Southwest APP Review: The Must-have APP for travelers
I have only booked Southwest flights twice when I was in college because of its low air fares. It’s not in my evoked sets when I consider domestic flights as the other airlines like Delta, JetBlue and United Airlines are more well-known and appearing more often in the spotlight. I recently read the article of Best and Worst U.S. Airlines of 2019 by Wall Street Journal, and Southwest ranks at third position in the best U.S. airlines ranking, with less delays and complaints compared to the other airlines. It got me interested in how Southwest is doing now, so I downloaded its APP to experience it, and did an APP review:
Ease of use: 22/25
The APP is easy to navigate, and well-organized. On the main page, it promotes the latest offers, such as low fare flights, summer accommodations and reward program. At the bottom, it has four main functions, book flight, flight status, check in and book car, which are the most frequently used functions by consumers, hence provide convenience. On the side navigation bar, it shows 4 main products and services on the top, flight, car, hotel and vacations. Under that, it provides more information about Southwest, such as the company information, loyalty program, contact information, link to website and privacy policy. The APP has everything that consumer needs with simplicity and ease to use.
Design: 11/15
The APP design is satisfactory. It applies the Southwest signature blue consistently in every aspect of the APP, from the font color to the color in the APP background. The font choice, icon and search box design are simple and modern. The APP logo design has blue background, and three Southwest signature colors, blue, red and yellow in the heart. It is simple, easy to recognized, modern and adorable. As Southwest targets the mass market, its APP design can’t be too complicated and fancy, and the current design can satisfy most consumers’ taste.
Innovation: 8/10
I am surprised to see Southwest incorporates AR in the APP. It has a unique feature call Bag Sizer, which estimates whether your bag can fit in the overhead bin by using camera. It provides tutorial to teach you how to use: you will scan the floor with phone camera first, stand the bag on the floor with the handle down, and then it will tell you if the bag is a carry-on or needs to be checked. Southwest is the first company that I have seen to provide this feature in the APP, and it provides convenience and perfectly solves the baggage problem of many travelers. AR is the hottest technology, and Southwest seamlessly applies it in its APP, thus improve customer satisfaction.
Engagement: 17/20
Southwest APP is engaging by offering the feature of the Southwest Community, which is a discussion forum with 130,000 members and 15,000 posts so far. The members constantly generate and share helpful contents, such as tips of reservations and travelling, and their experiences with Southwest. Southwest employees also produce blog posts of useful contents like company latest news and destination suggestions. Forming the Southwest community makes customer feel as part of the company, hence increase customer loyalty, and keep them engaged more with the brand.
Southwest also provides contact information on the side bar, including call, email and social media - Facebook and Twitter, allowing customers to engage with them directly, and receive valuable feedback.
Loyalty program: 18/20
As most of the airlines do, Southwest offers loyalty program called Rapid Rewards. It allows customers to earn points quickly by offering at least 6x points per dollar value, and starting earning since the first flight. Southwest also frequently provides bonus points in promotions, for example, in the current summer promotion, it offers double points by booking now. Even though I only used it twice in the past, I already used the loyalty program to earn points.
Extra feature — Do Not Sell My Info: 8/10
At the bottom of the side navigation bar, Southwest has a feature called Do Not Sell My Info. It’s the first company that I have seen to provide this feature. Nowadays, consumers are more worried about their data security because their data are often secretly sold to third-party without their permissions. By offering this feature, Southwest ensures consumers about their data security, and proves to become a socially responsible company that cares about consumers.
Overall: 84/100
The Southwest APP is very useful with all the features that consumers need, and it’s a must-have app for Southwest travelers. It’s easy to navigate with simple and modern design. It provides many useful and engaging features, such as the Southwest community, loyalty program, bag sizer and do not sell my info. It’s a pleasure to use, and I will recommend it to all Southwest travelers.
