The airline was able to score with customers through service even after the pandemic.
(Photo: Imago)
Cologne The corona pandemic hit the airlines hard – at times almost all machines remained on the ground. The Swiss airline Swiss launched a restructuring program during the crisis. Demand picked up again this year – Swiss, which belongs to the Lufthansa Group, left the loss zone behind in the first half of the year.
At the same time, customer satisfaction has also increased. This is the result of the market research institute Yougov, which examined the willingness of customers to recommend the company for the Handelsblatt. Swiss improved by 19 points – no other company made a comparable leap forward.
Around one million consumers were surveyed online for the study from mid-2021 to mid-2022. They should state whether they would recommend a brand they are a customer of to friends or acquaintances. “Recommendations are a very important factor for companies,” says Felix Leiendecker, who is responsible for the study at Yougov. After all, it is free advertising in which trust also plays a major role. “Of course you’re more likely to believe a recommendation from a best friend than a statement in a TV commercial.”
In the corona crisis, word of mouth became even more important. Because in many companies the advertising budgets are being cut, says Leiendecker. “This became a problem, especially for brands that have to draw a lot of attention to themselves through active advertising.”
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A high recommendation rate can only be achieved with a good product at a reasonable price – combined with good service. Whether it’s an international corporation or a family business, it’s crucial to know your own target group and to serve it precisely.
Success with Swiss virtues
Like the entire travel industry, the “Best Climber” Swiss benefited from recovery effects, but was able to achieve a very high recommendation point value in the previous year. “Swiss virtues” are given priority, says Swiss spokesman Michael Stief. The group had already done a number of things before the pandemic to improve punctuality.
If necessary, passengers with tight connection times would be taken to the next gate with a transfer bus. Selected early flights are handled close to the runway, and important feeder flights are given priority. “During the pandemic, these measures were largely obsolete due to the severe reduction in air traffic, but we have been reintroducing them step by step for some time now,” says Stief.
The current handling chaos at many airports now means a new challenge. As an airline, you only have limited influence here, says Stief. Swiss tries to inform customers as early as possible about any problem – and uses additional staff, for example at check-in and in the waiting lounges.
Basically, it is not easy for mobility service providers to achieve a high level of customer satisfaction. “If there are problems while travelling, this has serious effects particularly quickly,” says market researcher Leiendecker. A chain of delays can quickly jeopardize the entire holiday – that gets stuck and leads to negative feedback from friends and acquaintances.
It’s easier for products that are less prone to failure. The detergent brand Dash, which belongs to the Dalli Group based in Stolberg in the Rhineland, has improved by around eleven points. The family business, now in its fifth generation, acquired the brand from the American group Procter & Gamble in 2017. Dash has been a classic on the detergent shelf in Germany since the post-war period. Dalli thus strengthened the portfolio of its own brands – the company actually mainly produces private labels for Aldi or dm.
The brand stands for tradition, but has also been changed by the company – for example with a view to sustainability. In the long term, the company wants to do without plastic completely. Some of the packaging has already been converted to cardboard. In addition, all formulations have been freed from microplastics without any loss of performance. The target group is primarily environmentally conscious customers between the ages of 25 and 49.
Despite the improvement, Dash is still 16 points short of the industry leader Ecover, which also has the best absolute value across all industries with around 84 points. The Belgian company has been producing ecologically oriented and phosphate-free detergents since the 1980s. Back then, sales started in small organic shops, today Ecover products are sold in over 40 countries.
Among the companies that perform best in absolute terms, several brands with a strong connection to sustainability dominate. At Ecover or the natural cosmetics brand Weleda, which takes third place in the absolute ranking, this is part of the company DNA. “Sustainability is becoming more and more important – companies that have always been associated with it have an advantage,” says Leiendecker. On the other hand, the attempt to create a corresponding image in leaps and bounds often has little credibility. Basically, it is easier to improve when it comes to customer recommendations if the absolute value is not particularly high. “In the upper area, big jumps are becoming increasingly difficult,” says Leiendecker.
No advertising for a long time
The Leipzig beer brand Sternburg, which ranks sixth among the best climbers, has a very special image. The eponymous brewery was founded in 1822. The comparatively cheap “Sterni” is particularly popular in East Germany and especially in Berlin. The brewery used to do without advertising entirely, but has been working with the Berlin agency W&S Epic for several years. In addition to poster campaigns with pithy slogans, the brewery relies primarily on a presence in social networks. There Sternburg attracted attention several times with strange actions. A few years ago, a huge Sternburg logo was created as a crop circle in a grain field near Leipzig – supposedly a message from space. In addition, an interactive “seal of approval generator” was used to make fun of competitors from the premium segment online.
Leiendecker says that for some time now, Sternburg has been promoting its roots in a more alternative scene as the core of the brand even more than before. This may not appeal to the general public – which is probably one of the reasons why the absolute value in the ranking can still be improved. But in certain groups, the beer is a cult and is becoming more and more popular. Sternburg himself names students as one of the most important target groups. However, the fact that Sternburg has belonged to the Radeberger Group since 2006 – after all, the largest brewery group in Germany – does not quite fit with the alternative image, which is apparently not known to customers or is not interpreted negatively.
Activities such as regular Sternburg “fan festivals” with concerts or the annual office chair hockey cup also contribute to image cultivation. Positive experiences stayed in the minds of visitors for a long time, says Managing Director Martin Zapf. This year, the 200th anniversary will be celebrated with a lot. There is also a limited anniversary beer and numerous merchandise items in their own shop. All of this also serves the goal of being recommended as often as possible, says Zapf.
The company’s own employees, who Sternburg appointed as “brand ambassadors” in the anniversary year, play an important role here. They are encouraged to communicate the anniversary year in their private lives too – and to praise the beer as often as possible.
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