Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Author: Russell Grantham

If you run into someone yelling "Dulles, not Dallas!" into their cellphone, don't be alarmed. It's probably a frequent flier tangling with an airline's automated telephone voice-recognition system.

Borrowing a page from telephone companies — which long ago adopted the systems for directory assistance calls — most major airlines now use voice recognition to answer customers' questions or get information before handing them to a human agent.

AirTran Airways turned flight information calls over to a computer two years ago. In December, Delta switched to a similar system to handle a broader range of calls — to the chagrin of many customers who complained that sighs, honking horns, cellphone static and other noises confused the system and landed them in voice-response limbo.

"It would say 'I don't understand you,' so [I] would start shouting at it," said David Edmondson, a Lawrenceville sales director, recounting his dealings with voice recognition. He often changes plans during his business trips, leading to frequent frustration.

When Edmondson finally got to a reservation agent, the "first thing I would say is, 'I want to lodge a complaint,' " he said.

Ailing airlines. like other businesses, need to cut costs in tough times, he added, but "sometimes we outsmart ourselves. I think this is one of those times."

Folks calling Delta's reservation number or others dedicated to frequent fliers are greeted by a female voice that prompts them to say whether they want to make a reservation, get flight information or deal with their SkyMiles account. If all goes well, more questions and responses follow until the customer has an answer or the system hands the customer off to an agent.

But blowback from high-milers prompted Delta last month to restore push-button responses from its old system on some lines.

That was too late for some frequent fliers, who have traded tips on how to do an end run around Delta's system to talk directly to reservation agents. In his most recent newsletter, Atlanta business travel expert Chris McGinnis counseled readers to hit "9" two or three times at the beginning of the call to bypass the system.

McGinnis recently asked readers of his online newsletter about Delta's voice-response system. He said he got a "huge swath of e-mails" — all complaints except one.

"I think the whole idea is to keep you away from a human," said McGinnis.

The top complaint, he said, was muddled results when calling Delta on a cellphone from a noisy place such as an airport.

"That's typically when you need it to work the most for you," he added.

Delta says the automated voice service — like its earlier moves to online reservations, airport check-in kiosks and telephone banks — boosts both customer service and employee efficiency.

"It actually speeds up the process, so that when people deal with agents, the transaction goes faster," said Delta spokesman Anthony Black.

Another Delta spokesman, John Kennedy, said the move to automate part of customer calls isn't aimed at reducing staff. He said Delta has between 5,500 and 6,000 employees in call centers around the globe — with its largest in Atlanta.

"It has nothing to do with staffing levels," Kennedy said. "The efficiencies gleaned are passed on to the customer in more efficient service and reduced wait time."

However, the carrier has tried several ways to reduce its cost to sell tickets and answer customers' questions. The airline hired contractors in 2002 to run call centers in India, and plans to close call centers in Boston and Los Angeles in September.

In January, Delta added a $5 fare surcharge for phone bookings and $10 at ticket counters or offices — part of a trend to push customers to Internet bookings, which are much less costly for the company.

Delta is tweaking the new system, and restored the option of touch-tone responses on April 1 for calls from members of its Medallion frequent-flier program, said Black, the Delta spokesman. That also allows those callers to program the proper keys into the speed-dial feature on their cellphones to go directly to an agent. Another upgrade is coming in June.

"What they said about it is they liked the system," said Black. But "touch tone offers specific advantages. Voice recognition offers other advantages, such as hands-free operation."

And for callers stuck in limbo on Delta's regular reservation line?

"All systems default to operators," said Black.

That's true, although callers have to figure it out by trial and error.

Just dial "9" or some other number several times, or just call from a really noisy place. After a few moments of confusion, the female voice says, "I'm sorry I'm having so much trouble. Let me connect you to a Delta service representative."