Alaska Airlines has won another J.D. Power award, besting Delta Air Lines by a few points in Power’s 2015 North America Airline Satisfaction Study. This is the 8th consecutive year that the airline has won the award. In reality, I don’t fly Alaska all that often, but my experiences have never been anything but pleasant, and I’m not surprised that they along with Delta Air Lines were in the running for the top spot. Alaska is also walking away with another award from J.D. Power, earning top billing for the Airline Loyalty/Rewards satisfaction for the 2nd consecutive year. JetBlue was in second place for this award, followed by Southwest Rapid Rewards.
Does it matter? For me, no. But for the airlines it’s a bit of marketing fodder, and it is one indicator that you may be doing something right for your customers if you score well. The most interesting tidbit for me? That younger people (Gen Y) tended to feel a bit better about their airline and loyalty program choices than their older fellow travelers (Gen X and boomers….and MJ on Travel). Have we become crotchety in our old age, or just wiser? đŸ˜‰ Another interesting nugget – airline loyalty members that hold elite status tend to be happier with their airline than those that don’t have it. Not surprising at all, but interesting nonetheless.
In the end, I would not choose an airline based on a J.D. Power award (or any other) alone, but it does offer food for thought when it comes to how the airlines are doing in customer satisfaction. What about you? Is this award, or any other a factor in your airline choices?
-MJ, May 13, 2015
