This case-pack explores the best mobile apps produced by airlines (with a focus on the iOS) mobile system for iPods, iPhones and iPads. With travellers increasingly dependent on their phones (and sales of phones tilting heavily in favour of smartphones, especially those of Apple) mobile apps have become an increasingly important tool for engaging customers while driving revenue and customer service.
How to Get Started in Social Media for Art League City
Top 10 Mobile Apps by Airlines
1. Great examples of airlines using
mobile apps to engage
customers, while driving
revenue and customer service.
Featuring
Helping airlines & airports engage travelers profitably
http://www.SimpliFlying.com
http://www.SimpliFlying.com
3. Shake your phone to find travel inspiration
There’s a reason why KLM
won the award for the Best
Airline at the SimpliFlying
Awards for Social Media
Excellence this year: They’re
constantly innovating and
looking for newer ways to
engage their customers.
Their new app helps users
select a place or date they
want to travel and in turn can
select one of about 100
options.
www.SimpliFlying.com
4. Ensuring a social experience even on the phone!
Users can see a ticket price
and can subsequently either
choose to book or shake the
phone for another option till
they find the perfect match.
Destinations and prices can
also be shared via social
media.
This is in addition to their
existing app that already has
numerous features. (see next
slide)
www.SimpliFlying.com
5. Augmenting the existing app
The free KLM iPhone app offers
a range of options including
regulars such as booking flights,
managing bookings, changing
bookings, flight status.
In addition, it offers in-app
features such as e-boarding
pass and discounts on additional
check-in baggage.
Goals Driven
Revenue
Engagement
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
7. Looking for travel inspiration?
The Lufthansa for
iPad app is
available in English
or German and it
caters to people
looking for a little
travel inspiration
and also to the
practically minded
traveler.
Note: The iPhone
app offers a toned-
down experience
obviously.
www.SimpliFlying.com
8. An interactive booking guide!
The crux of this app is an
interactive world map,
enabling you to trace
your way from origin to
destination airports and
helping book flights.
It also allows check-ins
and uses an interactive
feature to select seats.
You can also access a
booking summary and
view your Miles & More
account balance.
www.SimpliFlying.com
9. Discover more and experience Lufthansa!
Not only are there
detailed guides to cities,
the Experience
Lufthansa section offers
a 3-D rendition of the
airline’s new European
cabin, and there are
360-degree views of the
A380 cockpit, along with
a selection of videos.
www.SimpliFlying.com
10. There’s an app for that too!
A 2nd app called Lufthansa
Navigator acts as a GPS,
providing travellers with an
interactive map and Google
Street View-like functionality.
It stores flight information
and can tell you exactly how
to get to your gate, check-in
counter, baggage carousel
or favourite airport lounge.
For now the Navigator is
only being tested in Frankfurt
Airport, but is certainly a sign
of things to come!
www.SimpliFlying.com
11. An app for frequent flyers
The third app encourages
Lufthansa’s Miles & More
frequent flyers to engage with
one another. MemberScout
allows passengers to share
their geo-location, arrange
meet-ups, give and receive
travel advice, and even share
taxis.
Goals driven
Revenue
Customer Service
Engagement
www.SimpliFlying.com
13. Forget those bulky travel guides!
While the experience on
their iPhone app was
already very good with
excellent functionality and
comprehensive features, the
iPad app goes one step
further.
Not only is it stunning to look
at, it offers in-depth city
guides (sights, dining,
attractions etc) which
customers are certain to
spend hours with. An
excellent travel companion
overall!
www.SimpliFlying.com
14. A look behind the scenes!
Moreover, it also allows
passengers to “Meet the
Team” by browsing photos
of Cathay Staff, making
the journey experience
that much more personal.
Goals Driven
Revenue
Customer Service
Engagement
www.SimpliFlying.com
16. A multitude of great features!
It’s not for nothing that
Southwest’s iPhone app has
been called the “gold standard
airline apps”.
You can check your flight
status, check-in to your flight,
make reservations, make air
and car-reservations and much
more! It also has a unique
DING! feature that alerts
frequent flyers to special deals.
Goals Driven
Revenue
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
18. Now your iPhone (or iPod) can show you the
position of your plane on a map!
While Virgin Atlantic’s
Flight Tracker was initially
precisely what it’s name
indicated, it is now much
more including managing,
bookings, checking-in etc.
Some of the fun things the
app can do:
~Tell you the position of
your plane on a map.
~Alert you on your device
when the plane lands.
~View short videos of most
destinations.
www.SimpliFlying.com
19. Welcome to the Virgin “family of apps”
Virgin has some other apps to
help you with flying as well. Jet
Lag Fighter helps you reduce jet
lag by helping you establish a
proper sleep schedule while the
Flying Without Fear app is
meant to help you minimize the
fear of flying. A third app called
TripJournal does what its name
suggests. Very thoughtful, we
have to say.
Goals driven
Engagement
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
22. The early innovators!
Air Canada’s app makes it
to this list not only because
they have a great app but
also because last summer
they broke the mould of
“ordinary apps” and
became the first carrier to
offer complimentary travel
information and one of the
first to offer in-app booking
including weather updates
and the ability to rent a car.
Goals Driven
Revenue
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
24. All you needed to know in your pocket!
BA customers can directly
track their flight status,
arrivals, departures and
even download their
boarding pass from the
iPhone app.
Executive Club members
can also check their mileage
status directly from their app
as well as even buy
upgrades from within the
app.
www.SimpliFlying.com
25. Board by flashing your iPhone!
Mobile boarding passes are
here and you can directly
check-in by using the QR
code in the ticket info on
your phone (only for
Executive Club members).
This app is reportedly used
by more than 20,000
people a day.
Goals driven
Engagement
Revenue
www.SimpliFlying.com
27. Perfect blend of standard and social features
Apart from the standard
functions United’s app has
seamless in-app booking.
Moreover, airport maps is a
very handy feature included.
Apart from this, there are
some great extras: flight
status push notifications,
currency converter, games
and links to their social
media feeds.
Goals driven
Revenue
Engagement
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
29. A clever loyalty app!
The Qantas Frequent Flyer app aims
to show members the wide range of
earn and burn options of the loyalty
program. Users can flip through award
flights (including an estimate of the
surcharges, fees and taxes payable)
and through a large catalogue of non-
flight awards, to find out how many
points they need.
Members can set themselves points
goals, track progress, and get notified
once their goal has been achieved.
They can also share with their friends
on social media when they reach their
goals.
www.SimpliFlying.com
30. Brilliantly combining augmented reality with loyalty
Combining the camera, GPS
and compass to recognize an
object or place that a user is
pointing to, the app lets an
iPhone 4 or 3GS search for
partners while on the road.
Pointing the device in a
certain direction brings up the
nearest loyalty program
partners in that direction.
This feature can be used in a
number of ways and is
Goals driven
obviously great fun to use.
Engagement
Loyalty
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
32. If only booking was always this easy!
Users can complete their ticket
purchases in just one minute,
compared to seven minutes via
traditional methods. The app also
saves time by remembering
users’ personal details.
Users can also use the app to
check in and select their seats,
receive real-time updates on
arrival and departure times, look
up time tables for every flight, and
cargo customers can even view
the logistics records of their Goals driven
shipments Revenue
Customer Service
www.SimpliFlying.com
34. Honourable Mentions
Click the logos to download.
Thanks are due to: Airlinetrends, Tnooz, Landlopers, Appolicious and Sparksheet for their
excellent articles that helped us research these apps.
www.SimpliFlying.com