The move towards #crowdsourcing initiatives by airlines and airports – What do you think about it?

Li Guen thumbnail small [framed_box width=”0″ height=”0″ ]

Speaking of crowdsourcing, Quality Hunters is probably one of the most enduring successes we’ve seen from an airport. The latest series QH3 takes on a different approach from the previous two – less ‘crowdsourcing’ and more focused on workshop discussions among quality hunters. Crowdsourcing is a growing trend among airport marketing initiatives, slowly but surely. What can be done differently to push this frontier?[/framed_box]

david LinkedIn profile pic Mar 2014 [framed_box width=”0″ height=”0″ ]

Crowdsourcing, put simply, is the seeking of ideas, opinions, solutions or feedback from large audiences. While this can also be done offline, the existence of social platforms has made it very simple and easy to instantly reach out to many people and tap their brains. It gives the consumers a skin in the game.

Not only does crowdsourcing provide airports with a great way to engage with passengers online and to seek and invite ideas – which can be found aplenty online – efficiently, it also draws travellers closer to the airport brand, ultimately seeking to create passenger experiences that are born from the passengers themselves, there by adding an even greater personal touch to the travel experience. This makes travellers feel like they have a part to play, which subsequently builds customer loyalty.

I’m a huge fan of this project and even awarded HEL the prize of best airport in social media a few years back (before I joined SF). But as QH’s runs on social influence/ influencers, well-travelled folks who reach out to well-travelled folks – does this give rise to selection bias? And does Finnavia/Finnair miss out on the average Joe or family who may make up the bigger group of potential customers? [/framed_box]

shubhodeep linkedin thumbnail mar 2014 [framed_box width=”0″ height=”0″ ]

Extremely well said, David. I think we have a ready introduction to crowdsourcing in the age of the Connected Traveller from your comment itself! Let me add a few thoughts of my own here and try to put this rather interesting initiative into perspective.

In my opinion, there are three key aspects to any digital marketing campaign — memorability, visibility and survivability. What this means is, for any campaign to be really successful online it needs to interest people and be memorable; it needs to drive buzz and remain visible in the public consciousness; lastly, it needs to stand the test of time and remain relevant. Now, I’m not saying all campaigns need to focus on all three; for example, some campaigns might be deliberately short-lived, and that’s fine. But as a paradigm to follow, the above heuristic is quite useful.

When it comes to QH, I’d say they started off by ticking off all three check-boxes but over time I’d say it has run out of steam. This is a pity because it’s a great initiative that has the potential to transform not just Helsinki Airport but, potentially, be a useful model to follow for airports the world over. Right now, however, interest from the community seems to be sagging and there is low visibility.

I feel the key questions QH should be asking now in order to once again make a splash like they once did are:

  1. How can the efforts be more focused on driving a small set of goals rather than addressing a broad spectrum?
  2. How can we enlist the support of experts in the online community?
  3. Is there a clear incentive for people to contribute?
  4. What sort of content strategy will keep the interest alive?
  5. How can we speed up implementation of ideas that are chosen to ensure positive feedback loop?

[/framed_box]

What do you think about airlines and airports using #crowdsourcing initiatives?

Tell us in the comments below or join in our LinkedIn discussion here, along with other industry related discussions!

Leave a Comment

Sustainable Aviation Fuels Powerlist 2023

No, thanks