Airports Strive to Be More Friendly to Boost Air Travel
A rising number of U.S. airports have been striving to become more friendly to boost air travel.
Because of the recession, more and more people are revising their air travel plans to cut costs, pushing down the number of passengers passing through airports and boarding planes.
In response, airports have been using various marketing tools that they never considered before. Some airports are now using online social networking tools like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to connect with air passengers and update them about nice developments in air travel and in airports.
At the airport meeting held in Montreal recently, Myrna White, the public affairs director at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, told conference participants that her office has been using YouTube and Facebook to update travelers about various happenings at the airport. Her staff members microblog on things such as the visit of a movie star, the launching of a store outlet and an advisory on pet travel.
White also mentioned the micro social media tool Twitter, which can be used to promote air travel and to monitor what passengers are saying about airport services, such as bathrooms, food courts and meal choices.
Richard Walsh, a representative of Boston Logan International Airport, also affirmed the effectiveness of using Twitter and Facebook to promote his airport. He said that sharing photos, videos and updates about his airport’s parking, rocking chairs and events such as the recent impromptu concert held by the Brandeis University Choir at Logan humanize airports.
Other airports promote air travel and airport services by catering to the interests of travelers who prefer green-friendly facilities, who are interested in works of art and who need accessible facilities.
Airports in cities like Jacksonville, Asheville and Philadelphia have been expanding their art gallery programs which focus on the works of local and national artists. Some are even earning small amounts of commission from art work purchased by travelers.
Another promotional strategy that airports could do is to give attention to the traveling disability community, which comprises about 22 million people spending over $13.6 billion yearly on air travel.
Eric Lipp, director of the nonprofit Open Doors Organization, reported that in his organization’s recent survey, air travelers with disabilities said they would travel more if air travel staff would do their best to help.
All in all, airports and airlines do not have to worry about dwindling number of passengers who travel by air. Their staff would just have to be more friendly and more helpful.
