I recently selected an airline that I had never flown before, and to my surprise, if possible, will never fly again. The overall feeling I had about my experience with this airline was not just about money, it was the way they made me "feel" about how they choose to do business. Just my efforts to check in to my flight was made difficult. Instead of just letting me check in, I had to sign up for their frequent flier program, regardless if I wanted to or not. Also, their website was not user-friendly. I learned while checking my bag in at the airport the day of my flight, had I checked the bag in online, the charge would have been about half cost and every bag gets a charge. Where is the customer care in that, especially when the website didn't navigate easily? They boldly, proudly, and in a condescending manner, said, "Do not give us 'that look' when the beverage cart comes around, and we charge you for water, because this airlines charges for everything." Interestingly, after this announcement, the two people sitting in my row both said they were warned by their friends not to fly this airline.
All of this got me thinking about how many people on that flight felt like my row felt, and would they complain or just leave without comment? How dangerous for a company to have this large of a disconnect with their customers. My choice was to comment, which I hope informs this airline of my experience, however, sadly most will not complain to the company, but they will tell many about their poor experience.
Here is an infographic about customer service myths on complaining that was so interesting to me and some businesses should take this information to heart, especially this airline (have you guessed who it is?):
