What CUs Can Learn From Frontier Airlines’ New Customer Interaction Strategy

For the first time in commercial aviation history, Frontier Airlines recently announced it is no longer accepting phone calls from customers. This means the company has disconnected its phone number and are now only interacting through chat. That idea may have played well in the Frontier boardroom as a cost-cutting measure, but in the real world (where customers live) it sparked an immediate reaction ranging from disapproval to full-on outrage.

Goodbye to Customer Choice

To some degree, this switch may seem like a natural transition as most of us have adopted digital-first behaviors in our everyday lives. The vast majority of us – 84% according to Forrester – go first to our screens whenever we have an issue with some company we do business with. We also know that a preponderance of customers generally prefer to avoid having to call customer service. This accounts for the increased acceptance of chat.

However, customers still expect and deserve the power of choice, allowing them to engage with companies in whatever way best meets the need of their individual situation. This is where Frontier’s strategy would never be acceptable for a credit union.

Messaging via chat or text is effective for simple answers to straightforward questions. But when members experience complex, critically important, time-sensitive, emotionally-impactful situations, they are almost always much better served by speaking directly with another human being. These “moments of truth” have the power to make or break the overall member experience, significantly impacting loyalty. No matter how comfortable members become with technology, the human element will always play an important role in the member experience; it’s just how we’re wired.

With that being said, these live human interactions no longer have to take place via a phone call that is completely disconnected from the company’s website or mobile app. It only makes sense that companies should provide the option to speak to representatives directly from the website or mobile app. With a web- or mobile app-based voice calling tool, for example, customers can seamlessly talk to a live agent within the digital domain (where their resolution journey began), simply by clicking a button on their screen without having to dial a phone number and start over. Not only is this option more convenient, it also empowers the representative with more visibility into the customer’s current journey, enabling them to provide a more personalized experience.

The Credit Union Difference

While this decision is bold, we’ll give Frontier Airlines the benefit of the doubt: They’re a low-fare airline looking for ways to cut costs, and many of their customer interactions are simple transactions such as booking a flight, changing a reservation or redeeming frequent flier miles. However, credit unions should learn something from the outrage the airline is facing; if a budget airline is getting this much pushback, then credit unions would be taking far too great a risk by adopting this strategy.

Managing members’ finances is not only important, it’s personal and often emotional. It’s imperative that members at least have the option for a live, human interaction, even when they began their journey online. Most members don’t want to just message when they encounter “moments of truth” such as potential identity theft or canceling an account of a family member who just passed away; they’ll want to speak to someone. And even if their question or issue is something less critical (such as checking an account balance), they at least want to have options for how they engage with their credit union.

All businesses, including credit unions, are challenged to determine how to modernize customer and member service strategies in a digital-first world while creating efficiencies and still providing choice. Credit unions should heed the cautionary tale of Frontier Airlines by substituting the need for traditional phone calls with the option of making a call directly from their website or mobile app. This enables credit unions to facilitate live, human interactions without forcing members to abandon their digital journey, creating more convenient experiences and fostering lasting loyalty.

Rick DeLisi is Lead Research Analyst for Glia, a New York, N.Y.-based provider of digital customer service solutions.