customer experience management - whitepaper
DESCRIPTION
Great customer experiences are planned, designed and actively managed. Companies that consistently deliver, and improve upon, positive experiences have three things in common: customer insight, a customer culture, and a “designed” customer experience. The paper advocates how organizations must deliver a rich, personalized cross-channel experience with seamless integration across all touch pointsTRANSCRIPT
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NIIT Technologies White Paper
Positive Customer Experience ManagementPositive Customer Experience ManagementBUILDING THE BUSINESS ADVOCATESBUILDING THE BUSINESS ADVOCATES
Avadhesh Kr. Sharma
CONTENTS
What is Customer Experience Management? 3
Airline passenger interaction time wave 3
IT: For building a consistent experience every time you interact 5
TRANSPORTATION
JOURNEYJOURNEY
TRANSPORTATION
TRANSPORTATION
TRANSPORTATION
TRAVEL
TRAVEL
TRAVEL
TRAVEL TRAVELTOUR
GUIDE
GUIDEGUIDE
CARGO
CARGOCARGO
CARGO CARGOLOGISTICS
LOGISTICS
PACKAGING
Positive Customer Experience ManagementCustomer Experience (CX) is series of interaction between an
organization and a customer over a period of time, during their
business relationship. From awareness, discovery, attraction,
interaction, purchase, use, cultivation and advocacy, it can also
be used to go beyond functional efficiencies and create a
branded experience.
”Experience is something which we all remember,
good or bad. Based on it we shape our thoughts
and image regarding people, places, products
and services’’.
But great customer experiences don’t happen by accident. They
are planned, designed and actively managed. Companies that
consistently deliver, and improve upon, positive experiences have
three things in common: customer insight, a customer culture, and
a “designed” customer experience.
A customer experience can be positive or negative based on the
perceived value of the interaction and actual interaction, which again
is a primary derivative of the customer’s perception. To succeed
and deliver a consistent, differentiated, positive experience, the
company has to understand the touch point elements of the
customer experience and the perception that is influenced by
knowing the customers point of view. Most organizations begin with
strong brand marketing initiatives and spend most of their budget
on creating overwhelming brand perception through advertising
campaigns. What fails them is the inability to deliver services at par
to customer expectations created by the positive rub-off the
campaign created on customers. The philosophy is to ‘Reinforce the
brand with every interaction, not just communication’.
The next step for organizations is to build a positive experience
and understand the customer’s perceived value about the brand,
The communication to create awareness and build an image in the
mind of the consumer has changed the way airlines manage and
connect with customers. For better customer interactions, airlines
must understand the essence of interactions when a customer
starts his journey of interacting with the products, services, and
service personnel. Therefore it becomes vital to look at the various
touch points for an airline passenger that creates a bad or a good
customer experience and differentiate them based on the degree
of control an airline has on these factors of influence.
Customer touch pointsa) Website/Booking: If the customer can understand the website
or the booking process easily, then this factor can change the
whole landscape of the airline profitability. A happy customer is
one who not only advocates but also dramatically changes
airline revenues. With internet booking increasing, airlines must
revisit their online strategy and take the first step to check the
factors that are in complete control.
Airline Passenger Interaction Time Wave
3
product or service. Finally organization must fulfill the promise of
the service and create an experience that would lead to advocates
of the brand and the organization.
The paper advocates how organizations must deliver a rich,
personalized cross-channel experience with seamless integration
across all touch points.
What are the services or ways that can be defined to utilize the
time for enhancing the customer experience and airline revenue or
assist the passenger seeking any kind of information with ease? A
customer doesn’t always ask for information. A service provider
should always look out for ways to convey the needed information.
For instance, a customer would love to hear an alert from an airline
telling him about the public transport disruptions and suggesting
it’s better to drive and park your car at the airport, further asking
him if he wants the airline to book the parking lot for him.
He would like to know about the check-in desk or how much
time will it take for security check? What are the shopping
options available on the airport? Are there any kind of
suggestions, airlines can give for shopping based on the
customers purchase history and preferences?
When it comes to pre-flight experience on airports, few airlines
closely study their target audiences and their preferences.
Cathay Pacific Airlines primary customers are corporate
executives or businessmen travelling in the Asia pacific region or
internationally. They look for safety, services, status, and
connectivity to major cities in the world. Business lounge of CX is
huge (4,500 m2). They have self-selection and a-la-carte food
counters serving Asian and international cuisines, working area
with free internet access and comfortable sofa areas. They also
offer shower facility. CX's boarding gates are Gate No.1, 2, 3 and
4, which is just outside the business lounge.
Now compare this with an airline that does not have its own
business lounge, and is shared with other airlines, which is only one
third of the size of CX's. They have self-serviced counter with basic
snacks, instant noodles and beverages. No shower. The boarding
gates are over 30, and the customers need to take a mono-rail and
board the flight at least 20 minutes before the departure. JD Powers
study passengers 2010 cited three airline operational issues as
having the most severe impact on the travel experience: baggage
issues, disruption management (delayed or cancelled flights),
and check-in time delays. Managing baggage, cancelled flights
and improving the check-in experience are some of the areas where
airlines and airports can work together to better manage the
communication and services delivered around these issues.
c. In-flight Experience: In-flight is the time when the customer
actually consumes an airlines primary service. Onboard staff,
seating comfort, meal, and numerous other factors add up to
create the in-flight experience. Some of the in-flight factors are:
i) Staff grooming
ii) Welcome greetings
The offers/deals proposed to customers by airlines through their
website, is completely based on the airlines business model and
strategy. The presentation of these programs is also part of the
online strategy. The usability of the website and the quality of GUI
must compliment the brand image. While designing GUI airlines
must understand the perspective of end users of the website. An
intuitive design with right color combinations and fonts is a major
factor when it comes to online user experience. Airlines must use
various techniques to understand the customers web experience
needs, and must conduct online usability groups with a sample of
the target audience and gain valuable insight into how the
consumers use and think about the website, marketing and
overall marketing mix. Contextual observation and analysis
(shadowing), where a user is observed using a website in a
'natural' environment should be conducted to identify factors that
adversely affects the success of the online investment. Airlines
must build a visually attractive website with effective use of white
space, effective and consistent use of colors and style of pages.
FOR INSTANCE; LOOK AT THE SOUTHWEST AIRLINES WEBSITE.
FOUR YEARS AGO THEY STARTED WORKING TOWARDS HAVING A
WELL DESIGNED WEBSITE, AND SINCE THEN THEY ARE
CONSTANTLY UPDATING THE GUI TO GIVE A REFRESHING LOOK
TO ITS VISITORS. THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE IMPACT IS
EVIDENT FROM THE 2012 Temkin Web Experience Ratings
where Southwest Airlines was the only airlines in Top 10.
“SOUTHWEST IS COMMITTED TO IDENTIFYING NEW
OPPORTUNITIES TO ENSURE OUR CUSTOMERS HAVE THE BEST
TRAVEL EXPERIENCE POSSIBLE - AND WE KNOW THAT IT OFTEN
BEGINS WHEN A CUSTOMER VISITS OUR WEBSITE.”
KEVIN KRONE
VICE PRESIDENT, MARKETING, SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
b. At the airport (Pre- flight and post-flight experience):
Pre-flight is one area where an airline has to work closely with
the airports to build and handle positive customer experience.
Till the time your customers are not flying they are on the airport
spending more than an hour before boarding the flight.
4
iii) Ambience
iv) Cleanliness
v) Cabin seat comfort
vi) Airline reading material
vii) In-flight entertainment standards
viii) Staff language skills
ix) Landing experience
x) Standard of meals/ drinks
All these factors largely affect the overall customer experience while
flying. One of my friends while flying with a North American airline
posted on his Facebook profile, ‘’the captain came out of the
cockpit to greet us. I don't remember that ever happening before.’’
According to a US airline quality survey, there are three main factors
that heavily influence a customer buying a flight ticket: Price,
schedule and customer service. Airlines are increasingly focused on
generating revenues, by focusing on customer service.
d. Post flight experience (at the destination): The biggest
factor that affects customer experience post flight is waiting for
the luggage in a crowded place. Airlines have to minimize the
time from the aircraft to the baggage belt. Mishandled, lost or
delayed baggage issues needs to be addressed with utmost
sincerity. Baggage reconciliation system may prove helpful in
handling such situations.
Airlines are struggling to maintain the revenue flow and even
though talks on dynamic packaging and bundling have taken
pace, the impact on the bottom line revenue is not visible.
A leisure traveler usually search all destination related information
before booking a flight. The question is - What an airline gets by
showcasing destination related hotels and package deals? Do
they really sell and how much?
Airlines need to understand that there are online travel sites like
tripadvisor.com and Isango who have the expertise of providing
hotel deals and holiday package, unlike airlines. Apart from these,
there are numerous other OTAs who also provide plenty of such
options and are also one-stop-shop for a travelers need.
5
Building a Consistent Experience Passengers want to be empowered during their journey, informed of
changes dynamically and equipped to manage their trip on-the-go.
Understanding the passenger requirements, Airlines are offering
comprehensive flight services across mobile devices to customers.
The mobile solutions are facilitating airlines by enhance the
customers’ travel experience across the interaction time wave.
i) Website: The easiest way to provide customers with the mobile
functionality and save the cost of building an app is to make your
website mobile compatible. Airlines must build a mobile strategy
wherein instead of building an app for all mobile operating systems
they can make their website compatible with all mobile browsers.
While doing this airline must make sure that the mobile web version
should offer only the prime functionalities. It should be kept simple,
and the airlines should not go for a whole flash outlook.
ii) At the airport: Airlines must take care of pre-flight and post-flight
experience in conjunction with airports for a thoroughly consistent
travel experience. Airports today are huge infrastructural marvels;
passengers need assistance to reach at various services available or
locate their boarding gates. Airlines can offer passengers a whole
new experience using latest mobile technologies.
a. Check-in and boarding
b. Info on public transportation
c. Use of augmented reality for finding ways and services at airport
d. Modifying travel reservations
e. Roaming agents with tablets for check-in
f. Seat selection
g. Baggage tracking
In recent times, the focus is primarily on adapting a complete mobile
check-in and boarding experience without involving any human
intervention, leading to reduced time and shorter queues. Mobile
technology is exponentially growing its foothold in the travel space.
Numerous apps are made available to the customers for booking
and doing a range of other functionalities. However, it is critical to
enhance customer experience. Still after booking ticket passengers
have to stand in long queues for boarding pass and baggage drop.
iii) In- flight: The whole travel experience while in-flight depends on
the interaction with the airline staff, meal quality, In-flight
entertainment systems, ambience and cleanliness of the aircraft.
Mobile technology can completely transform the way airlines
treat their passengers. Airlines staff must use mobile technology
to access the names and meal preferences of the passengers.
Passengers can use the in-flight entertainment system as a
meal order management system. Passengers can see the menu
and place the order directly through IFE. The order placed will
be delivered to the crew members on their tablets.
Airlines can also use Bluetooth for in-flight services and save
cost. NFC and Wi-Fi access inside aircrafts can help
passengers download videos or games while in-flight using
Bluetooth.
iv) At destination: Airlines can partner with hotels, car rentals,
restaurants, shopping partners etc., and use augmented reality
for helping passengers find out hotels, cafes or any other
destination related information or service based on their
preferences and tastes.
Building solutions that help you differentiate among the
commoditized product offering is the way for airlines to keep
passengers happy and loyal.
Mobile using NFC can lead to reduced check-in times and the
same technology can be used in baggage tagging and tracking.
With the growth of Smartphone’s and tablets airlines need to
think above just booking apps and use mobile technology to
enhance travel experience of customers. Airlines can also use
Bluetooth technology for airport check-in and boarding.
Airlines must allow passengers to download stuff like games,
videos, destination guide, and meal menu while they are still on
the airport. When passengers board a flight, the pilot and the
crew greets them. Airlines must develop a mobile solution
wherein passengers can gain access to the basic crew details
with whom they are going to fly today. Knowing the crew
members by name enhance the overall experience of the
passengers resulting in quality human interaction.
Airlines must offer self-tagging facilities for checked-in baggage,
offsite check-in and baggage drop for business class
passengers. Non-invasive facial recognition technology helps
measure, understand and manage passenger queues and
bottlenecks. These facilities provided by the airlines helps the
operations team manage staff levels more effectively, increasing
the time passengers spend in retail and dwell areas.
Finding a way at the airport is sometimes not easy for
passengers. Munich airports - Infogate is a new initiative, where
passengers can use Infogate to simply push a button, and
connect to an information service representative via
videoconference. An initiative like Infogate can also help
passengers find out services like hotels, car rentals and
destination information.
Most passengers find it annoying to wait for their luggage near
the luggage belt. This operational problem can be resolved by
sending a message informing passengers about the expected
amount of time the luggage will take to arrive. The passengers
can utilize the same time for shopping inside the airport duty free
shops or spend their own leisure time.
Airports need to be revamped as leisure destinations like
shopping malls. Providing your passengers enough with a
variety of leisure services results in a more productive use of the
airport facilities.
6
Referenceshttp://www.temkinratings.com/temkin-ratings/temkin-web-experie
nce-ratings/
http://www.amadeus.com/groundhandlers
http://www.centreforaviation.com/analysis
http://www.jdpower.com/consumer-ratings/ratings.htm?industry=T
ravel&category=Airline&study=909201299
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A leading IT solutions organization | 21 locations and 16 countries | 8000 professionals | Level 5 of SEI-CMMi, ver1.2 ISO 27001 certified | Level 5 of People CMM Framework
NIIT Technologies is a leading IT solutions organization, servicing customers in North America,
Europe, Asia and Australia. It offers services in Application Development and Maintenance,
Enterprise Solutions including Managed Services and Business Process Outsourcing to
organizations in the Financial Services, Travel & Transportation, Manufacturing/Distribution, and
Government sectors. With employees over 8,000 professionals, NIIT Technologies follows global
standards of software development processes.
Over the years the Company has forged extremely rewarding relationships with global majors, a
testimony to mutual commitment and its ability to retain marquee clients, drawing repeat
business from them. NIIT Technologies has been able to scale its interactions with marquee
clients in the BFSI sector, the Travel Transport & Logistics and Manufacturing & Distribution, into
extremely meaningful, multi-year "collaborations.
NIIT Technologies follows global standards of development, which include ISO 9001:2000
Certification, assessment at Level 5 for SEI-CMMi version 1.2 and ISO 27001 information
security management certification. Its data center operations are assessed at the international
ISO 20000 IT management standards.
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