Southwest Airlines has announced plans to become just like every other airline, but with less going for it. They’re moving to assigned seats, introducing basic economy fare restrictions, and they’re going to start expiring flight credits. The airline is dropping its unique selling proposition of ‘bags fly free’ and – even after already devaluing points 43% in 12 years have gone a step further by eliminating the guaranteed value of a point, so that awards cost more when tickets are most expensive and you need to use your points the most.
This puts them into the category of airlines like American and JetBlue, but without the positives going for it. Southwest has arguably the worst wifi in the industry aside from Frontier which doesn’t offer the feature. They don’t have true first class (even Spirit and Frontier are moving to this!). They don’t have lounges. They don’t have seatback entertainment.
- The airline’s new Board of Directors has forced management to make a complete U-turn on its plans and implement changes that leave customers having only schedule and price as reasons to choose Southwest.
- You’d fly Southwest when they’re cheapest (even including bag fees and seat fees), and when you don’t care about amenities. In other words, they’re choosing to enter a race to the bottom at precisely the time when passengers have shifted their buying behavior away from this model.
And a new survey of customers reveals that Southwest is scared. Southwest is asking just how much their passengers hate what they’ve done, rating each of their biggest changes on the following scale – Like very much / like somewhat / neutral / dislike somewhat / dislike very much:
- Ending free checked bags
- Basic economy
- Assigned seats
- Devaluing Rapid Rewards points
- Expiring flight credits
NEW SURVEY REGARDING THE BACKLASH! GO AND VOTE!
byu/ox123456 inSouthwestAirlines
The survey asks what passengers think will happen to airfares, whether good customer service will still be provided, and whether the arline will still take care of its customers? Does Southwest Airlines still “stand[..] out from other airlines” is a good way to capture some of this. And the survey asks whether these changes make it more or less likely that customers will fly the airline?
On the last screen of the survey, where customers can write-in questions free-form, one respondent asks them to recommend an American Airlines credit card. Another asks how much their activist investors paid them “to sell the soul of this company.” Hopefully those answers make it into the summaries seen by management and they get the message.
Is this a last ditch attempt by management to convince the Board of Directors to backtrack on some of the most extreme changes they’ve made? Or an skunkworks project by Southwest lifers to show management the errors of the path they’re on? That much is unclear.
However the smart thing to do would be to seriously consider assigned seats – many customers really do prefer this, and the move to offer extra legroom seats (while taking legroom away from regular coach on many aircraft) requires that those seats at least be assigned. They should be offering to sell blocked middle seats, too, at least – more revenue and a better experience!
But everything else they’ve announced is unequivocally worse for customers with no redeeming upside. They want customers to spend more while getting less, and while not making additional investments in the travel experience.
Checked bag fees will mean confiscating more carry-on bags at the gate as passengers try to bring everything on board to save money, and this will delay flights which is costly. And their gates aren’t even always equipped to handle the increased volume of gate checked bags! There’s increased staffing considerations to make this happen, as well. Their IT may not even be up for implementing all of the changes they’ve announced.
In September, I wrote that basic economy and checked bag fees were coming but then CEO Bob Jordan explained to investors why free checked bags made the airline more profitable and sent a message to customers promising free checked bags would stay. At this point can the damage be undone? Would customers even trust them again?
(HT: Paddle Your Own Kanoo)
I believe Southwest is going to hurt there self by doing what they are doing cause people are going to look for deals with other airlines I been flying Southwest for about 30 years and I’m going to be looking also
@jns — Speak for yourself, some folks pay good money to get that cordyceps tea. Yum!
@John — With you 100%. “Corporations in America never take action until the stock tanks…” (which it sorta just did) …”then it’s half-hearted, too-little-too-late action.” Oh, so, like this silly survey. Bah!
@Dwondermeant — Agree with you in-part. Yes, they’re likely ‘toast,’ but we all kinda are, too. Maybe we shouldn’t have voted for the tariff guy. Hoover 2.0. Shoulda known… (many of us did).
@Randy — That’s a fantastic analogy. How apt! And, if this is a ‘New Coke’ equivalent, then I await the ‘swift return’ of the original formula.
@AAnonymous — Oh, pray tell, which ‘competitor’ was it…/s. Wow, so you’d rather pay to fly Southwest even if you could take AA standby ? Like, I get it, if you really ‘need’ to fly that day/time, etc., but I guess that says more about American (“I wouldn’t fly them if it were free!”)
Loved Southwest’s original model. No frills, and had the most important things about flying – could pick your seat, could check bags, could get a carry on. Only issue I’d ever had with Southwest was that the whole line up system by number could be better. There is hardly enough space for 60 people+luggage to all stand around their tiny little sign posts, and often it puts the onus on the customer to be assertive about cutting in front of someone to be at their right place. Other than that though, I didn’t mind it at all. I just don’t see what benefits they offer anymore. Nothing about them makes me want to consider them more than any other airline.
It’s not that I won’t ever fly SWA again, it’s just that all these changes were totally unnecessary. They had devoted customers, with actual affection for the unique ways they took care of us. Now? Who knows what comes next. And if there’s no reason to choose SWA over the cheapies, why bother?
Used to love SW but now will be looking elsewhere. Why fly SW if I can’t sit with family or have to pay for checked bags? Other airlines have better pricing so will just be looking for the better deal. Bye bye SW
Why would you take a great thing and try and fix something that is not broken? Not happy at all. Will definitely be looking elsewhere.
Southwest messed up. I don’t know where they’re getting the fact that people want assigned seats.. the only ones that want assigned seats are the ones that want to be in the front of the plane. I loved the open seating and that was my main reason for choosing Southwest. It’s what made them unique and stood out, and then on top of that you had free bags. They were the best airline to fly even though they were more expensive than other airlines. Southwest will be bankrupts within a year because they’re just better options and they no longer stand out. They are no longer unique. All they had to do vaj charge the families who were trying to take advantage of bringing everybody on board with them. All they had to do was keep their early bird policy and allow people who wanted to buy the seats for the front of the plane to do so. Otherwise I was totally fine not being in the front of the plane. I liked being able to pick my own seat and I was always going to guarantee myself a window seat.
Assigned seats made me already look at other airlines and see which was cheaper once I found out the Southwest was going to end open seating. Open seating was the best thing about Southwest including their free bags. They were the only airline that did this. They could have kept the open seating model and stopped allowing family boarding before everyone, had people provide validation if they were truly disabled, etc. There were ways around ending too many pre boarders. But this?! No! Helll no! This was stupid. They no longer stand out. They’re like any other airline and now I’ll choose them over SW. Worst wifi, terrible leg room, uncomfortable seats,. Open seating is really all they had going for them in my opinion.
Open seating was the MAIN reason I picked Southwest. Now I will be looking elsewhere. If I have to pay for my seat and pay for my checked bags I can definitely do it with an airline that will accommodate me more. Taking away open seating is not a smart move. All they had to do was make little changes with the lineup system with the multiple pre-boarders. It’s so much easier for them to have just tweaked what was becoming a situation or a problem of what people might have complained about but open seating wasn’t one of them that they needed to change entirely. Allowing people to do the early bird was fine. And then all they had to do as far as allowing the families to get on board before everyone is either limit them to a parent and a child or make them pay for assigned seating since it would be a lot of them. Them so for each additional family member that they would want to sit by them, they would have to pay for assigned seats. There just wasn’t better way to do this. It seems like Southwest wants to tank the company. I can think of no other reason why they would take away everything that made them stand out and make them unique and be like everybody else. This does not show the customer They Care. This isn’t our show that they are putting us first. I’ve been flying with Southwest for 15 years and now I will be going somewhere else guaranteed.
That is NOT an official SW Survey …really? *eye roll*
They literally took away the only reasons to book Southwest. They’ve become the same as everybody else, without experience operating that way and won’t do it as well as their competition. So why would I use them now?
I for one am so glad they are getting rid of the open seat policy. The open seat policy is stressful and a nightmare for families. Everything else they are doing is a mistake. They need to get rid of those old outdated and smelly 737-700s. They need to improve there on-time performance. They have just become a very plain airline, kind of like burger king of the skies. Boring
I for one am so glad they are getting rid of the open seat policy. The open seat policy is stressful and a nightmare for families. Everything else they are doing is a mistake. They need to get rid of those old outdated and smelly 737-700s. They need to improve there on-time performance. They have just become a very plain airline, kind of like burger king of the skies. Boring
So I have the Southwest credit card and I do use it but they changed and lowered the points when flying then they take away the 2 free bags. My husband wants to switch airlines because he says there is no reason to fly with them
I could see going to 1 free bag. Still a perk. But 2 to 0 takes away their advantage. I also preferred the seating as people had incentive to get in the plane. With assigned seating, I want to be near last unless I’m carrying more than fits under the seat. Who likes sitting in these tubes unless it’s for the paycheck that comes with it.
Southwest Airlines will be fine. It’s time for change. If you don’t want to pay for bags. Then go pay for them somewhere else. Their customer service is better then. All them rude employees at the other 3 majors. I’m all for the new Southwest. Maybe they will get new customers with class.
At least they didn’t announce they’re now a premium airline.
I’m very disappointed by the changes at SWA. The legacy airlines, all of which I have million+ mile lifetime status, are now going to have SWA fliers trying them with various status match programs like DL is now offering. With nothing now that distinguishes SWA from a legacy carrier (except for point to point flying) then those of us loyally flying legacy airlines also lose in this deal. They were never price competitive; I always checked but was grateful that SWA flights cost same or more (mostly more) than legacy carriers. The smallest exit row seating in the industry. Later in the day flights rarely on time. Now they want to charge for bags at the gate and expect SWA flights to “turn” quickly? Whomever sticks with SWA is going to be disappointed in the slow operational turnaround time once the changes take hold. Culturally – the employees have got alot of change to swallow and its hard to imagine that going well. The old saying “culture eats strategy for breakfast” will be viewed first hand by those flying SWA. Management simply can’t offer fares low enough – or companion passes for everyone – when their operational metrics fall.
Instead of changing your entire model, you should have just listened to your employees and gotten rid of the horrible middle management and ghetto workers with crap attitudes. I never liked Southwest Airlines, but I do appreciate how it worked for others and gave them a more unique experience. I feel sad for your loyal longtime fliers.
The issue with Southwest’s changes is not the changes, but the timing. Their data shows people want assigned seats. The avoidance factor for not having assigned seats is significant. This isn’t the original days flying one-hour hops within Texas. Someone flying transcon or transcon plus Hawaii leg (10 hours) is more likely to want a seat assignment. HOU-AUS, OAK-BUR, PHX-LAS, etc. who cares. So the change was necessary as a function of the flying they’re doing.
The baggage is clearly a negative to all. Rolling that out now rather than when you change the whole package was shortsighted. They could have taken some of the sting off, because the way they did it, there’s no benefit for anyone for the next year or so.