Virgin Atlantic Is Using Google Glass to Greet Customers The British airline hopes to improve customer service through wearable technology.
By Laura Entis
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
Google Glass may enhance a lot of activities: patrols and police investigations, surgery, even sex.
And now, Virgin Atlantic is testing whether or not wearable technology can improve customer service.
Virgin Atlantic business and first class passengers (or Upper Class passengers, as they're called in Britain) flying from London Heathrow airport will be greeted by employees wearing Google Glass or a Sony SmartWatch 2.
The aim is to make the travel experience more personalized and seamless. Using wearable technology, the Virgin Atlantic staff will be able to update passengers on their latest flight information, weather and local events at their destination, as well as translate any foreign language information.
Related: Google Just Made 'Glass' More Useful, Less Dorky
"While it's fantastic that more people can now fly than ever before, the fact that air travel has become so accessible has led to some of the sheen being lost for many passengers," Dave Bulman, Director of IT, Virgin Atlantic, said in a press release. In the future, the technology could alert airline staff to additional personalized preferences, like passengers' dietary restrictions and desired refreshments.
While the pilot program is only scheduled to last for six weeks, if deemed successful, it could be reintroduced on a larger scale.
Virgin Atlantic will also begin testing iBeacon technology, a Bluetooth transmitter that can alert nearby iOS users to nearby services, discounts and updates on their flight boarding schedules, on its Upper Class passengers.
Related: What a Trip to LAX Taught Me About Customer Service
