Pimp My Ride

by Jack Loechner, Jun 20, 2011, 8:15 AM

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According to a recent MarketTools study on travelers' flying experiences over the past six months, 43% of the passengers were not specifically "satisfied" with comfort aboard the plane, 41% were not satisfied with ticket prices and fees, and 34% were not satisfied with in-flight service.

Passenger Satisfaction (% of total respondents)
	Extremely Dissatisfied	Somewhat Dissatisfied	Neutral	Somewhat Satisfied	Extremely satisfied	N/A
Ticket-buying experience	2%	3%	11%	34%	45%	6%
Pre-boarding experience2%	6%	17%	41%	33%	1%
In-flight service	4%	10%	20%	35%	30%	1%
Comfort aboard the plane	5%	13%	25%	34%	23%	0%
On-time performance of the flight	4%	6%	14%	33%	43%	0%
The cost of ticket and fees	6%	13%	22%	35%	20%	4%
Source: MarketTools, May 2011

Justin Schuster, vice president of enterprise products at MarketTools, says that "... despite the fact that dissatisfaction with key elements of airline travel remains high... only 30% of travelers had ever been asked to provide feedback to an airline via a customer survey or other means... and... 75% (of those) did not receive any type of follow-up from the airline... "

Has an airline ever asked you to provide feedback via a customer survey or other means

• Yes... 30%
• No...  59%
• Don't know/Don't remember... 12%

10% of respondents have used social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to share complaints about poor airline experiences, but only 24% of those who communicated their complaints through social media received a response directly from the airline.

Contact To Submit Feedback Or Complaint (% Of Respondents)
Contact Type	% of Respondents
Via the airline's website	41%
Email to a customer service department	35%
Email to a specific individual at the airline (executive or manager)	6%
Phone call to customer service department	31%
Phone call to a specific individual at the airline (executive or manager)	6%
Letter to a customer service department	16%
Letter to a specific individual at the airline (executive or manager)	6%
Contacted airline via social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.)	2%
Other	6%
Source: MarketTools, May 2011

Despite the U.S. Department of Transportation's efforts to improve the airline passenger experience, 55% of passengers surveyed were unaware of the Passenger Bill of Rights (passenger protection rules.)

54% of those surveyed had experienced at least one of the issues covered by the DOT airline passenger protection rules.  The top five issues experienced by respondents include:

• Lack of notification about flight delays of more than 30 minutes (28%)
•  Incorrect/inadequate information about flight delays (24%)
• Lengthy aircraft delay on the tarmac (more than three hours without deplaning) (18%)
• Lack of airline response to a complaint about flight delays or cancellations (14%)
•  Hidden fees/unexpected fees added during the ticket-buying process (14%)

When asked which domestic airline the respondents believed provided the best customer service, Southwest Airlines was cited most often, followed by Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airlines. American Airlines and Continental Airlines tied for fourth place.

Airline Believed To Have Best Customer Service
Airline	% of Respondents
Southwest Airlines	34%
Delta Air Lines	14%
JetBlue Airways	11%
American Airlines	7%
Continental Airlines	7%
United Airlines	5%
Virgin America	5%
AirTran Airways	4%
US Airways	3%
Alaska Airlines	3%
Frontier Airlines	2%
Hawaiian Airlines	1%
Other domestic airline	4%
Source: MarketTools, May 2011

Key takeaways according to the study:

• Passengers are most dissatisfied with the overall comfort aboard the plane
• 10% of respondents have used social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter to share complaints about poor airline experiences
• Only 24% of those who communicated their complaints through social media received a response directly from the airline.
• Only 30% of travelers had ever been asked to provide feedback to an airline via a customer survey or other means
• 45% are unaware of the airline passenger protection rules
•  54% of those surveyed had experienced at least one of the issues covered by the DOT Passenger Bill of Rights
• Southwest Airlines was cited most often for best customer service

For additional information, please visit MarketTools here.

  

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