Text 7. Lufthansa’s Market Research

When an airline has young fleet, experienced pilots, attentive cabin crew and the pickiest ground technicians in the world, it is free to concentrate on what is really important: you.

                                             So runs a Lufthansa Airline ad.

Several decades ago, this German airline company couldn’t  offer the customer its undivided attention and care. Today, it is taking great pride in its newly earned reputation - not just for quality, but also for being a 'good listener'. It has learnt that superior quality service and doing what the customer wants is the key to customer retention.

As one of the world's largest route network operations, Lufthansa conducted one of the most complex passenger surveys ever carried out. Airline researchers asked only a few thousand travelers for their views and comments. The German airline surveyed some 300.000 European business travelers who fly with them or other airlines.

Top of the list of wants for a better flight for business customers was more leg-room and elbow-room, followed in third and fourth places by desig­nated lounges and non-smoking aircraft. Separate check-ins and passport control were the top two most important convenience factors stressed by the business customers surveyed.

Lufthansa took note and carried out tests on wider seating arrange­ments for business-class passengers on selected German domestic and European routes. Responses were very positive. It redesigned business-class seats to make them wider. The new seats are installed in Lufthansa's Boeing 737, Airbus A320 and A321 jets. Wide-body Airbus A300 and A310 aircraft are also equipped with modified versions.

To ensure that Lufthansa got things right first time, the design of the new seat was carefully thought out. Airline seat manufacturer worked with Lufthansa's marketing and technical staff. Other conveniences were also incorporated into the new seats. For example, they are equipped with modern communication systems.

Finding out what target customers require or desire is one thing. Responding to these demands and to the satisfaction of customers is another. Lufthansa ran an ad campaign to thank respondents. But as the story above shows, a customer focus can benefit service businesses. To improve service quality, the firm must listen to what customers want and then commit resources to deliver that. Marketing was developed initially for selling physical products, such as toothpaste, cars, steel and equipment. However, marketing principles can also be applied to organiz­ations that offer services, such as Lufthansa.

Exercise 56. Answer the questions.

1. What did Lufthansa conduct to find out passenger’s wants? 2. What were the top most important convenience factors stressed by the business customers surveyed? 3.  For a traveler flying with Lufthansa, what exactly constitutes the 'service offering'?

 

Exercise 57. Give Ukrainian equivalents.

Experienced pilots, cabin crew, ground technicians, to take great pride, superior quality service, complex passenger survey, non-smoking aircraft, marketing and technical staff, elbow-room.

 

Exercise 5 8. Put questions to the underlined words. 

1) Lufthansa is taking great pride in its newly earned reputation.

2) Airline researchers asked only a few thousand travelers for their views and comments.

3) The new seats are installed in Lufthansa's Boeing 737, Airbus A320 and A321 jets.

4) Lufthansa ran an ad campaign to thank respondents.

5) The firm must listen to what customers want and then commit resources to deliver that.

 

Exercise 59. Study the verb tense forms from the text, name and translate them with the word combinations they are used in.

Exercise 60. Study the collocations below. Check any unknown words in a dictionary.

sales

campaign, drive, figures, force, personnel promotion, staff, team, volume

 

disappointing, export, foreign, global, international, overseas, poor, weak, worldwide	sales
bring out, discontinue, improve, introduce, launch, modify, take ... off the market, upgrade, withdraw	a product
attractive, exorbitant, fair, high, inflated, reasonable, retail, selling	price
agree on / to, arrive at, bring down, cut, establish, increase, lower, push up, put up, raise, reduce, set, work out	a price
booming, depressed, expanding, flat, growing, healthy, niche, sluggish, specialist, strong, weak	market
be forced out of, break into, corner, dominate, enter, monopolize, take over, withdraw from	the market

Exercise 61. Read what a pilot says about his work. Fill in the blanks with have to, don’t have to, or can’t.

Being a pilot is a great job in lots of ways – for a start, you …  work 9.00 to 5.00 in an office – but I don’t think I ever wanted a job like that. As a pilot you … be responsible, because a lot of people depend on you. Health is important – we have regular medicals and eye tests, because as a pilot you … be 100% fit and alert. You … spend weeks in the gym or anything else like that, but before any long flight you … make sure you get plenty of rest, and of course you … drink alcohol. When you’re flying, you … be able to concentrate really hard for long periods – this is one job where you simply … make mistakes.

 

Exercise 62. Learn the following words and word combinations.

the World Intellectual Property Organization	– Всесвітня організація інтелектуальної власності
agency	– організація; заклад
intellectual property	– інтелектуальна власність
granted patent	– виданий патент
patent protection	– захист патентних прав
industrial design	– промисловий зразок
copyright	– авторське право
dissemination	– розповсюдження
interwoven	– переплітатися
the Agreement on Trade-Related  Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights	– Угода про торговельні аспекти прав інтелектуальної власності
the World Trade Organization	– Світова організація торгівлі
The UK Patent Office	– Патентне відомство Великобританії
counterfeiting	– підробка; фальсифікація; незаконне використання фірмових знаків
infringement	– правопорушення (використання прав власника торгівельної марки без його згоди)
infringer	– правопорушник
trademark holder	– власник торгівельного знаку
disclaimer	– відмова
The Consumer Protection Act	– Закон про захист прав споживачів

Exercise 63. Read, translate and give the gist of text 8.

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