Airline HQ Mentality: Interesting Comparison
Jan 31, 2002 | 12:34 pm
#1
Original Poster
Original Member
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Posts: 1,778
Airline HQ Mentality: Interesting Comparison
The following is a message to customers that can be found in the January 2002 issue of "Continental", the in-flight magazine of Continental Airlines.
I find it extremly interesting to compare how the CEO of Continental views customer service and loyalty versus what we have seen from Air Canada and Mr. Robert Milton. You may be able to tell why CO is my new carrier of choice when at all possible.
Continental's View
Continental Will Maintain Its High Level of Service in the New Year
Happy New Year and thank you for travelling with us today. My coworkers and I are looking forward to serving you in 2002 and beyond. We hope that we meet your expectations today and every time you travel with us. We have made that our absolute top priority.
Last year was a difficult one, not only for our industry but also for people all around the world. The events of Septemeber 11 left us saddened and confused. But, as the time passed, we got back to our lives and routines. I was proud to see people returning to the airways and their normal courses of business.
At Continental, we've taken the same approach. Although we all wish that 2001 had ended differently, we have learned from it, and we are moving on. We all have a job to do, and our job is to serve you, our valued customer. We are going to continue to deliver the kind of service for which we have become known. We are going to continue to be an industry leader in safety, on-time performance and baggage delivery. We are going to keep our planes clean and our customer service consistant and reliable. One of our advertising slogans is "Times have changed. Our commitments haven't." I think that sums it up best.
Continental will continue to partner with the hub cities of Houston, New York/Newark, Cleveland and Guam. We will not cut benifits from OnePass, our industry-leading frequent flyer program, because we remain committed to rewarding our most loyal customers. Our emphasis on providing you with a simpler flight experiance through online electronic ticketing and self-service kiosks in the airports is not going to waver. We owe it to you to remain your preferred carrier, and we're going to do that by offering a better product and better service than our competitors, many of whom have stripped customer food and other amenities in their efforts to cut costs. The commitments to our customers, our product and our employees that made us a successful airline before September 11 remain the same.
We are also going to continue treating one another with dignity and respect. Continental was a great place to work prior to September 11, and it is a great place to work today. All of us at Continental are glad to be here today, to help make your flight as pleasant as possible.
The year ahead has challenges for many industries. But there is no air carrier better prepared to face those challenges and to overcome any obstacles than Continental. Our focus is on the future.
As always, thank you for flying Continental. We hope to see you again on your next flight.
Gordon Bethune
Chairman and CEO
Continental Airlines
I find it extremly interesting to compare how the CEO of Continental views customer service and loyalty versus what we have seen from Air Canada and Mr. Robert Milton. You may be able to tell why CO is my new carrier of choice when at all possible.
Continental's View
Continental Will Maintain Its High Level of Service in the New Year
Happy New Year and thank you for travelling with us today. My coworkers and I are looking forward to serving you in 2002 and beyond. We hope that we meet your expectations today and every time you travel with us. We have made that our absolute top priority.
Last year was a difficult one, not only for our industry but also for people all around the world. The events of Septemeber 11 left us saddened and confused. But, as the time passed, we got back to our lives and routines. I was proud to see people returning to the airways and their normal courses of business.
At Continental, we've taken the same approach. Although we all wish that 2001 had ended differently, we have learned from it, and we are moving on. We all have a job to do, and our job is to serve you, our valued customer. We are going to continue to deliver the kind of service for which we have become known. We are going to continue to be an industry leader in safety, on-time performance and baggage delivery. We are going to keep our planes clean and our customer service consistant and reliable. One of our advertising slogans is "Times have changed. Our commitments haven't." I think that sums it up best.
Continental will continue to partner with the hub cities of Houston, New York/Newark, Cleveland and Guam. We will not cut benifits from OnePass, our industry-leading frequent flyer program, because we remain committed to rewarding our most loyal customers. Our emphasis on providing you with a simpler flight experiance through online electronic ticketing and self-service kiosks in the airports is not going to waver. We owe it to you to remain your preferred carrier, and we're going to do that by offering a better product and better service than our competitors, many of whom have stripped customer food and other amenities in their efforts to cut costs. The commitments to our customers, our product and our employees that made us a successful airline before September 11 remain the same.
We are also going to continue treating one another with dignity and respect. Continental was a great place to work prior to September 11, and it is a great place to work today. All of us at Continental are glad to be here today, to help make your flight as pleasant as possible.
The year ahead has challenges for many industries. But there is no air carrier better prepared to face those challenges and to overcome any obstacles than Continental. Our focus is on the future.
As always, thank you for flying Continental. We hope to see you again on your next flight.
Gordon Bethune
Chairman and CEO
Continental Airlines
Jan 31, 2002 | 1:31 pm
#2
Join Date: May 1999
Location: Ottawa
Posts: 8,573
From Brancatelli's column at www.joesentme.com
andrew
<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">In the January issue of Continentals in-flight magazine and on its Website, Continental chief executive Gordon Bethune makes a simple, unequivocal statement about the state of the airlines much-admired frequent-flyer program. We will not cut benefits from OnePass, Bethune said.
So what did Continental do, even as Bethunes message continues to appear on the Website and still rides in the pockets of every seat in its fleet? It cut the benefits of OnePass. That has created a firestorm among OnePass members, who are probably overreacting to the exceedingly modest program changes, but who are justifiably incensed that Bethune is saying one thing while his airline has done something else.</font>
So what did Continental do, even as Bethunes message continues to appear on the Website and still rides in the pockets of every seat in its fleet? It cut the benefits of OnePass. That has created a firestorm among OnePass members, who are probably overreacting to the exceedingly modest program changes, but who are justifiably incensed that Bethune is saying one thing while his airline has done something else.</font>
Jan 31, 2002 | 1:51 pm
#4
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: YYZ/YHM/BUF
Programs: AA Plat, HH Gold, MR Plat
Posts: 4,212
Some of the OnePass "changes" include:
- elimination of the 20,000 Off Peak reward level
- allowing people the chance to upgrade from discount fares on overseas flights using miles for a non-refundable service fee of USD$400 one way
From the tone of the messages on the CO board, these changes have insulted many of their elite members.
US Airways on the other hand, has improved the Dividend Miles program by offering:
- new confirmable upgrade awards on discount tickets to Europe for 20,000 miles one-way
- allowing elite members to upgrade on weekly E-Saver tickets
- reducing the coach class award to the Caribbean by 5,000 miles
- improving the SWU program to make it fairer to those with higher elite status
- elimination of the 20,000 Off Peak reward level
- allowing people the chance to upgrade from discount fares on overseas flights using miles for a non-refundable service fee of USD$400 one way
From the tone of the messages on the CO board, these changes have insulted many of their elite members.
US Airways on the other hand, has improved the Dividend Miles program by offering:
- new confirmable upgrade awards on discount tickets to Europe for 20,000 miles one-way
- allowing elite members to upgrade on weekly E-Saver tickets
- reducing the coach class award to the Caribbean by 5,000 miles
- improving the SWU program to make it fairer to those with higher elite status
