Improving customer experience at airports

At Finavia, we care deeply about our customers. That is why serving passengers is at the heart of our strategy. Our aim is ambitious because we want to provide world-class services at our airports.

An amazing customer experience is something worth striving for. It brings customers back to a Finavia airport and also makes them recommend the airport to others. At best, the customer experience at the airport is easy and stress-free.

A good experience keeps the promise of good service to customers and strengthens the brand. It is a significant way to stand out in the international competition between airports, since a third of passengers choose their flight route based on the reputation of the transfer airport.

The development of customer experience aims to four things: smooth processes, high-quality services, comfortable and functional spaces and friendly and in-the-moment customer service.

Finavia’s four pillars of customer experience – sense of time, security, refreshment and Finnish experiences – steer the development of the airport services. We work to improve all of these every day. We compare an airport to a good spa. After visiting an airport, a passenger should feel better than before coming to the airport – relaxed and energetic instead of irritated and stressed.

The projects we have carried out so far have received positive feedback from passengers and attracted attention from international media. The projects have led to a smoother experience, and they have offered unforgettable moments and memories for passenger.

Improving customer experience requires open-mindedness

Working with new ideas and producing groundbreaking services requires courage, since running experiments and various pilot projects is not necessarily part of airports’ characteristic development activities. It requires making changes to company culture, and much work has been done to achieve this at Finavia.

We strive to meet ideas for improvement with an open mind and to always give them a chance. No feedback or request for improvement should be rejected right away. Every idea will be taken into consideration and viewed from various perspectives, taking into account matters such as safety, ethicality, and eco-friendliness.

Surveys, customer feedback, and social media help us guide our improvement efforts to the right direction. We listen carefully to passengers, carriers, and our employees.

Implementing an idea for improvement at the airport means working through many issues

We pilot services and ideas that have reached the testing phase in as fast a cycle as is possible in an airport environment. However, implementing changes and pilot projects at airports takes time and is often expensive.

For safety reasons, everything to do with spaces, structures and furniture must be produced as if they were meant to be permanent. This increases costs as well as the time needed for production.

Everything at airports must be durable, low-maintenance, and meet the fire safety requirements. For example, ordinary furniture meant for use in offices and homes cannot be brought to the airport, since at Helsinki Airport they must be able to withstand being used by 50,000 passengers a day.

Read more about the ways we improve customer experience

This is how we are preparing to serve 30 million passengers in the future

Helsinki Airport wins two awards: best airport in Europe in its size category and recognition for hygiene measures during COVID-19

Helsinki Airport rated very good by passengers during Covid-19

Finavia will start piloting UVC technology to disinfect the security control trays after each use

Vaasa Airport to introduce mobile payments for parking

Parking at Turku Airport paid via a mobile app

Helsinki Airport ranked one of the most cybersecure airports in the world

Pets now have their own toilets at Helsinki Airport