Checking in at an airport can be unpredictable. Depending on the time of the day and day of the week, guests find themselves in lines that take 45 minutes to an hour just to check in and pay for their luggage. This doesn’t include security. Already, airline guests are frustrated, and they haven’t even made it to the terminal yet.
With the advancement of mobile devices and the capabilities of mobile apps and messaging, there is no need for customers to have to go to a counter to interact with their airline. In fact, a Clickatell report found nearly nine out of 10 consumers prefer to use mobile messaging to interact with airlines, and more than three-fourths said they are willing to use a mobile payment link with travel brands.
To FlySafair customers’ delight, they do not have to worry about waiting in line to pay for luggage anymore. The South African airline is utilizing Clickatell’s Chat 2 Pay feature that allows its customers the convenience of effortless mobile payments via FlySafair's WhatsApp channel.
“No one has time to stand in queues anymore, and almost every adult on the planet has a mobile phone,” said Jeppe Dorff, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Clickatell. “There is a major opportunity for airlines across the globe to enhance their customers' travel experience by making it possible to browse, book and pay for, as well as manage their travel bookings on their mobile phones.”
The FlySafair WhatsApp channel hosts information about customer bookings, flight statuses, general flight information, an option to check-in and receive boarding passes on WhatsApp, the option to chat with a live agent, and now the option to make payments for extra products and services.
To access the WhatsApp service, FlySafair customers send "Hi" to the FlySafair business account on +27-87-357-0030. Once in the channel, customers select "My Booking" and then "Buy a Bag" and follow the prompts on the secure payment link to make a purchase on WhatsApp. Customers can also scan a QR code at the check-in counters to receive the secure payment link.
"We are always looking for ways to improve our customer experience,” said Kirby Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer at FlySafair. “Our goal is to offer all the functionality currently available on our website via the WhatsApp channel, making end-to-end booking and reservation management as easy as possible.”
FlySafair customers, skip the tedious lines at the bag check counter and safely make payments through a Chat 2 Pay link delivered in a message (without exposing personal payment information to a call center agent or by reading payment card details out loud).
Edited by
Alex Passett
