NOT another airline horror story
With all the focus recently on poor (even outrageous!) airline customer service, I wanted to highlight one airline that appears to be getting it right. Norwegian Air is a relatively new player, but is getting some significant attention. Norwegian was named one of Fast Company’s 10 Most Innovative Companies in Travel for 2017, the only airline on the travel list. Norwegian’s CEO and Founder, Bjørn Kjos says, “At Norwegian, we truly strive to offer a different approach to air travel, and create new initiatives to be more relevant and competitive. Not only are we reinventing the customer experience along the way, but we are also making it more affordable for everyone to fly.”
I really like Norwegian Air. Full disclosure, I was born in Norway, have lots of family in Norway, and basically love all things Norwegian. So of course I may be partial… but, my experience flying Norwegian to date has definitely exceeded my expectations for a lower-cost carrier. On another budget European flight not long ago we sat in hard plastic seats that looked like they just get hosed down, and my son was given spoiled milk with his cereal. But with Norwegian we had much better seats, plus the flights have been on-time, the flight staff friendly and polite, there were lots of entertainment options, and the food was quite tasty. Granted you pay extra for a seat assignment, luggage and meals, but well worth it.
Last summer my two teens traveled alone on Norwegian from Oslo to Oakland, their first international flight without a parent, and they raved about their experience. This summer even more of my family is getting in on the action, being able to fly direct to Norway is something we could never do before from California. But they also have direct flights to London from the US, making it easy to get all over Europe.
As someone who does a lot of customer experience work, I appreciate good service when I experience it. Norwegian really does seem focused on reinventing the airline customer experience, and it shows.
Anne Bakstad
anne@clearworks.net
