at South by Southwest festival early next year, for a panel discussing their stories about being on social media. And I’m moderating! We need your vote: http://bit.ly/OqF9g

• Alaska Airlines’ brand strategy on Twitter, revealed by Elliot Pesut in exclusive interview
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• “Chris Brogan: If I was an airline CEO.” Exclusive video interview with the social media mogul
• How can legacy airlines, airports or hotels make an entry into social media? Start from within
• Five lessons in crises handling from the Facebook war between Ryanair and SAS Scandinavian Airlines

At the Aviation Outlook Summit in Sydney early this month, where I delivered a keynote on airlines + social media branding, the first day was mostly doom and gloom whereas the second day was much more up-beat. Not surprisingly, executives from legacy carriers like Qantas, Air New Zealand and the European Commission spoke on the first day, and up-beat executives from rising stars like AirAsia X, Oman Air and Gold Coast Airport spoke on the second day. That got me thinking…are legacy airlines dead? I now believe they are. Here’s why.

1. Legacy airline brands come with legacy baggage

Unions, legacy systems, government bureaucracy, old planes, old workforce, high costs, bankruptcy… these are all words that can be easily associated with Air India, Alitalia, Japan Airlines, Air Canada and many more legacy airlines. And these are all aspects that do not allow these airlines to function efficiently in the current climate.

The airline industry has evolved drastically in the past decade. With each new shock (9/11, SARS, H1N1…) we see new stars emerging, which have streamlined costs, efficient operations and specifically targeted markets they go after. And they beat the hell out of monolithic airlines that legacy carriers have become. Just read CAPA’s report on Japan Airlines vs Air Arabia to get a glimpse into what I’m talking about.

2. Legacy airline brands are not agile enough

Like an elephant trying to shake off bees attacking it, legacy airlines look clumsy trying to shake off what they call threats – low cost carriers, low premium demand, fluctuating oil prices, consumers’ reactions on social media etc. In fact, these should be looked upon as opportunties. Let’s look at airlines’ approach to social media, for example.

United Airlines is still struggling with responding to “new media” sensations like Dave Carroll’s “United Breaks Guitars”, as Southwest Airlines interacts with its fans on Facebook and JetBlue helps over a million of its customers on Twitter.

Singapore Airlines is still not on social media, just as AirAsia is making merry in its backyard. And there’s no point arguing about different market segments. I’ve flown AirAsia this summer with folks in a suit with a laptop, mostly heading to Kuala Lumpur in the morning and returning to Singapore in the evening. No wonder the 777s Singapore Airlines fly on this route are flying half-full.

A lack of agility among legacy airlines results in lost opportunities. And this is proving deadly.

3. Legacy airline brands are “stuck on stupid”

At the aviation summit in Sydney, the CEO of AirAsia X caused a bit of murmur in the audience with his opening slide entitled, “Bastardising the Low Cost Model”. You want to know why? Because most airline executives are “stuck on stupid” (a term coined by Seth Godin in Tribes). They want to carry on the practices of yester-years in today’s changed environment. And that makes them look stupid. Nothing against them personally, but why can’t airlines have multiple business models? In fact, it’s the airlines which are questioning the traditional legacy model, or even the traditional LCC model, who stand to succeed. The rest will perish.

Who to look out for?

Who’s doing it right? In my opinion, airline brands to look out for are Lufthansa (and family), Qantas & JetStar, LAN Airlines (kings of Latin America), Southwest (which continues to innovate) and AirAsiaX. Airlines that have great potential, but need to wake up and smell the coffee to lead in the future too – Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways and Delta Airlines.

So, what do you think? Is there a future for legacy airlines? What do airlines need to do to serve the customers better, and turn a profit consistently? Let’s discuss in the comments or over on Twitter (@simpliflying)

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Last week, I attended a very refreshing workshop on customer service in Singapore. Ron Kaufman, one of the best-known customer service coaches in the region, led it. I found his ideas on how front-line staff should deal with customers immediately applicable to the airline world.

Inspired from Ron’s workshop, I’ve taken three of the best lessons from him and suggested here how airlines can use these to drive brand loyalty.

Do something unbelievable

In Ron’s words, delivering unbelievable customer service comes above delivering an expected or desirable customer service. Seth Godin would call this the “Purple Cow Effect”. It’s about doing something that’s customers don’t expect, in turn getting them to talk about to with their friends.

A very good example of this is the now-famous rapping flight attendant from Southwest Airlines. He did something mundane – reading out pre-fight safety instructions – in an unbelievable way. And not only was this much appreciated by those on the flight, but the word spread and this rapping flight attendant was a huge hit on YouTube. He even made it to Oprah! That’s the power of unbelievable.

There is such a thing as karma – Give first

Ron believes that customer service is about giving first, before asking. Often, companies expect the customer to give first, then provide the service. What about turning around the tables?

For example, if a prospective customer is price-hunting, he may talk for a long time with the airline ticketing agent before deciding to buy the ticket. If the agent is courteous and patient, it’s much more likely that the customer will end up buying the ticket. This has happened many times with me, when I intended to only check the prices, but ended up buying from the agent who was the friendliest, rather than the one who offered the lowest prices.

Providing excellent customer service without expecting anything in return may often end up benefitting the airline.

Always look to grow the partnership

There are two key words in this phrase that Ron pointed out – grow and partnership. A partnership as opposed to a relationship with a customer means it’s a win-win proposition. Both parties work to benefit each other. If an airline constantly impresses a passenger, then he’s likely not only to give them more business but also recommend his friends to the airline.

More importantly, the partnership must grow over time. Each party must do more for the other – add more value than previously. This is what keeps the other party constantly interested.

Can you think of examples where airlines have applied these lessons successfully? Singapore Airlines’ birthday cakes, Malaysia Airlines’ chicken-satay, Virgin’s Upper-Class and JetBlue’s LiveTV come to my mind. What’re some other examples of airlines providing exceptional customer service?

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This is a guest post by Rob Mark from Jetwhine.com in Chicago. We’ve decided to begin a little cross-posting here at SimpliFlying and at Jetwhine.

A commercial pilot and journalist, Rob has been writing Jetwhine as the blog of “aviation buzz and bold opinion,” for two and a half years. His posts are never dull because you never need to try to figure out where he and his co-writer Scott Spangler stand on an issue. Enjoy.

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For as long as I can remember, Southwest Airlines, now the largest U.S. domestic airline, created in the 1970s by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King, has been the low-cost airline others most want to emulate. The need to copy isn’t just about money, although Southwest has a profit history better than any other airline in the world. Most Southwest look-a-likes have, in fact, been dismal failures.

Southwest has a record of solid labor relations – despite last week’s pilot contract rejection – and a culture of customer fun in an industry that most others have never been able to duplicate. Southwest simply delivers a solid, consistent service at a fair price that keeps passengers coming back. To me, an airline that actually still responds in writing to a customer complaint says quite a bit.

The airline’s no hidden fees policy has also carried it quite a long way at a time when competitors have tried charging for everything short of breathing space. True, Southwest did appear to break with tradition last week when it announced some new fees, but charging for the work related to managing unaccompanied minors as well as pets carried in the cabin is something the average man or woman on the street will most likely never notice.

On to Ireland

When Ryanair opened for business in 1985, many analysts thought the Dublin-based carrier could evolve into a European airline modeled on the success of Southwest. Having had the opportunity to fly Ryanair a few times, I can tell you that the Southwest folks probably have very little to worry about on that front, something my first flight on the European airline confirmed. At Southwest, boarding is by group to bring some sort of order to the process of putting folks in their seats. In fact, we spoke to Southwest’s Doug Lawson about just that topic last year.

When boarding at Ryanair, they essentially open the terminal doors, aim passengers at the airplane and yell “go.” It’s every man, woman and child for themselves to find a good seat using both the front and rear doors. There was nothing even remotely funny about watching people run like crazed dogs for the Boeing while I tried to make sure they didn’t mow down my family in the process. To me, Ryanair’s business model is not so much about low cost as it is about being cheap. Even ads for the airline tout “cheap.” And when a company is cheap, consumers should beware.

In March, Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary made news by suggesting pay toilets might be a good idea aboard his airplanes where flights are often no more than an hour per leg. In the U.S., we laughed, especially when O’Leary’s press officer confirmed that the CEO often makes this stuff up as he goes. Then last week O’Leary confirmed he’s in talks with Boeing to find a workable pay toilet solution, one that will help Ryanair remove two of the three lavs on the Boeing 737 to make room for more seats.

Making passengers pay to use a toilet is sure to become one of the largest revenue losers in the history of the airline business. But it also opens the door to a discussion about how Ryanair is fast become an airline at which the wheels have finally begun to come off the wagon. The company has clearly crossed the line between what passengers will accept and what they will not. O’Leary just doesn’t seem to realize it because he’s in business to make money, not run an airline.

I always thought no one could be less customer-focused than United Airlines. Clearly I was wrong. The only thing that really worries me is that some airline bean counter here in the states might think Ryanair is on to something. They are of course. It’s just not anything good for airline passengers. And if you do fly Ryanair in the future, you just might want to bring along a can of Lysol to kill the germs. It’s going to get messy over there.

• King of ancillary revenues, RyanAir offers €1,000 for best idea on making money!
• Hot topic: Will Ryanair charging for toilets work for its brand?
• Ancillary revenue: A boon or a bane for the airline brand?
• Airline Baggage Fees : The Airline Industry’s Financial Salvation?
• Ryanair’s New Fee To ‘Check In’ & The Real Cost Of Some Low Cost Carriers

A couple of weeks ago, I asked had an interesting conversation with a senior airline executive in Asia. Here’s how it went:

SN: What’s the emotional motivation (not $) for your customers to fly your airline?
Airline exec: Erm…I’m not sure.
SN: Hmm…is there someone front-line I can speak with who’d know, like the check-in staff, or flight crew?
Airline exec: Actually, the airport crew is outsourced, so we have little inputs, and it’s logistically tough to reach out to the crew.

What fascinated me the most were two things. One – I was talking to a (very) senior executive who didn’t know what, beyond price, attracts his customers. And secondly, the fact that the airport crew is outsourced may be a short term gain ($$ savings) but a long term loss due to the lack of front line inputs.

Twitter to the rescue! Tweet. Tweet.

But market research need not be that difficult. Especially when tools like Twitter exist these days, which allow you to connect with anyone – inside or outside your company – to seek opinions, cheaply and in real-time. Twitter is the in-thing these days. An article in Forbes last week urged CEOs to tweet actively. Addison Schonland from IAG had an insightful podcast featuring three kings of airline twittering – Southwest, JetBlue and Alaska. And just yesterday, “Flying with Fish” blog wrote an article on the topic too. So, what’s the fuss all about?

An airline executive I met for lunch earlier this week in New York City told me that she doesn’t have the money or resources to spare for a dedicated effort like Twitter. Unless, it somehow could be linked to revenue. That got me thinking. And here’s what came out – three ways of driving revenue from Twitter for airlines.

1. Special discounts on Twitter – acquire new fliers

Dell recently reported that it made $1 million off Twitter last year by releasing special offers to its followers. Those are some of the first ROI figures coming out of corporates on Twitter. That means, airlines too can make money by releasing special deals on Twitter before releasing them elsewhere. It’s real-time. It often goes viral if done right. And it’s simple and cheap too. This way, they increase their “catchment” area to people who would have not gone on their website or not be on the mailing list for automatic noticfication of offers.

2. Nurture existing customers into loyal fans – fly more often

Twitter is great when it comes to building relationships. I was speaking with Morgan Johnston (@jetblue) when he gave me a tour of JFK T5, and he mentioned that Twitter is a chance to connect with individual customers on a personal level. It’s not the airline press release that’s coming out on Twitter, but a person communicating with another in short blurbs. Add to that the power of DM (direct messages) and you have a platform for developing first time fliers into your loyal customer base, by constantly interacting with them, seeking their feedback and answering their queries.

3. Empower them to spread the word – backbone of Web 2.0

Web 2.0 puts word of mouth marketing on steroids. If someone feels that RT (re-tweeting) something will add value to his “followers”, then he will do it. That means a whole lot of exposure for the initial messenger. If airlines can keep addding value to their customers through Twitter, they will share these stories (not just links) with their friends, especially when asked about it. So, it boils down to empowering the user to spread the word. And this is done by adding value to them, not just trying to push sales.

Overall, I feel Twitter is a great medium for airlines to tap on. Due to the fluctuating nature of the industry. Everything from weather related delays to baggage losses can be reported on Twitter and personal questions answered in real-time. And when it’s linked to revenue, I’m sure things can work out sooner than later. What are your thoughts? Do you think airlines should invest in Twitter, and in these conditions? Let’s hear it in the comments section.

P.S: If you’re keen on learning how airlines are implementing Twitter, I highly recommend listening to the podcast on IAG, and also, I’d encourage you to follow me on Twitter (@simplifling)

• Announcing the Aviation Geeks Meetup @ Sydney, on Aug 5, 2009 #sydneyfly
• High Flying Tweets: 11 of the best airline or aviation bloggers / journalists to follow on Twitter
• The day airlines’ Twitter accounts were hacked, and three steps to reverse the brand damage
• Getting up, close and personal with the customer – three airline case studies
• Here is why JetBlue is the most loved airline brand on Twitter