Responding in a crisis: a multi-channel approach

21 December 2010

For those snug at home in the UK, the snow that fell thick and fast recently has come as a real Christmas blessing. For others, travelling out of the country to warmer climates and into the country to reunite with family, it has been a curse. With disruption to services at all major airports, the airlines and other companies within the travel industry faced a manic period of readjustments and contingency planning – all at the busiest time of the year. And of course, where there are displaced passengers, there are confused and frustrated consumers.

With constant changes in the weather, customers were scrambling to get as much information from their service providers as possible – all at once. Phone lines became jammed, and customers turned to the Internet and their social streams for answers. While most weather services correctly forecast the recent snow activity, few could have forecast the impact that a sudden drop in temperature could bring.

In this context, as an initial effort to ease up the phone lines and to reach customers wherever they might be, airlines should start their communication campaign with a notice to all passengers at the on-set of poor weather. Via SMS as well as email, the message should inform them of alternate contact points for queries which would include the web, their phones, Twitter and Facebook. SMS is ideal for quick bursts of information direct to ones phone, while email can convey a longer, more detailed message to passengers who have not yet left for the airport, but would no doubt be impacted.

In the event of passengers not submitting mobile phone numbers when booking, airlines could advertise a short code SMS number at the airport for passengers to text in and receive updates. This would also help to alleviate pressure on ground staff, who typically have to deal with a growing number of frustrated travellers.

Another option airlines should consider is to set-up a microsite or landing page on their website specifically to communicate ongoing changes. This new portal could house information about every flight that has been delayed (such as how to rebook, or how to be placed on standby), an FAQ for those with lost luggage (such as how to reclaim it, or where they should go when checking in to a new flight), and possibly even weather updates in various destination cities so passengers can understand why certain flights cannot take off.

During the recent incidents, many airlines took to social media to help stranded passengers. While social media is effective in its own right, it is not a suitable platform to answer specific queries. A dedicated web customer support team, set up to handle web queries will be far more effective in handling the mass of enquiries received during this period. Social media sites can be used to constantly drive people to the new support section, or link them to the dedicated microsite for further updates.

The time of year also dictates the kind of service that’s demanded. Airlines could go so far as to work directly with airports to create an information hub that offers information on available accommodation at B&Bs and hotels near the airport, as well as further details on alternative transport.

Making customers feel as comfortable, as secure and as looked-after as possible is imperative – to help achieve this, outbound messages from the airlines should be sent every 4 hours until the crisis is averted.

This wild and white December provides us with a valuable lesson in marketing. Co-ordination is key – having the resources, skill and man-power to seamlessly take control of communication via all channels is vital. By doing so, while the crisis couldn’t have been avoided entirely, it could be dealt with in a way that left its customers as protected and comforted as possible.