The document proposes two tactical visions - Hands-Free Baggage and AIR Concierge - to improve the airport travel experience and reduce friction. Hands-Free Baggage would allow travelers to check-in and track baggage without interacting directly, and could deliver baggage to the destination. AIR Concierge would be a connected platform and virtual assistant to provide contextual travel information, wayfinding, food/retail ordering, and flight updates to travelers via their devices. Both concepts aim to modernize the customer experience and generate additional revenue opportunities for airlines and airports.

1. A tactical vision for [Airline / Airport]
Frictionless Travel
Universal Mind Innovation LabFrictionless Travel

2. Our Purpose
Why are we here today?
ExperimentResearch
Design
understand test / learn
build
Universal Mind
Innovation Lab
Innovation LAB
Sprint Process
Tactical Vision:
Frictionless Travel

3. Where we started

4. Where we started.
To understand the implications of creating
solutions for resolving the variety of air
travel issues, we reached out to travelers,
flight attendants, and a dispatcher.
Through this process we uncovered some
expected and unexpected results.
This process allowed us to begin shaping
our empathy for the end users which we
channel in our strategic and design efforts
throughout the initiative.

5. Air Travel Archetypes
Leisure Traveler Business Traveler Traveler with
Family or Group
Vacations involve more
planning and research.
More thrifty.
Tends to have a group
leader. Under more stressful
conditions.
Travel is constant. They want
priority treatment and rewards
for loyalty.
Pilots and Flight
Attendants
Time is money. Baggage
causes most delays/stress.
16 hour days. Mainly worried
about ability to get food
and coffee.

6. Why We Chose The Leisure Traveler
Leisure Traveler
MOBILE USAGETRAVEL SPENDING
78% of domestic trips
taken are for leisure
purposes
2.28 times more spending
on leisure travel than
business travel
40% leisure travelers
book travel on their
smartphone
80% of millennials use
turn by turn directions
25% of users get public
transit information
76% of passengers are
using airline apps
9% use mobile checkin
The rise of “Bleisure" trips
Decline in the price of oil
*U.S. Travel Association 2014. CNN 2015. SITA 2014. Pew Research Center 2015. Google 2014.

7. Archetypes Breakdown
Traveler with Family/
Groups
Pilots and Flight
Attendants
Business TravelerLeisure Traveler
Price
Services
Loyalty
Greatest
Point of
Friction
Delayed flights/canceled
flights and security pre-check.
Insensitive to price.Sensitive to price.
Security and
boarding.
Expects more service. Expects good rewards for loyalty.
Not loyal. Very loyal.
Security and
boarding.
Sensitive to price.
Wants to be able to sit with family.
Baggage
Checks bags depending on
length of stay/destination.
Never checks bags. Checks bags with young children.
Airport
Technology
Average/early adopter (Tripit
or airline’s app).
Early adopter (United app,
Passbook, Tripit)
Late adopter.
Getting to flights on time. Bags
to fit before takeoff. Having a
reliable flight dispatch system.
Mechanical & weather issues.
Pre-check Rarely has this status Always has this status
Rarely uses this since not
everyone in the group has it
Seat
Preference
Not the middle. Prefers business class. Family to sit together.
Depends on the price, loyal if
negligible difference.
Wayfinding New airports, no clue. Routine airports, usually. New airports, usually.
Carry-on only. Pack for three
days at a time. Sometimes five.
KCM (known crew member) makes it
a breeze. Not all airports have KCM.
Has less time to get to flights since
cuts into off time. Wants to get food/
coffee fast and go
iCrew for Delta and iCrewMax.
Can fly on partner planes for free
Has limited time from curbside to
the gate. Doesn’t know how long it
will take to get there at all airports.

8. Air Travel Journey
CHECK-IN
ARRIVING AT
AIRPORT
SECURITY
CHECK BAG
SHOPPING/
DINING
BOARDING
INFLIGHT
DEBOARDING
BAGGAGE
CLAIM
CUSTOMS/
IMMIGRATION
LEAVING
AIRPORT
FINDING
GATE
“Our passengers repeatedly tell us that
the security checkpoint is a universal pain
point. Nearly 60% of those surveyed in
our 2014 Global Passenger Survey said
that a bad security experience at a
transfer airport will affect their future
connecting choices.”
Security
“47% of time is spent 'waiting and
watching.’”
Boarding
Estimated cost per mishandled bag is
$100. Avg. 3.7/1000 mishandled bags.
Baggage Claim
10% of time is spent at customs and
immigration.
Customs / Immigration
*IATA, ACI, SITA, U.S. Department of Transportation

9. Strategic Choices

10. Strategic Choices

11. Business Model Canvas

12. Effects on the BMC

13. Service Package

14. Service Package Opportunity

15. “Air travel remains for many a disappointing, grumble-worthy experience.”
Processing Waiting Lost opportunity
2015 Aviation Trends, PwC
26% of a passenger’s time is
wasted in check-in and security.
21% of total time in the
terminal can be devoted to
commercial activity.
53% of time wasted waiting in
lines, standing around.
*ACI

16. Stakeholder Interests
1. Diversify
income
2. Build loyalty
Improve UX
1. Streamline security
2. Improve boarding
3. Wayfinding and wait times
4. Streamline baggage
1. Improve efficiency
2. Stay punctual
3. Incidental fees
1. Reduce cost
2. Reduce waste
3. Increase revenue
AirlinesAirports
Customers
1. Improve boarding
2. Streamline
baggage
1. Streamline security
2. Improve
discoverability

17. What we heard

18. “The hardest part of my job is getting people
[and their baggage] on and off planes.”
— Natalie, Flight Attendant

19. “I pay for priority seating so I know I can fit my stuff
in the overhead bin. I pay for peace of mind.”
— Haris, Leisure Traveler

20. "Food accessibility is limited. Sometimes you don’t
have time to get food between connections.
Companies are losing money because they are
not providing this service.”
— Sam, Flight Attendant

21. “It would be great if they could fix the
boarding process. I can never understand
what they’re saying through the speaker.”
— John, Father Traveling with Family

22. Friction + Fragmentation = Poor Experiences

23. “The less friction that exists within the interactions a
customer has with your brand, the more business
you’ll capture. Just ask taxi drivers.”
Why We’ll Wait for Frictionless Customer Experiences
by Jeremy Epstein

24. Objective: Improve baggage experience, wayfinding,
and time savings/expectations. Implement hands-free
interactions and interfaces that reduce friction. Be
predictive, making contextual connections between
customers and services.

25. A Travel Story

26. Susan is excited to take her
husband Larry on their second
honeymoon. With the kids out
of the house, she feels it is
time for them to have some
fun and reconnect.

27. Susan and Larry map the route
directly to the long term
parking spot, which they have
reserved for their trip.
“Looks like security isn’t too
bad right now,” Larry says as
he checks the latest wait times
for TSA.
After stopping, Susan sees
that a reminder of the car’s
location has been saved for
their return day.
They head into the airport,
knowing there’s plenty
of time.

28. Larry places the baggage in
one of the many self-serve
baggage portals. He checks
the screen to see that it
matches their final destination,
and heads over to Susan.
“Glad to be rid of those!” he
states with glee.

29. “We’d better get to security,”
Susan says. “You never know
how long that will take!”
Susan holds her smartwatch
close to a sensor post and
their IDs and tickets and pre-
cleared status show up for the
TSA agent.
The agent asks a few
questions and then waves
them through, wishing them
good luck on their trip.

30. Susan realizes they have
some time before their flight.
She checks to see what
is available.
“Hey Larry, there is a new
coffee place that delivers to
the gate. Do you want to
try it?”
“Need caffeine,” he playfully
replies, zombie-like.

31. “Coffees will meet us at the
gate in 20 minutes,” Susan
exclaims.”We have more time
than I thought!”
Larry goes to look for nearby
things to do, when Susan
receives a notification of a
discount in a nearby
bookstore.
“Oh, Larry, let’s grab some
books for the plane!”

32. While browsing, Susan
receives a notification
boarding is in 30 minutes.
She is immediately put at
ease, knowing she still
has enough time to get
to the gate.
The turn-by-turn directions
with estimated walking time
from the bookstore are
available with a quick swipe
from the notification.

33. Susan can’t believe how smooth
her experience from the car to
the gate has been. Suddenly,
she receives a notification their
flight has been delayed.
Frustration eases when she
receives a notification for a
discount on their next gate
food order and an explanation
for the delay.
A few minutes later, a young
man arrives with hot coffees.
They relax and wait for the
boarding notification.

34. Hassle-free baggage
Boarding begins. When Larry
looks at his screen, he is
pleasantly surprised to see an
assortment of gift certificates to
“ease the middle seat blues.”
Larry browses the selection of
promotions on his seat back
screen and finds his favorite
mens grooming line.
“Larry, are you really going to
buy more aftershave?”
He only grins as he throws in a
couple waxes and blades.
Susan shakes her head
and smiles.

35. Susan and Larry land in New
York and receive a notification
that their baggage made it.
She briefly ponders how much
time she has before her
luggage gets to the carousel
and thinks, “Where is the
carousel?” when her phone
sends her a notification that
her baggage will be on
carousel 15-20 minutes.
“Larry, we have 20 minutes to
run to the restroom and grab a
few things for the trip,” Susan
reports.

36. With an extra 15 minutes
before her bag appears on the
carousel, Susan ducks into
a shop to purchase a few
extras for the trip so they can
relax the rest of the way.

37. After their luggage appears
on time, Susan and Larry
find their way to their rental,
bypassing the heavy taxi
terminal, based on a tip
from the AIR Concierge.
“Too bad they can’t give us
some tips to avoid the New
York traffic!” Larry jokes.
Loaded up and happy, they
whisk away into their NYC
vacation wonderland.

38. Tactical Visions:
Hands-Free Baggage
AIR Concierge

39. Hands-Free Baggage

40. Services:
Products:
“Luggage is long overdue for some serious innovation. The last big breakthrough —
wheeled suitcases — rolled out in 1970. Crowdfunded startups and established luggage
companies seem to have suddenly realized the market opportunity, and they are adding
Wi-Fi hot spots, Bluetooth, SIM cards, GPS and built-in batteries to their products.”
CIO Magazine 2015

41. Hands-Free Baggage
‣ Premium baggage service.
‣ Visibility into location and status of
baggage anytime.
‣ Drop off locations or have baggage
picked up at home.
‣ Baggage delivery to final destination,
or at airport.
‣ A base version offers tracking tag and
tracking / carousel notifications.
‣ Seamless customer experience and
additional revenue for airlines.
Industry Context
‣ Baggage fees brought in $3.5 billion at
about $25 per bag in 2014.*
*US Department of Transportation

42. A 3D-printed baggage tag is sent to you to track your bag’s location throughout your journey.

43. The tag pairs with your device where you can notify service for home pickup if choosing
premium service.

44. With base service, baggage is processed at one of many self-serve baggage portals.

45. Checking your device (or kiosk), you feel the comfort of knowing your baggage is on the way to your
destination.

46. With base service, relax with a coffee while your baggage is taken off the plane, knowing when it will be
on the carousel.

47. With premium service, leave the airport hands-free, knowing that your baggage is waiting at your
hotel room.

48. AIR Concierge

49. “[…] the future of the consumer internet: the evolution of “search,” away from typed
search-engine queries towards a more personalized, interactive service, and a gradual shift from
individual apps to an ecosystem of services that is mediated by a powerful software assistant.”
App in the Air
The Economist 2015

50. *SITA
AIR Concierge
‣ Connected platform to modernize
customer experience.
‣ One stop for contextual trip information.
‣ Ticket, IDs, easily accessible.
‣ Seamless wayfinding during trips.
‣ Access to food services and merchants.
‣ Direct connection to airline customer
service or flight crew.
‣ Notifications for luggage and detailed
flight status updates.
‣ Utilizes existing technologies and future
additions, like beacons, NFC, sensors.
Industry Context
‣ 44% of airlines plan to leverage beacons
by 2018*

51. Receive notification it’s time to leave for the airport based on factors like traffic, security line, parking.

52. Drive to your reserved parking spot, guided by turn-by-turn directions. Payment is seamless at end of
trip.

53. For users without smartphones or the app: Review your ticket/boarding, order food, view amenities, or
get help.

54. Order a coffee, food, or even books / supplies, from your phone and have it delivered to your gate.

55. Receive haptic notifications for when you need to board or updated flight info, via smartphone or
wearable.

56. Chat with flight attendants for flight service or reach out to virtual assistant for help.

57. Upon arrival, you are updated on connecting gates, baggage info, or guided to transportation.

58. Thank you.
Travelers in search of great experiences.
Marc Mueller
UX Specialist
Francisco Inchauste
UX Principal
Megan Tom
UX Specialist
Ken Storen
UX Specialist
Joe Johnston
VP, Experience Innovation
joe.johnston@universalmind.com

59. INNOVATE WITH US
hello@universalmind.com