COMPARING ONLINE REVIEWS FOR LOW-COST AND MAINLINE AIRLINES: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF PASSENGER SATISFACTION A Project Presented to the Faculty of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Science In Hospitality Management By Jocelyn Harper 2019 SIGNATURE PAGE PROJECT: COMPARING ONLINE REVIEWS FOR LOW-COST AND MAINLINE CARRIERS: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF PASSENGER SATISFACTION AUTHOR: Jocelyn Harper DATE SUBMITTED: Fall 2019 The Collins College of Hospitality Management Dr. Ben Dewald _______________________________________ Project Committee Chair Professor of Hospitality Management Dr. Hyounae (Kelly) Min _______________________________________ Assistant Professor of Hospitality Management Dr. Zhenxing (Eddie) Mao _______________________________________ Department Chair of Hospitality Management ii ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to identify significant factors in customer satisfaction for airlines based in the United States. In order to achieve this, two low-cost carriers and two mainline carriers were selected. The online reviews from each airline were analyzed for major themes. The objective was to see if passenger type (mainline or low-cost) impacts the type of negative reviews left online. The secondary objective was to discover if passengers of the low-cost carriers have lower expectations when it comes value for money and customer service. Key words: passenger satisfaction, content analysis, United States, low-cost airline, mainline carrier iii TABLE OF CONTENTS SIGNATURE PAGE .......................................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................. v LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................ 3 Customer Satisfaction in Airlines ................................................................................... 3 Online Reviews ............................................................................................................... 4 Low-Cost Airlines ........................................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH QUESTIONS ......................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 4: METHODOLOGY ...................................................................................... 8 Content Analysis ............................................................................................................. 8 Selection of Data ............................................................................................................. 8 Analyzing the Reviews ................................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 5: RESULTS .................................................................................................. 11 CHAPTER 6: DISCUSSION ............................................................................................ 16 CHAPTER 7: IMPLICATIONS ....................................................................................... 19 Recruiters and Trainers for Mainline Airlines .............................................................. 19 Airline Hospitality for All Airlines ............................................................................... 20 CHAPTER 8: LIMITATIONS ......................................................................................... 21 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................. 22 iv LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Southwest Airline Reviews .................................................................................. 10 Table 2 Delta Airline Reviews .......................................................................................... 10 Table 3 Airline Review Counts Per Category ................................................................... 11 Table 4 Example of “Other” Reviews .............................................................................. 17 v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Mainline vs Low-Cost Reviews ......................................................................... 12 Figure 2 Delta Airlines Reviews Breakdown ................................................................... 13 Figure 3 American Airlines Review Breakdown .............................................................. 13 Figure 4 Southwest Airlines Review Breakdown ............................................................. 14 Figure 5 JetBlue Airlines Review Breakdown .................................................................. 15 vi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Over 56 million Americans traveled out of the country by air in 2018 (National Travel & Tourism Office, 2018). Air travel is very a popular industry, and even though Americans do not take as much vacation time as their European counterparts, the number of air travelers are growing. In 2018, 87 percent of Americans reported having flown in their lifetime, compared to 81 percent in 1997 (Airlines for America, 2019). The International Air Transport Association says the demand of air travel and number of airline passengers is progressively increasing (Kalemba, Campa-Planas, Hernández-Lara & Sanchez-Rebull, 2018). As the number of passengers increase over time, there are only so many US airlines to choose from. Airlines must fight for the attention of potential customers. According to Namakusa (2013), the competition between airlines is fierce. The airline industry is characterized by heavy regulations which limits its ability to access global markets compared to other industries (Namakusa, 2013, p. 520). Airlines must take special care in hiring new employees who are highly professional, because customer satisfaction is key in this highly competitive market. “The delivery of high-quality service becomes a marketing requirement among air carriers, as a result of competitive pressure” (Ostrowski, O’Brien & Gordon, 1993, p. 19). Airline marketers and recruiters need to pay attention to customer feedback in order to win new customers and retain current customers. There has been a rise in passengers choosing to fly with low-cost airlines (Trainer, 2017). Passengers occasionally choose to forgo the monoliths like United or Delta, and 1 choose low-cost carriers. Graham, (2013) confirms that airline passengers will travel a further distance in order to depart from an airport that offers lower rates. However, beyond price point, customer satisfaction is consistently a distinguishing factor between various airlines. To determine which factors are most significant to customer satisfaction, this study will focus on perceived customer service and value for money. These two factors were chosen because they reflect a passenger’s attitude towards an airline and can reveal the purchasing intention. Additionally, most airline review sites collect information for these categories, therefore there will be hundreds of reviews available that contain views on customer service and value for money. Word of mouth (WOM), especially electronic worth of mouth (eWOM) is a major way that airlines receive positive or negative marketing (Beneke, Mill, Naidoo & Wickham, 2015). WOM is crucial in the service industry, because a service failure could be the next viral story on social media. The airline industry is susceptible to losing customers when a service failure is reported to an online review website. This study will compare negative online reviews for low-cost airlines and mainline airlines and answer two research questions. Research on airline customer satisfaction has been conducted before, but not specifically regarding US low-cost airlines. This study intends to uncover whether passengers who seek out low-cost airlines believe that cabin staff service and value for money matter when they leave a negative review online. 2 CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW Customer Satisfaction in Airlines This study will focus on customer satisfaction between low-cost carriers and mainline carriers. “Customer satisfaction is a comprehensive concept representing the overall evaluation of experience to the performance of products or services after purchase and consumption” (Yang, Shih, Nha, & Wang, 2017, p 102). There are many different factors involved in a customer’s overall satisfaction, therefore this study focused on perceived customer service and value for money. All airlines are expected to provide a seat on the plane and safe travel to the desired destination. Many low-cost airlines have a reputation for creating a negative passenger experience, but people continue to choose them for the low prices. Even when customers do not expect high quality service, service failures occur and can impact brand reputation. The customer impression of an airline is synonymous with the brand name. Customers shop more than price alone when selecting an airline. According to Gibbs, Slevitch and Washburn (2017, p. 55), “The most important principle for competitiveness, and