Category: Customer Service

Entrepreneur: JetBlue remains the best low-cost carrier for the third straight year, according to J.D. Power and Associates’ 2007 North America Airline Satisfaction Study. The survey gauges customer satisfaction by looking at performance indicators across several categories, such as cost, in-flight services and boarding/deplaning time. It’s somewhat surprising, considering the winter weather blues that kept more than 10 of JetBlue’s flights grounded. One jet literally froze on the runaway, trapping passengers flying to sunny Cancun, Mexico for more than eight hours.
Linda Hirneise, executive director of travel practice at J.D. Power and Associates, believes JetBlue kept its ranking because the airline commands a fiercely loyal customer following with its modern amenities including leather seats, all-you-can-eat in-flight snacks and satellite TV at a time when many other airlines are phasing them out. American Airlines, which stripped passengers of the seat pillow last year, showed the largest decline in quality among the traditional carriers category.
JetBlue Still Top Low-Cost Airline [Entrepreneur]

BusinessWeek: If you sell almost any type of product, then you already know that despite your best efforts at managing service and inventory, clients will be displeased from time to time. But don’t simply accept ongoing dissatisfaction as an inevitable part of doing business. Instead, work at improving how you deal with customers whose experience has been less than satisfactory. It could mean the difference between losing customers permanently or keeping them satisfied—maybe even more committed to doing business with you. Here are seven keys.
1. Always acknowledge the customer’s problem.
2. Ask the customer what you can do to make her feel better.
3. Tell your customer that you want to record all the details of the mistake so you can share it with everyone within your company to prevent it from happening again.
4. If the customer has been getting the runaround, and you are still not the person who has the answer, tell the customer that you will find out and call her back.
5. If you can, provide the customer with your name and contact number so that he may call you in the future if issues arise.
6. Never say “It’s our policy.”
7. Never blame your company or someone else in your company.
Dealing with Angry Customers [BusinessWeek]