National Academies Press: OpenBook

Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals (2010)

Chapter: Chapter 7 - Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service

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Page 63
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 7 - Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14424.
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Page 63
Page 64
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 7 - Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14424.
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Page 64
Page 65
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 7 - Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14424.
×
Page 65
Page 66
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 7 - Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14424.
×
Page 66

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It is important to create a branded product that the customer will be aware of, understand, and remember easily. Potential customers must understand the benefits of using the offsite terminal and transportation link compared with the convenience of using currently accepted airport access modes. Some market segments will be easier to reach than others, and strate- gies should be developed accordingly. Knowing the customer segments the offsite terminal is likely to serve and marketing the service accordingly are crucial to service development and ultimate success. Providing excellent customer service is also important in building a loyal customer base. Branding Naming the offsite terminal and transportation link, creating a look for the vehicles, and incorporating the brand into signage and information dissemination are all part of building brand awareness. Even if the project sponsor intends to offer only one offsite terminal, the brand should be created so that it can extend to additional terminals in the future. The suc- cess of the offsite terminal and transportation link also depends on how the service is operated from the airport. The bus should pick up from each airport terminal in a prominent location so that air passengers understand where to board the next departing bus when they exit the terminal. 63 C H A P T E R 7 Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service Brand Identification and Reinforcement: LAX FlyAway and Logan Express Buses The Logan Express program serving Boston Logan International Airport and the LAX FlyAway program serving Los Angeles International Airport provide two examples of how branding has been undertaken. Buses on each of the four Logan Express routes have an identical design, but are painted different colors for each destination. Buses on each FlyAway route have an identical design and are painted in the same colors, with wording on the bus denoting the destina- tion. At both airports, the brand name of the bus is clearly indicated with sig- nage at the designated pick-up area of the terminal curbs. In effect, each Logan Express bus and LAX FlyAway bus making the loop of airline terminals and travel- ing throughout the region is reinforcing the brand identification that benefits all the services bundled under one umbrella.

Signage at the offsite terminal is another form of branding and advertising. Signage denoting the presence of the offsite terminal and transportation link should be placed prominently at the offsite terminal so that passers-by are made aware of the terminal. If the terminal is visible from the highway, signage should be prominent for highway users. Wayfinding signage should also be placed on routes leading to the offsite terminal and highway exits. Public Information Information should be easy to obtain for travelers in search of transportation options or for those who have heard about the service. Information on location, schedules, fares, parking, and other relevant details should be provided in a prominent place on the airport website. If parking availability at the offsite terminal is a concern, real-time information should be provided to the customer on the status of the parking supply. A toll-free telephone line should also be provided to customers, preferably with numbers that can be spelled out in an acronym for customers to remember. If there is an online trip planner provided by the regional transportation system or another sponsor, the remote terminal and airport transportation link should be integrated into the data- base. If the offsite terminal and transportation link is in proximity to other modes, the sponsor- ing organization should coordinate with the responsible transportation providers to ensure that all customers have access to information that enables them to make connections between the air- port transportation link and the other modes. 64 Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals Los Angeles Metro’s Regional Trip Planner The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) website offers a regional trip planner that provides travelers with individualized trip rout- ing via public transportation within the region. Metro is the largest transit provider in Los Angeles County. Its trip planner incorporates route information on public transportation provided by all public transportation providers in the county. The LAX FlyAway is integrated into the system. In addition, the commuter rail provider, Metrolink, and Amtrak customer service representatives are trained to inform their passengers about FlyAway service when they are traveling to LAX. Public information announcements on the radio during heavy travel periods, on local cable stations, and in publications will boost awareness of the offsite terminal and transportation link. Public interest articles related to the offsite terminal and about the users of the offsite terminal and transportation link will attract potential customers. Additionally, promotions commemo- rating milestones—an anniversary of the facility or the 100,000th customer—will attract media attention to the offsite terminal. Advertising—Communicating with Target Markets Resident Traveler The airport associated with the offsite terminal is the home airport for the resident traveler. Pub- lic relations, advertising, and marketing efforts can be geared toward this market using media such as local papers, radio stations, billboards, travel fairs, public events, and public information advi-

sories. By employing these methods at service launch and through an ongoing advertising program, resident air travelers will become aware of the services through the information provided and by word of mouth. For offsite terminals located in suburban markets, the primary customer is the res- ident traveler, so this type of advertising will reach the majority of the target market. Branding, Advertising, and Customer Service 65 The Importance of Word-of-Mouth Advertising The power of word-of-mouth as a way of drawing positive or negative attention to a product should not be underestimated. Logan Express surveys indicate that although many Logan Express travelers have been exposed to advertisements, they were also made aware of the service by an acquaintance. Non-resident Traveler The challenge of familiarity is different for the nonresident traveler. Prior to entering the region the airport serves, nonresident travelers are dispersed throughout the nation and the world. Other than information provided on the airport website or telephone line, there is not an efficient and cost-effective way to disseminate information to nonresident travelers. For the non- resident customer, particularly U.S.–based customers, awareness of airport transportation options outside the home city is generic: taxi, door-to-door shuttle, and subway. Repeat customers of the airport will eventually learn about the offsite terminal and transporta- tion link in a variety of ways such as seeing the buses, seeing the advertisements targeted to res- idents, or by word of mouth. An offsite terminal located with intermodal connections is more likely to be used by nonresident travelers who are using the public transportation system versus the offsite terminal that does not offer public transportation connections. A further challenge of capturing the nonresident market exists with customers whose egress mode from the airport is also their transportation mode while visiting—those customers using a rental car. Unless there is an incentive for this customer to use the offsite terminal and rent a car there, the customer will choose to pick up the rental car at the airport. Some methods for disseminating information to non-residents include • Working with convention and visitors bureaus and travel and tourism offices to provide infor- mation on the offsite terminal to its customer base; • Distributing information on the offsite terminal to publishers of travel books, travel websites, and articles published in newspapers and magazines in other parts of the United States and the world; • Providing offsite terminal information to the airlines for inclusion in articles about the region for in-flight magazine publication; • Providing advertising and in-terminal announcements on the service in areas of the terminal that serve deplaning air passengers; • Providing brochures on the service in the area of the terminal that provides regional access options from the airport; and • Exploring ways to automatically disseminate information about the offsite terminal to pas- sengers purchasing airline tickets to the airport served by the offsite terminal. Airport Employees For offsite terminal markets that have the potential to attract a significant number of airport employees, the project sponsor should promote the service to as much of the airport employee

population as possible. Viable methods for doing this will vary by airport, but may include con- tacting all employers and providing information for distribution to employees; sending out information to security badge holders or parking permit holders; and advertising in an employee cafeteria, in an on-airport newsletter, or in employee shuttle buses. Customer Service All methods of contact for customers needing information on the offsite terminal and trans- portation link should be easy to use, informative, and stress-free. The offsite terminal will only be successful if it develops a loyal customer base: satisfied customers will recommend the offsite terminal to other potential customers. Some considerations include • Staff at the offsite terminal, bus operation, and representatives at the airport providing infor- mation on ground transportation options should be trained to promote a positive customer experience by emphasizing customer service with a friendly and helpful attitude. • Information on a website should be straightforward, easy to locate, and laid out in a concise format and should anticipate frequently asked questions. • An easy to follow procedure for reporting and claiming lost and found items should be estab- lished for customers. • A method for obtaining customer feedback should be provided. • The setup of an automated telephone line should streamline the decision tree the customer is subjected to for obtaining typical information such as terminal location, hours of operation, frequency, and fare: – Recorded information should be provided in all commonly used languages and – A method for reaching a live person in case of emergency should be provided. • Procedures should be in place to assist customers with disabilities. Information Technology Information technology can be used to increase awareness of the offsite terminal or improve customer service. With advancing information technology, sharing real-time information about actual bus departure times will become easier and more universally assumed in the marketplace. Providing actual bus departure times and actual parking space availability to drivers on the major feeder routes will become more commonplace. Information now available on computer screens via the Internet will become universally available on cell phone screens, making the task of pro- viding local service information even easier. For an airport with multiple terminals, “next-bus technology” may be helpful in retaining cus- tomers. The concept is that transponders on the bus are linked into a system that estimates the time the bus will arrive to pick-up passengers at specific locations. Arrival times are transmitted to the pick-up locations and displayed on a computerized panel. Since the departing schedule will be valid for the first terminal, this type of information allows passengers at remaining ter- minals to know when the next bus will arrive and alleviates worry about having missed a bus. Since the deplaning passenger has already taken a potentially lengthy flight and is anxious to reach their final destination, next-bus technology allows the passenger to relax at the terminal curb while waiting for the bus, promoting a positive customer experience. In the future, opportunities may exist to integrate flight information systems with airport ground access information. Kiosks providing ground access information may also provide flight departure and arrival information. 66 Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals

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TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Report 35: Planning for Offsite Airport Terminals explores issues related to providing originating passengers with remote terminal facilities. The report examines how to identify potential customers for an offsite terminal and how the concept fits into airport planning.

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