Aviation Report: 70% Of The Airlines Will Use Social Media For Business and Customer Service

Social media is being adopted by each and every business with service industries using it even more aggressively. According to a new report, the use of social media would intensify for the Aviation business in the country. Co-authored by air-transport specialists at SITA and CAPA, which focus on research and analysis in the aviation sector, the report states that over the next three years, 70% of the airlines will use social media to reach out to passengers and offer services.

The report, which is based on surveys across the country, forms part of a white paper on the aviation and information and communications technology released at a two-day Aviation ICT Forum 2013, that commenced on Thursday in the outskirts of Goa.

The report further adds: “India is the world’s third-largest social media market with the number of users in urban India estimated at 66 million. Indian carriers and airports are increasingly conscious of their social media footprint and the need to reach out to passengers via social media platforms.”

Other noteworthy findings are listed below:

1. 70% of airlines surveyed will use social media to promote their brand and offer reservations, customer relationship management and check-in via social media platforms.

2. Social media will also play a vital role in how airports enhance their engagement with passengers, particularly during periods of disruption.

3. With over 82% of travellers surveyed carrying smartphones and 22% carrying tablets, India’s airlines and airports are also adopting new mobile services.

4. By 2015, 100% of airlines surveyed will offer mobile check-in, flight status notification, ticket purchase, itinerary integration and sharing and on-board mobile services.

Surely, social plus mobile should be the marketing strategy for the aviation industry to serve its customers going further.

Mobile is going to drive things and this was also revealed in KPMG’s ‘The SMAC Code – Embracing New Technologies for future business’ report; further it stated, “The mobile Internet users in the country are expected to grow from 4.1 million users in 2009 to 164.8 million in 2015 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 85 percent.”

The social media usage is primarily driven by the rising number of active Internet users, who are accessing Internet through a host of devices. In fact the India Mobile Landscape 2013 report by Juxt also shared that India has 554.8 million mobile users and 143.2 million unique Internet users. The report also stated that around 94.7 million users access internet from their desktop/laptop, smart TV or mobile data connections such as GPRS/EDGE and 3G together.

Image courtesy: The Hindu

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