/ Christopher Vickers/
 

Delta Airlines

B2C l Digital ‘Vision’ for Tomorrow Radically Improves CX Today

Background

Delta Airlines 737-900ER

Forrester, JD Power and Harris Interactive research, and internal Delta data showed the Delta.com customer experience (CX) lagged competitors. Many Delta customers felt that booking and managing their air travel and SkyMiles account on Delta.com was mediocre at best. Due to Delta’s legacy IT, improvements were slow, incremental and expensive. The sub-par online experience was costing Delta in lost customers and millions per year in revenue to direct and indirect (online travel agency) competitors.

My Role: Player Coach I was strategic lead responsible for supervising and coaching direct reports and colleagues, supporting and leading a large cross-functional team of colleagues and clients, guiding and developing research, analysis, insight and strategy, and nurturing and supervising effective UX/CX, including development, production, implementation, measurement, reporting and optimization across channels.

Opportunity

Delta needed a wholesale change – an online experience which was more modern, intuitive and faster. A new site – starting with a “vision” 3-5 years out - would enable Delta to leapfrog competitors, radically improve the online customer experience and grow online revenue.

Delta Flight Crew (Above the Wing)

Approach

We developed personas, mapped customer journeys and integrated personalization, visualization, curated search, mobility and social into our strategy. Four teams created concepts that were highly innovative but executable in the near term.

Delta Air 737-800

Results

Delta marketing and tech executives praised our efforts and began to budget for implementation. But Delta was also in the process of finishing it’s acquisition of Northwest Airlines, and soon began to implement a cost-saving reorganization, reducing the workforce, budgets and putting the Vision on hold. After the dust had settled within a year Delta began to implement our innovative features, functionality and design into Delta.com and is visible and in use today.

Agency Publicis Digital

 
/ Christopher Vickers/ /

Christopher Vickers

I collaborate to elevate brand reputation, generate leads, win customers and increase sales through brand, advertising campaign & content strategy and creation. I’ve worked on both corporate and agency sides for start-ups, scale-ups and grown up companies. Some of my teamwork has received praise from The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Ad Age and Adweek and won Webby and Effie awards for innovation and effectiveness.