To WOW! or Not to WOW!? That is the Question!
Jeffrey Gitomer's books always get my brain going in high gear. Often, his stories remind me of instances I found myself in. Getting WOWED! by a company was one of those times. I am reminded of two airlines I have flown with, in two very similar circumstances. One, left me frustrated and angry. The other, exercised the power of WOW!
Flight One:
I flew out of Ottawa, Canada, on my way to work at an industry tradeshow in Las Vegas. I chose to fly United Airlines, which had one stop-over in Chicago.
In Chicago, we boarded the connecting flight late, as it had been delayed by bad weather in Las Vegas. However, due to the continuing poor weather conditions, we sat on the plane, at the gate, waiting. The captain did explain the weather delay, but a new problem arose. Apparently, the plane was having computer troubles. The delay would continue until the computer was repaired. Well, better to fix this kind of problem while we were on the ground instead of at 33,000 feet, right?
Here's the thing. We sat at our gate for two hours until they decided we had to deplane. The computer issues were more complicated than anticipated. We were herded back to the lounge from whence we came. Not once were passengers offered any beverages or snacks while we waited on the plane. Was this typical for the airline industry? And yes, I would have paid for some snacks, too!
Flight Two:
On another flight, I was off to New York City, from Ottawa, Canada, to attend a corporate training workshop. I chose to fly the smaller airline, Porter. This was my first flight using the regional carrier. We had a stop-over in Toronto.
We boarded our connecting flight in Toronto, but was informed by the captain that we were to be delayed due to bad weather at our destination, Newark N.J. Here we go again, I thought. However, Porter played this scenario differently than United Airlines.
Suddenly, flight attendants were approaching each passenger and offering free beverages and snacks while we wait. WOW! This was new! As it turned out, we had to deplane as bad weather continued in Newark. Back in the Porter lounge we enjoyed more free beverages and snacks until we were cleared to board, again, for take-off. Total time delay? About two hours. And, guess what? More free beverages and snacks as we flew to Newark. WOW!
Let's be clear about something. It was not the fact that Porter offered free snacks and beverages that WOWED! me. It was the fact that ANYTHING was offered at all! They sympathized with the passengers and tried to make the delay more bearable. Porter was being proactive.
Apparently, one airline has contingency plans in place when weather delays occur (as a traveller you know they do), while the other airline chose to do nothing, but frustrate its passengers, in a similar circumstance.
Yes, I fly Porter Airlines whenever I can!
Flight One:
I flew out of Ottawa, Canada, on my way to work at an industry tradeshow in Las Vegas. I chose to fly United Airlines, which had one stop-over in Chicago.
In Chicago, we boarded the connecting flight late, as it had been delayed by bad weather in Las Vegas. However, due to the continuing poor weather conditions, we sat on the plane, at the gate, waiting. The captain did explain the weather delay, but a new problem arose. Apparently, the plane was having computer troubles. The delay would continue until the computer was repaired. Well, better to fix this kind of problem while we were on the ground instead of at 33,000 feet, right?
Here's the thing. We sat at our gate for two hours until they decided we had to deplane. The computer issues were more complicated than anticipated. We were herded back to the lounge from whence we came. Not once were passengers offered any beverages or snacks while we waited on the plane. Was this typical for the airline industry? And yes, I would have paid for some snacks, too!
Flight Two:
On another flight, I was off to New York City, from Ottawa, Canada, to attend a corporate training workshop. I chose to fly the smaller airline, Porter. This was my first flight using the regional carrier. We had a stop-over in Toronto.
We boarded our connecting flight in Toronto, but was informed by the captain that we were to be delayed due to bad weather at our destination, Newark N.J. Here we go again, I thought. However, Porter played this scenario differently than United Airlines.
Suddenly, flight attendants were approaching each passenger and offering free beverages and snacks while we wait. WOW! This was new! As it turned out, we had to deplane as bad weather continued in Newark. Back in the Porter lounge we enjoyed more free beverages and snacks until we were cleared to board, again, for take-off. Total time delay? About two hours. And, guess what? More free beverages and snacks as we flew to Newark. WOW!
Let's be clear about something. It was not the fact that Porter offered free snacks and beverages that WOWED! me. It was the fact that ANYTHING was offered at all! They sympathized with the passengers and tried to make the delay more bearable. Porter was being proactive.
Apparently, one airline has contingency plans in place when weather delays occur (as a traveller you know they do), while the other airline chose to do nothing, but frustrate its passengers, in a similar circumstance.
Yes, I fly Porter Airlines whenever I can!
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