STRATEGIC PARTNERS
United's airport kiosks allow passengers to check in, change seats, update their mileage and even check bags. The kiosks are key to the airline's $150 million customer service upgrade.
In 1999, Chicago-based United Airlinesembarked on a customer-service overhaul, and company officials decided kiosks would play a big part in the upgrade. The plan was to enhance the entire air travel experience, but focusing on the customer's time on the ground was one of the highest priorities.
With that in mind, United teamed with technological powerhouse IBM to launch a comprehensive kiosk program allowing customers toissue boarding passes, print E-ticket receipts, change seating assignments and check Mileage Plus accounts in less than a minute. In some cases, the kiosks can be used to check baggage-though a customer service representative must accept the bag.
The kiosk program is a key component of United's $150 million customer service facelift. Currently, the multi-use kiosks are in place at airports in Chicago, Aspen, Colo. and San Diego. By the end of this year, United will install them at 25 airports throughout North America. The airline plans 800 kiosks before the start of 2002.
"No other airline has embarked on such an aggressive plan to create a hassle-free airport environment for its customers," said United president Rono Dutta. "Whether it's during check-in, or when delays or cancellations disrupt travel, investment in these innovations underscores United's commitment to improving our customers' air travel experience."
No waiting, no worries
The kiosk initiatives grew out of need, said United media relations representative Chris Nardella. She said customers don't like to wait in line for boarding passes and other routine services.
"About 18 months ago, we developed a group called the Customer Satisfaction Division," Nardella said. "It was charged with researching and developing a strategic long-term approach to customer service. And we recognize over time the airport experience has become more complicated, and it takes customers longer than we would like for them to get through the airport and get onto flights. So this group was developed to look at all of those processes and to find ways to make travel easier and more hassle-free for our customers.
"The announcement we had last week (unveiling the kiosk program) is one of the first major deployments of innovations by this group. And we're continuing to review the process and look at other ways to make the travel experience easier."
The first goal in smoothing the rough edges of customer service, United believed, was to improve check-in efficiency. The kiosks certainly have proven successful at that, though their use currently is available only to the 70 percent of United passengers that use E-tickets.
"What we really want to do is give time back to our customers," said Nardella. "They want to take control of their transactions, and they expect us to give them timely information regarding the status of their flights and cut down line waits."
The machines have interactive touch screens, but do not emit sound. They also are armed with telephones that link passengers to customer support.
"It's a touch screen with graphics, and it kind of walks them through the process," she said. "When they pick up the phone on the kioskÂ…it goes right into our reservation center and the call gets picked up immediately."
Nardella declined to comment on the cost of the kiosk program, but said it is a significant investment. "Our overall investment in this whole technology initiative is about $150 million over the next two years," she said.
Ready when passengers are
Neither United nor kiosk-maker IBM have much to say about the technology they're working on for the airport of the future, but both are working to give passengers a better experience.
"
I can't really speak in great depth about the technology, to be honest," said IBM media relations representative Linda Hanson. "But there are all kinds of emerging technologies that are going in there."United's Nardella said passengers give high marks to the current kiosk program.
"Our customers do seem to like it," Nardella said. "It saves some time, and that's the key. It's quick, it's easy, and it also frees up our other customer service agents to deal with transactions that are more complicated. We're doubling or tripling the number of check-in locations in the airport lobbies so that the experience is easier for our customers."
A previous kiosk program wasn't nearly as successful, but Nardella thinks it might be a matter of making passengers comfortable with the technology over time.
"We've been looking at these self check-in kiosks for about five years now, and we initially used some of them in our shuttle market a few years back," said Nardella. "We weren't really getting the numbers we had hoped for, but as technology developed and they got easier to use, more people were comfortable with using them. A really good example that we've been using is the way people have embraced ATMs. When they first introduced them, people were kind of skeptical. And now most people do their banking through ATMs. That was kind of the same thing when we introduced (our kiosks) five years ago."
United is not alone
While United's kiosk program is one of the most aggressive undertaken by an airline, other air carriers have embraced similar initiatives. Delta Air Lines, British Airways and Air Canada all use self check-in kiosks, while American Airlines will soon unveil an informational kiosk that details what can and cannot be taken on a plane.
Delta has installed kiosks at eight locations, according to Cindy Kurczewski of Delta's corporate communications department. She saidDelta is not yet ready to grow its kiosk offerings at United's pace.
"We continue to look at locations where we can expand our kiosk use. I think United put 40 in at O'Hare (Chicago). We don't have those kinds of numbers. We want to be sure, before we continue to install them, that they are being well received by customers. So far, the responses have been very good."
