Marketing 16th Edition by William Pride,Ferrell

تمرين 7

Southwest Airlines has risen to the top of the airline industry by making top-quality customer service and no-frills prices its highest priorities. Founded in 1971 as a regional airline flying three planes between Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, Southwest has grown into a major national carrier with 35,000 employees nationwide and S10 billion in annual revenue. Its stock symbol is LUV, which also sums up the airline's service attitude toward customers.
From the start, Southwest set its airfares low and its service standards high. The airline sees every flight as an opportunity to reinforce its reputation for friendly, attentive service in the sky and on the ground. In recognition of Southwest's financial and service successes, Fortune magazine regularly ranks it among the top 20 most admired U.S. companies.
Maintaining a consistently high level of customer service is an ongoing challenge as Southwest adds new destinations and expands its flight schedule year after year. Southwest starts by carefully screening job applicants in order to hire people who enjoy customer interaction, have good communication skills, and can work cooperatively with col-leagues. The airline provides extensive training and allows customer contact personnel to rake the initiative by resolving complaints and service problems on the spot. Southwest employees, especially those who deal directly with customers, are required to look and behave professionally. They're also encouraged to add a bit of fun to the flying experience, a key element that differentiates Southwest from competitors. For instance, some crew members coax smiles from seat-belted passengers by leading toilet paper games or enlivening routine announcements with gentle humor. Delivering service with a smile shows that Southwest genuinely cares about its customers.
Just as important, Southwest keeps the service spirit alive through a culture committee at headquarters and similar committees in each of its airport and maintenance facilities across the country. These committees celebrate the achievements of employees who provide outstanding service. They also plan customer and employee appreciation events around the country, such as surprising incoming flight passengers and crew members with cookies and milk.
Thanks in part to its service spirit, Southwest has remained at cruising altitude for decades, despite some periods of turbulence. When the price of jet fuel reached sky-high levels not long ago, many large carriers cut back on flights, parked planes, and withdrew from certain destinations to save money. Southwest was in a stronger position. Because of smart negotiating, Southwest had its fuel costs under control and actually gained market share while competitors were shrinking their schedules and tightening their belts.
To offset higher fuel costs and lower demand, other airlines have been unbundling services and tacking on extra fees for checking baggage and other services that used to be bundled with the ticket price. Southwest has avoided adding fee after fee after fee, even during difficult economic periods. The airline does charge for some services, such as allow-kg passengers to jump to the front of the line at boarding time, because seats are not reserved on its flights. But instead of fee-heavy pricing, Southwest prefers to offer bundles that flyers value. One example is its "bags fly free" campaign, which promotes the airline's policy of charging nothing for each passenger's first two items of checked luggage. Another is its "Business Select" airfare, which bundles priority boarding, a free drink, and extra frequent-flyer points at a slightly higher price. If a Business Select customer is unable to make the flight as scheduled, he or she can apply the airfare toward the cost of a future Southwest flight at any time in the next year, a feature that makes this bundle appealing to businesspeople.
Southwest Airlines has navigated all kinds of business challenges to continue its remarkable record of reporting an annual profit for more than 35 years in a row. Although running an airline is serious business, Southwest's spirited approach to service keeps customers smiling-and keeps them coming back for more LUV.

1.As a high-contact service provider, how does Southwest Airlines ensure that its employees satisfy customers?
2. What experience qualities might weigh most heavily in customers' evaluations' of the services delivered by Southwest Airlines? What are the implications for the airline's services marketing efforts?
3. What is Southwest Airlines doing to manage customers' service expectations?