Rebooting Customer Experience to Bring Back the Magic of Travel
The future of customer experience in the travel sector is top of mind for many travel and hospitality executives. So how do travel and hospitality companies prioritize customer experience to reboot loyalty and future-proof their businesses for the months and years to come?
A new report by Skift Research and McKinsey & Company, Rebooting Customer Experience to Bring Back the Magic of Travel, assessed the current state of the travel experience and found mixed signals on that front. The report was discussed during a panel presentation at the Skift Global Forum last month.
On the one hand, customer reviews haven't changed much. Travelers said they were mostly satisfied with their recent experiences. Indeed, some were surprisingly even more satisfied than before the COVID-19 pandemic, which upended the travel experience almost overnight. Hotel ratings didn't decline, and vacation rental property listing scores were comparable to 2019.
However, those high satisfaction ratings went hand in hand with extremely negative sentiments, which are on the rise.
"As time passes, travelers may become less willing to lower their expectations and accept subpar service under the guise of 'safety,'" researchers wrote.
A sentiment analysis of Tripadvisor reviews found the "emotional intensity" of customer reviews increased considerably from 2019 to 2021. Specifically, hotel customer sentiment on Tripadvisor became intensely more negative. Airlines weren't immune to these types of reviews, either. Even though U.S. airline operational performance is stronger than ever, the number of complaints against airlines in the U.S. remains nearly three times that of pre-COVID-19 levels.
Skift and McKinsey & Company's recommendations for rebooting customer service center around three main points: Aim high, look forward, and move fast.
"It's not good enough to merely meet and satisfy our customers; we need to bring back the magic a little bit; we need to excel, we need to delight," said Kevin Neher, a senior partner at McKinsey & Company.
Aim High
Matt Gaghen is the CEO of Under Canvas, which provides safari-inspired outdoor accommodations in desired destinations. He said his company brings the magic by having a distinctive product and associates who engage with customers and help connect them to the environment.
"It's part of our business model," said Gaghen. "We pick these beautiful places, we program them, we connect people to the environment. We really do focus on the little things — the rituals around connecting around a campfire, enjoying a beautiful sunset."
Look Forward
Andres Barry, president of JetBlue Travel Products, said a few years ago that JetBlue looked forward by launching JetBlue Vacations Insider Experience, which makes a specially trained team of local insiders available 24/7. The service is included in all JetBlue Vacations flight and hotel packages to five exotic locations.
"The places where we offer this, the likelihood of customers buying a vacation package have gone through the roof because of the extension of this experience," Barry noted.
Move Fast
"Think like a startup" is the advice Neher gave for businesses looking to move fast. Execution and agility are pivotal these days.
Under Canvas launched in 2012, and Gaghen said that's been the company's mindset from the start. To add more locations, Under Canvas set a goal of shortening its development timeline by half, mobilizing a team by putting them in the field and empowering them to make course corrections and improvising as necessary to get the job done.
"Magic — it looks great from the guest experience, but boy is it hard," he said.