Jeffrey Gitomer October 8, 2013
October 7, 2013
By Jeffrey Gitomer
October 8, 2013
As you may know, I’m a regular flyer. About 200 flights a year. Mostly onmajor airlines, but because I’m more interested in flying non-stop thangetting travel miles or points, I take whatever airline is mostconvenient for my schedule.
This past Friday I found myself flying Alaska Airlines from Atlanta, Georgia, to Portland, Oregon.
There are only a few Alaska gates, and they’re hard to find, inDelta-dominant Atlanta Hartsfield Airport. FYI: Alaska is part of thesame SkyTeam co-op airline alliance as Delta. That’s where thesimilarity ends.
The Alaska ticket agents were amazinglyfriendly. Actually smiling, laughing, engaging, helpful, and friendly. I hope airline employees at your airport act that way!
NOTE WELL: Yes, there’s an occasional ticket agent or two that are friendly andhelpful, and there are some friendly, helpful agents in Charlotte, North Carolina, that I’ve known for more than a decade. But these Alaskapeople were amazing.
I engaged them in a few minutes oflighthearted conversation and asked them what the hiring criterion was.That’s when the startling admission came, “We’re actually Deltaemployees who were hand-picked and retrained.”
Hand picked and retrained. What does that tell you?
WAIT A MINUTE! Retrained? It’s the same computer system and the same baggage criteria. Just cross out “Delta” and substitute “Alaska” right? Right.
“We were trained to greet and treat customers in a different way,” said one of the agents. “You know – smile, chat, be friendly, thank customers as you look them in the eye, and not use certain unfriendly words andphrases like ‘policy’ and ‘all set.’”
Wow! There’s a concept.
Yes, I boarded the plane happily and on time. Yes, the flight attendantsmatched the ticket agent’s and the gate agent’s friendliness. In-flightservice – all five hours of it – was excellent. NOTE: These days, flight attendants emphasize they are there for “your safety” and never say the word “service,” let alone the word “friendly.”
These flightattendants were gently professional, and friendly; not assertivelydemanding – almost rude when telling me and others to “turn offelectronic devices.” I fell asleep between ordering and receiving food.Next thing I knew, a flight attendant was gently rubbing the side of myarm, and smiling as she helped me put my food in place. Classic.
Well, that would have been the end of the story had I not spent the weekendwith a 10-year Alaska Airline employee. I told him about my experienceand he just smiled.
I asked him what makes Alaska different.
Here is his eye-opening response about the big things Alaska does better than other airlines:
• It starts before training. It’s all about who they hire. It’s aboutfinding the BEST people. They have some process of pre-identifying theright people.
• No test at time of hiring. Interviews are human to human. They ask questions and go with gut feelings.
• They select people they believe will be hard workers. People who theybelieve will go beyond what’s expected. “North” of what’s expected.
• They select people they believe have a natural inclination to take ownership. People who are caring and friendly.
• They select passionate people who love what they do.
• They don’t just train front-line employees, they train all employees.They have found that front-line people are buoyed by internal employeesif attitudes are consistently positive throughout the company.
Why is this eye opening? Because it’s not fancy! It’s nothing new.
It’s not complicated. It’s natural.
It’s not costly. It’s human.
You know the rest right? Alaska Airline’s leadership and management is “byexample” not “by the book.” All employees feel valued and are happy toserve. And customers love it. It’s humanized and natural. It’s caringpeople serving traveling people in need.
Well, why don’t allairlines do this? Long list of reasons. Too numerous and way toonegative to mention here. This is a business lesson, not an airlinereprimand.
HARD QUESTIONS:
What’s your culture?
How consistent is attitude throughout your corporate environment?
How is that affecting your morale?
And more important how is that affecting your customers?
Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of twelve best-selling books including The SalesBible and The Little Red Book of Selling. His new book, 21.5 Unbreakable Laws of Selling, is now available. For book tour dates and informationabout training and seminars, visit www.gitomer.com or email Jeffreypersonally at [email protected].
© 2013 All Rights Reserved. Don’t even think about reproducing this document without written permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer. 704/333-1112
October 8, 2013
As you may know, I’m a regular flyer. About 200 flights a year. Mostly onmajor airlines, but because I’m more interested in flying non-stop thangetting travel miles or points, I take whatever airline is mostconvenient for my schedule.
This past Friday I found myself flying Alaska Airlines from Atlanta, Georgia, to Portland, Oregon.
There are only a few Alaska gates, and they’re hard to find, inDelta-dominant Atlanta Hartsfield Airport. FYI: Alaska is part of thesame SkyTeam co-op airline alliance as Delta. That’s where thesimilarity ends.
The Alaska ticket agents were amazinglyfriendly. Actually smiling, laughing, engaging, helpful, and friendly. I hope airline employees at your airport act that way!
NOTE WELL: Yes, there’s an occasional ticket agent or two that are friendly andhelpful, and there are some friendly, helpful agents in Charlotte, North Carolina, that I’ve known for more than a decade. But these Alaskapeople were amazing.
I engaged them in a few minutes oflighthearted conversation and asked them what the hiring criterion was.That’s when the startling admission came, “We’re actually Deltaemployees who were hand-picked and retrained.”
Hand picked and retrained. What does that tell you?
WAIT A MINUTE! Retrained? It’s the same computer system and the same baggage criteria. Just cross out “Delta” and substitute “Alaska” right? Right.
“We were trained to greet and treat customers in a different way,” said one of the agents. “You know – smile, chat, be friendly, thank customers as you look them in the eye, and not use certain unfriendly words andphrases like ‘policy’ and ‘all set.’”
Wow! There’s a concept.
Yes, I boarded the plane happily and on time. Yes, the flight attendantsmatched the ticket agent’s and the gate agent’s friendliness. In-flightservice – all five hours of it – was excellent. NOTE: These days, flight attendants emphasize they are there for “your safety” and never say the word “service,” let alone the word “friendly.”
These flightattendants were gently professional, and friendly; not assertivelydemanding – almost rude when telling me and others to “turn offelectronic devices.” I fell asleep between ordering and receiving food.Next thing I knew, a flight attendant was gently rubbing the side of myarm, and smiling as she helped me put my food in place. Classic.
Well, that would have been the end of the story had I not spent the weekendwith a 10-year Alaska Airline employee. I told him about my experienceand he just smiled.
I asked him what makes Alaska different.
Here is his eye-opening response about the big things Alaska does better than other airlines:
• It starts before training. It’s all about who they hire. It’s aboutfinding the BEST people. They have some process of pre-identifying theright people.
• No test at time of hiring. Interviews are human to human. They ask questions and go with gut feelings.
• They select people they believe will be hard workers. People who theybelieve will go beyond what’s expected. “North” of what’s expected.
• They select people they believe have a natural inclination to take ownership. People who are caring and friendly.
• They select passionate people who love what they do.
• They don’t just train front-line employees, they train all employees.They have found that front-line people are buoyed by internal employeesif attitudes are consistently positive throughout the company.
Why is this eye opening? Because it’s not fancy! It’s nothing new.
It’s not complicated. It’s natural.
It’s not costly. It’s human.
You know the rest right? Alaska Airline’s leadership and management is “byexample” not “by the book.” All employees feel valued and are happy toserve. And customers love it. It’s humanized and natural. It’s caringpeople serving traveling people in need.
Well, why don’t allairlines do this? Long list of reasons. Too numerous and way toonegative to mention here. This is a business lesson, not an airlinereprimand.
HARD QUESTIONS:
What’s your culture?
How consistent is attitude throughout your corporate environment?
How is that affecting your morale?
And more important how is that affecting your customers?
Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of twelve best-selling books including The SalesBible and The Little Red Book of Selling. His new book, 21.5 Unbreakable Laws of Selling, is now available. For book tour dates and informationabout training and seminars, visit www.gitomer.com or email Jeffreypersonally at [email protected].
© 2013 All Rights Reserved. Don’t even think about reproducing this document without written permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer. 704/333-1112
