In the 21st century of information and technology, highly integrated IT and high-tech service is required at the commercial airline industry. The use of IT and high-tech is increasingly perceived as an important factor in achieving competitiveness, so...
In the 21st century of information and technology, highly integrated IT and high-tech service is required at the commercial airline industry. The use of IT and high-tech is increasingly perceived as an important factor in achieving competitiveness, so that the air industry must thoroughly gain competitiveness by employing the IT and high-tech as a locomotive for effective marketing strategies and raising its business standards.
In this study, the relationship between the services by commercial airlines through IT & high-tech and the perceived risks by customers are examined by empirical analyses, also the moderating effect of customer characteristics on the relationship is investigated. The sample of this study consisted of Korean, Japanese, English speaking passengers.
The results can be summarized as follows:
First, the relationship between the customers perceived risks and IT & high-tech service shows cost effective correlation with risk factors of 'psychological risk' and 'performance risk' and IT factors such as 'reservation of airline tickets via the internet''searching information using airline websites', and 'purchasing tickets via the internet'.
Second, regarding the role of customers behaviors, the 'financial risks' and 'time-loss risks' rather than taking into awareness on the 'need for cognition' and 'self-monitoring', were found to be related with services such as 'e-tickets' and 'purchasing of tickets via the internet' 'high-speed internet access on board the airline' and 'mobile SMS'.
Third, regarding the moderating roles of customers characteristics: Koreans have shown sensitiveness towards 'risks related to performance and time', whereas passengers from Europe, Japan, America, and other parts of the world have shown sensitiveness towards 'psychological risks' and 'performance risks'. When analyzing by using people's age, customers who were below the age of 29 showed sensitiveness in 'financial risks' and showed interests in using a variety of airline services which are stated above. Customers who were over the age of 40 have shown sensitivity in 'performance risk' and were willing to use the service which allows you to reserve and buy airline tickets via the internet.
The following implications are suggested from the aforementioned results:
First, the airline websites should facilitate the process of booking airline tickets and the websites should provide necessary information for the customers. The websites need to provide good information followed by current information and updates. Through adequate utilization of sitemaps all information should be organized in a way in which people can easily search information.
Second, in order to maximize the utilization of e-tickets, GDS and other airliners should take into consideration e-tickets.
Third, airlines should seek union with online travel agencies and form a coalition of portal travel sites. Plus, airliners themselves should create a portal site which can interconnect other airliners apart from themselves. This can contribute towards effective distribution of airliners.
Fourth, airliners should investigate the customers preferences and profiles and then analyze the risks perceived by the customers. A new service should be devised to solve the risks that are discerned by the customers. Also airliners should implement the use of direct marketing strategies by utilizing the information given by the FFP and information retrieved from the customers.
Finally, airliners should broaden the cyber network by utilizing the wireless internet reservation and purchasing methods. This can be done by analyzing and giving integrated customer service through the use of mobile phones and PDA's, which can be maximized by online marketing.