Voice of the Customer, and Value Propositions, Southwest Airlines - Essay Example

Voice of the and Value Propositions of Southwest Airlines Voice of the and Value Propositions of Southwest AirlinesVoice of the customer is term that describes the process of getting to know the customers’ aversions, preferences and expectations (Yang, 2007). On the other hand, a value proposition is company’s promise to deliver value to its customer (Barnes, Blake, & Pinder, 2009).Southwest Airlines has four key areas that it needs to focus on to beat its competitors: service, prices, parking and decoration.

The airline’s service is currently rated at ‘good’ while that of its competitors is at ‘excellent.’ This customer rating means that any travelers who value airlines’ services will opt to use Southwest Airline’s competitors. Similarly, the airline’s prices are rated ‘good’ compared to those of its competitors whose rating is ‘very good.’ This completely locks out customers who may want to travel on a constrained budget, and creates a field day for Southwest Airline’s competitors.

Southwest Airline’s parking is rated at ‘unacceptable’. This is a very sorry state of affairs for the airline, especially if it has any intentions of outdoing other players in the airline industry. By all means, this needs to be fixed urgently to save the airline from further damage. Finally, the airline’s decoration is rated at ‘acceptable’ against its competitor’s rating of ‘very good. This in essence means that customers who value decoration will travel with the competitor airline at the expense of Southwest Airlines.

Other areas such as HR and Menu generally enjoy good ratings if compared with Southwest Airline’s competitors. They do not need urgent attention at the moment.In a nutshell, Southwest Airlines must employ more effort to improve the above key areas if it is to remain competitive in the airline industry. This is especially because the airline industry is such that any small thing can adversely affect the performance of an airline.AppendicesA. Voice of the customer Voice of the customerCustomer requirementsDecoration ParkingServices Pricing HRMenuImportance (1-5)I want a price I can afford5553321Deliver value for my money545332I want you to help me save money5444331Treat me like you want to do business with you5542422Tailor your products to meet my needs5254341Get it right the first time you do it5453521Provide a spacious parking5253232Improve security in your parking lot5555311Make your parking more organized5552321Make your decorations more appealing5552331Make your interior and exterior more beautiful5552321Decorate your facilities5552312Total Weight23529018519012580B.

Value Proposition (DPV Group, 2012).For business class travelers who need to travel frequently between cities, Southwest Airlines will be very convenient. Unlike other airlines, Southwest Airlines has frequent flights between cities and is affordable.ReferencesBarnes, C., Blake, H., & Pinder, D. (2009). Creating and Delivering Your Value Proposition: Managing Customer Experience for Profit. New York, NY: Kogan Page.DPV Group. (2012). Southwest Airlines’ (SWA) Value Proposition. Web. Accessed August 11, 2012 from http://www.dpvgroup.com/UploadedFiles/DPV_SWA_VP.

pdfYang, K. (2007). Voice of the Customer. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Prof Med/Tech.