Southwest Airlines 2008 Annual Report Download - page 5

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Entering the Zone
No one could have predicted that 2008 would present as many challenges for the airline
industry as it did. Economic recession, unprecedented volatility in oil prices, and shifting
demand created an environment that made it difcult for airlines—— including Southwest
Airlines—— to stick to business as usual. Always managing our business in good times to
prepare for the bad times, we were able to weather the economic volatility better than most,
even preserving our consecutive annual protability record. We were able to continue
improving the Customer Experience; substantially grow our revenues; efciently expand our
route map; continue to nurture our unique Corporate Culture; and continue our focus on
safe, low-cost operations.
The Customer Zone: Creating the Best Experience
Although the world around us has changed dramatically, we remain committed to our
vision. We aspire to be:
• The safest, most reliable airline operation in the world
• The leader in Customer Service with the best low-fare Customer Experience
• The preferred carrier with the most convenient ight schedule to the markets
we serve
• The leading low-cost producer; nancially successful; and secure for our Employees
and our Shareholders
In 2008, our People continued their efforts to enhance the Customer Experience. We
also put a stake in the ground and stood out from the rest of the industry by boldly avoiding
hidden fees. We exposed our competitors’ fees and charges through a national “No Hidden
Fees” campaign. We sought, through a number of public channels, to bring heightened
awareness to the fact that while airline competitors may be able to match our low fares,
Southwest is the best overall value, especially when all their punitive fees were added to
the final ticket price.
More than ever, we are listening to our Customers. In 2008, we launched the “Net
Promoter Score” in each of our 64 cities on our route network to get real-time feedback
from Customers on the Airport Experience. The knowledge gleaned from this research tool
allows us tone-tune improvements where needed.
Other enhancements to the Customer Experience include: accepting credit and debit
cards onboard the aircraft; introducing Monster Energy® drinks to our onboard beverage
selections; rolling out the new Rapid Rewards Dining Program for our Customers’ culinary
enjoyment; and launching a new airport computer system, the largest internally developed
project in Company history, which streamlines and enhances Customer processing and sets
the stage for future improvements. For our Customers, that means a quicker checkin process
and no longer having to sprint to the gate to get on a standby travel list. We have future
revenue initiatives and Customer Experience enhancements in development, including
satellite inight wireless Internet connectivity, making signicant improvements to our
Rapid Rewards loyalty program, enabling international codeshares to Canada and Mexico,
and turning southwest.com into a more robust travel portal. Nearly 78 percent of our
passenger revenues were booked through southwest.com in 2008, which is among the
most visited travel web sites in the world.
Advertising and marketing efforts continued to create greater awareness of Southwest’s
expansive route network to attract new Customers, including the business traveler. Corporate
sales efforts were ramped up to secure more corporate accounts with companies that travel
with us often. Products rolled out in late 2007 continue to receive rave reviews, including
Business Select, our new fare structure, our new boarding process, and our Rapid Rewards
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SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO. ANNUAL REPORT 2008
4
2.00
1.75
1.50
1.25
1.00
.75
.50
Customer Satisfaction (Complaints per 100,000 Customers boarded)
For the year ending December 31, 2008
LUV
.25
NWA
.86
ALK
.45
UAUA
1.85
AMR
1.33
JBLU
1.02
AAI
1.10
CAL
1.10
DAL
1.80
LCC
2.01