United Airlines: Providing Extra Help For Those Who Need It

Now, let's look at what happens when someone calling United Airlines doesn't know the flight number.

SYSTEM:	Welcome to United Airlines' flight information system. I'll be able to help you get information on all United, United Express, and United Shuttle flights . Enter or say the flight number or say "I don't know it" if you're unsure.
CALLER:	Uh, I don't know it?
SYSTEM:	OK, we'll find it a different way. Oh, here's a hint: If you ever know the answer to a question I'm asking, you can always interrupt me, and if you get stuck, say "Help." Here goes: Would you like arrival or departure information?
CALLER:	Departure.
SYSTEM:	OK, and from which city is the flight departing?
CALLER:	Boston.
SYSTEM:	and in which city does the flight arrive ?
CALLER:	Los Angeles.
SYSTEM:	United serves more than one airport in the Los Angeles area. They are: Los Angeles International Airport, Santa Anna ”
CALLER:	(Caller barges in and cuts off the playing of the prompt) Los Angeles International.
SYSTEM:	OK, and about what time is the flight scheduled to depart?
CALLER:	8:30?
SYSTEM:	In the morning or in the evening?
CALLER:	Morning.
SYSTEM:	OK, I'll look for flights that have that itinerary, hold on. <Database look-up> I found a few flights that match that itinerary ”three, to be exact. Help me find the right flight. Here's the first one on my list: Option 1, Flight 487, departs Boston at 9:15 A.M. and arrives at Los Angeles International at 12:55 P.M. You can say "This one" or " Next " to move on.
CALLER:	This one.
SYSTEM:	OK, hold on while I get the flight information for Flight 487. <Database look-up> Flight 487 is delayed and will be departing Boston at 9:55 A.M.

Clearly, it's a longer process when the caller doesn't know the flight number ”and people who use the system frequently quickly learn to have the flight numbers before they call. But it's also important to make sure that the millions of infrequent callers don't feel bad because they don't know the number. That's why we use the phrase "That's OK, we'll find it a different way." It's designed to relax callers , letting them know that the system doesn't really care which method they use. At the same time, it subtly reminds callers that they can get their information even faster the next time if they know the flight numbers .

Also note that it is only at the beginning of collecting the itinerary that the system tells callers they can barge in to interrupt the prompt, and say "Help" for more information. Why? There are two reasons. First, it would be a lengthy and cumbersome message to play to each and every caller every time they used the system. Second, callers who call into the system multiple times will quickly know to barge in and interrupt a familiar prompt, so they don't need to be constantly retaught. The "Help" command needs to be there to alert all callers what to do if there are any problems ”for example, if the system doesn't understand them or doesn't hear something they say.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the second example is the following phrase.

"I found a few flights that match that itinerary ”three, to be exact. Help me find the right flight. Here's the first one on my list."

Now, we could have had the system simply say, "Three flights almost matched your itinerary." However, understanding that database look-ups can take a long time, particularly during bad weather when flights are delayed or cancelled, we didn't want a number like "three" to be the first thing callers heard without first providing some context. To get around this, we used the phrase "I found a few flights that match that itinerary." Besides providing context for the flight information to come, it lets the caller know that, although the system thinks it's close to finding the right flight, it's not quite there yet. The system then goes on to say, almost parenthetically, "Three, to be exact." This serves to inform the caller of the scope of the work they will be undertaking.

The next part of the prompt ”"Help me find the right flight" ”is an example of reciprocity, as discussed in Chapter 3. It tells the caller that, although the system wants to get them the right information, the caller needs to do a little more work to narrow down the search, and it motivates the caller to do the work.

The final phrase ”"Here's the first one on my list" ”is spoken quite quickly, for two reasons; we want to get to the information fast, and we want callers to feel that it will be easy. It reminds me of what happens when a small child trips and falls . The child will look up as if to ask, "Should I cry?" If our faces show alarm, the child will definitely cry. But if we smile and reassure the child that no serious harm has been done, the kid will happily resume playing. Similarly, we want a caller to feel that this will be a quick and easy task.