Etihad Airways / brand and CX
5 stars at 30,000 feet
Reframing luxury digital customer experience in the airline industry
Insight
There are no classes, just need states
Airlines have traditionally segmented passengers based on typology - leisure and business - rather than need-states. This distinction was designed around a company-centric approach rather than a people-centric one.
Up in the air
Challenge
How to create a luxury experience ?
Idea
A luxury hotel, not an airline
Rather than approaching Etihad as an airplane company, we thought of it as a luxury hospitality experience, not dissimilar from a 5-star hotel stay where passengers are “guests’ and where staff are “dedicated hosts and curators” from the lounge to the plane to the airport. Using ethnographic research and data analysis, we mapped our guests' customer journey and identified their unmet needs and wants.
Our research in luxury hospitality experiences provided input for the ideation phase. We created and prioritised the ideas generated through desirability, feasibility and sustainability filters and mapped them along the customer journey.
We developed a distinctive experience leveraging mobile technology, content and data to deliver a tailored experience founded on the values of generosity, inspiration and utility.
Impact
From passengers to guests
The strategy led to the global site redesign, new mobile and content initiatives to improve customer service including new concept for personal digital concierge. I also identified opportunities new, physical services to deliver the outstanding brand experience Etihad is famous for, including car pick-up before flight, spa and babysitting services in lounge, and ecommerce opportunities (shop from your in-flight entertainment set and collect at arrival).
Deliverables
audience research design and analysis (including ethnographic research) and insights generation
personas, need-states and customer journey development
ideas development, prioritisation and mapping
customer and brand experience strategy across touchpoints (before, during and after the flight)
roadmap for implementation and pilot design
KPI framework for optimisation and innovation