Arriva, one of the biggest transport companies in Europe, provides transport services of the highest quality in 14 European countries, and in Serbia has been the first choice for travel since 2013
Our company follows the trends, and that’s why it’s important to us to offer our customers simple and quick solutions – to choose their own route, line, price etc., sitting in their own home with the help of just three clicks. That’s what we will strive for in the future.
How challenging was it to raise awareness among customers of a foreign brand that was hitherto unknown to a large number of people on our market?
– Since the launch of our operations in Serbia in 2013, it was a great challenge for us to build a reputation, raise brand awareness and gain the trust of our customers. We wanted to send the public a message stating that Arriva has a long-term commitment to the Serbian market through the establishment of the highest standards of passenger transport and customer care, which we continue to strive towards.
Moreover, our goal was also to impose ourselves as an innovator in the service segment, using in the process the messages of the Arriva strategy Mobility Partner of Choice, which state that we want to have the best employees, a bigger and better Arriva, strong foundations, and that we are the first choice for our customers.
How do you justify the trust of your customers? How does one even acquire the loyalty of travellers?
– The traveller today expects the journey to be safe and the transport vehicle to be comfortable and clean. Also testifying to this is market research that we conducted in cooperation with colleagues from the Faculty of Transport Engineering in Belgrade. On the basis of that research, we concluded that the organisation of the traveller’s time is crucial.
And as it is much more difficult to anticipate future situations in the transport industry, including those that could potentially become crises, Arriva leads the way as a system in standardisation and procedural policy. Predicting means preserving an acquired image, so the rules that determine and anticipate behaviour in crisis situations must be imperative. It is crucial to delegate tasks well, to rely on IT infrastructure support, but also respond responsibly, effectively and calmly.
Arriva’s main values are safety, satisfying the needs of all users, care for the environment, continuous investment in employees and the growth of the company
What are your company’s further plans? Can we expect some new project?
– The organisation of safe, reliable and comfortable travel is our priority, but we also direct equal attention to the development of the local communities in which we operate. Our aspirations were also recognised at the end of last November by the award commission of the Braničevo District Regional Chamber of Commerce, which decided to present an award to us for our special contribution to the development of the economy and the region in the service sector. This is an indicator that our contribution and our communication with users have gone in a good direction.
Arriva, as a company, is constantly focused on developing technological advancements and innovations, and I would like to single out the Arriva Click project, launched in London. This is an on-demand way of travelling with the possibility of registering and selecting initial and final destinations, and which, I believe, will be increasingly common. Our goal is to impose ourselves in the segment of digitalisation as both educators and innovators.
How important is communicating with your customers is it to keep pace with modern trends?
– Digital communications must be directed not only towards the millennials but also towards other age categories. Thanks to communication via social networking, we managed to accelerate online ticket sales. However, blindly following trends, such as the use of various applications, may not necessarily be a good thing, because properly valuing implemented activities and relying on valid data is crucial. It is important for us to build an image and impose ourselves as an initiator and innovator, and not to create campaigns that will generate viral content at all costs.