Designing airports for millennials

Mélanie Carron - Valérie Boissier

Strategic Marketing Director - Senior Customer Experience Design Manager

PARIS AEROPORT
M ILLENNIALS, PASSIONATE
TRAVELLERS …

Today’s largest group of

passengers and tomorrow’s key
customers

Our ambition: fulfill the needs and

expectations of this leading,
demanding and strategic market

Through a unique experience

programme: Pearl

To become tomorrow’s first

responsive airport
PAGE 2
P ERSONALISATION

E XPERIENCE

A CCOMPANYING

R ESPONSIBILITY

L INKING

PAGE 3
 P ERSONALISATION
ME, MYSELF AND I

Enhance uniqueness

Exclusivity and personalisation

of the process and services
provided

Well-being and relaxation at

the heart of the experience

PAGE 4
 E XPERIENCE

INTENSITY

Live experiences, fun and

gaming

Mixing global and local

Usage versus ownership

PAGE 5
 A CCOMPANYING

RIGHT NOW, RIGHT HERE

Effortless in every way

Immediate and fleeting

Everything on personal devices

PAGE 6
R ESPONSIBILITY

GOODWILL AND
SOLIDARITY

Transparent information
at all times

Collaborative attitude

Opportunities for good deals

PAGE 7 7
L INKING

COMMUNITY

Sharing on social media

Being part of an airport

community

Being an empowered
passenger

PAGE 8
WHAT DO THEY
EXPECT FROM
AIRPORTS?

PAGE 9
 MILLENNIALS’ EXPECTATIONS AT DIFFERENT STAGES
OF THEIR AIRPORT EXPERIENCE

ACCESS PUBLIC CHECK-IN SECURITY RESTRICTED ARRIVAL

AREA CHECKS AREA

Tiredness Waiting time Exclusion Curiosity

Boredom
INSECURITY
STRESS RELIEF Excitement
Coldness
UNKNOWN LONELINESS
Inconfort Uncertainty Inconfort Impatience

DIGITAL SPEED SPEED EFFICIENCY CONNECTIVITY SPEED & TRANSPARENCY

TECHNOLOGY INTUITIVENESS FLUIDITY TRANSPARENCY ENTERTAINMENT EASIER ACCESS TO
SYNCING ANTI-TERRORIST SUPPORT & COMFORT ACCESSIBILITY in terms of DIFFERENT TRANSPORT
MAKING IT FUN SECURITY REASSURANCE CONSIDERATE price and offering OPTIONS
EXPERIENCE ENTERTAINMENT IN INTERACTIONS ON EQUAL NEW TYPE OF
THE EVENT OF WAIT FOOTING COMMERCIAL
TIME KINDNESS INTERACTION
WARMER, MORE
MODERN ATMOSPHERE

PAGE 10
ACCESS
DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY
MANAGE TRAVEL USING SMARTPHONE APPS,
AS EVERY DAY COMUTE

SYNCING
BE AUTOMATICALLY INFORMED OF EVENTS THAT
COULD IMPACT TRAVEL : REAL-TIME UPDATES,
SYNCED WITH OTHER SOURCES

DRAMATIZATION/CEREMONIAL
BEING INVITED TO FEEL AND
SHARE THE
EXPERIENCE OF LEAVING FOR A TRIP

PAGE 11
PUBLIC AREA

SPEED
REAL TROUBLE PUTTING UP WITH OVERLY LONG,
SLOW TRAVEL – DOESN’T LINE UP WITH THEIR
PACE IN LIFE

INTUITIVENESS
MILLENNIALS ARE NO LONGER USED TO “LOOKING
FOR” WHICH WAY TO GO, BECAUSE THEY USE
NAVIGATION APPS IN THEIR EVERYDAY LIFE

SECURITY
THE RISK OF TERRORIST ATTACKS IS VERY MUCH ON
THEIR MINDS

EXPERIENCE
THEY’RE VERY SENSITIVE TO THE AESTHETIC AND
SENSORY PROPERTIES OF PLACES, AND EXPECT A
POLISHED, STIMULATING ENVIRONMENT

PAGE 12
CHECK-IN

SPEED
THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO ANTICIPATE WHICH WAY
TO GO VIA PERSONALISED, SYNCED INFORMATION

FLUIDITY
THEY PREFER AUTOMATED SYSTEMS, WHICH ARE
PERCEIVED AS MORE FLUID

SUPPORT & REASSURANCE

“GUIDING” PERSONNEL WHO CAN ADVISE OR
ASSIST THEM
THE MOMENT OF LEAVING ONE’S LUGGAGE IS
STRESSFUL; THEY WANT TO SEE WHAT’S HAPPENING
AT ALL TIMES

ENTERTAINMENT
WAITING MEANS BOREDOM AND STRESS:
AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION TO ANTICIPATE HOW
LONG IT WILL TAKE TO GET THROUGH, AND
ENTERTAINMENT TO MAKE THE WAIT MORE
PLEASANT PAGE 13
SECURITY CONTROLS

EFFICIENCY
SECURITY CHECK PROCESS IS PERCEIVED AS
NECESSARY AND ACCEPTABLE
DIGITISED SECURITY CHECKS WELL RECEIVED

TRANSPARENCY
DISPLAY AND EXPLANATION OF WAIT TIMES.
ENTERTAINMENT DURING ANY QUEUING

COMFORT
EXPECTATION OF MORE COMFORTABLE, WARM
SPACES

CONSIDERATE INTERACTIONS
PERSONNEL ARE PERCEIVED AS AUTHORITARIAN
AND EVEN “MILITARY-LIKE”.

KINDNESS
EXPECTATION OF MORE “HUMAN”, KINDER
INTERACTIONS WITH SECURITY PERSONNEL
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BOARDING LOUNGE

CONNECTIVITY
FREE WI-FI THAT
CAN BE ACCESSED WITH 1
CLICK
EASY-TO-ACCESS ELECTRICAL AND USB OUTLETS
EVERYWHERE
CREATE COMMUNITY AT THE AIRPORT, PUT
MILLENNIALS INTO CONTACT

ENTERTAINMENT
HOLD CONCERTS,
EXHIBITIONS, AND EVENTS REGULARLY TRANSPARENCY
GAMES (FOR ONE OR MORE), FUN ACTIVITIES,
VIRTUAL REALITY, ALL THE LATEST (WHETHER
TECHNOLOGICAL OR OTHER)...

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BOARDING LOUNGE

ACCESSIBILITY IN TERMS OF PRICE

AND OFFERING
SPECIAL DEALS, DISCOUNTS: MAKE A GOOD DEAL

FOOD, FOOD, FOOD:

VEGAN BURGERS, LOCAL FOOD, FINGER FOOD,
SHAREABLE FOOD

ICONIC MILLENNIAL RETAIL OUTLETS:

H&M, ZARA, HEMA, VICTORIA’S SECRET, MAC,
LOCAL CONCEPT STORES

NEW TYPE OF COMMERCIAL

INTERACTION

FREE OR DONATION-BASED SERVICES

SOFTWARE RATHER THAN HARDWARE

SUBSCRIPTION, RENTAL, ETC.
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 FRIENDLY INSTAGRAMMABLE

JOYFUL POP-UP

MULTI-USE
HOME FEELING

BOARDING LOUNGE
WARM, MODERN ATMOSPHERE PAGE 17
THANK YOU

PAGE 18
EXTENDED VERSION
APPENDICES

PAGE 19
 7 MAJOR TRENDS IN THE WAY MILLENNIALS RELATE TO THE WORLD, AS
EXPRESSED BY WHAT THEY EXPECT FROM AIRPORTS

3. (Cyber)
2. Phygital ecstacy 4. The
space augmented
self

1. Post
consumerism 5. Powershift

6. Inter -
7. Ethics mingling

PAGE 20
POST-CONSUMERISM
Consumers who are very aware of the pitfalls
of consumption, and are more interested in
the “now” and in using rather than owning

USAGE, USAGE

Millennials like brands and places

that offer services aligned with new
modes of consumption (free items or
services, trades, exchanges,
subscriptions, sharing economy,
etc.)

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PHYGITAL SPACE
The “phygital” consumer lives in the here and
now

EVERYTHING IMMEDIATELY
Millennials are ultra-connected , live in the here
and now, and interact constantly.
Their phones are their primary portal to
information. They no longer distinguish between
physical and digital, and want smooth transitions
between the real and digital worlds.

MOBILITY AND PORTABILITY

Millennials’ vision of the post-digital

world places the highest value on
real time and fleeting experiences. It
gives them a new experience of the
passage of time and of any given
instant.
Their consumption is being pop-up-
ularised.
PAGE 22
(CYBER)ECSTASY
The search for more intense sensations and
enjoyment

THE SEARCH FOR INTENSITY AND

EXPERIENCE
Millennials are looking for intensified enjoyment, and
they choose experiences and leisure activities over
buying things.
Bodily experiences are more important to Millennials
than they were to previous generations. They go out
twice as often as their parents and look for all kinds of
live experiences to share with others and with which
to create memories: this is part of the happiness
economy.

GAMING CULTURE
Millennials have a gamer mentality. They grew
up with video games and all their associated
heroes, culture and codes.

APPETITE FOR A NEW STORY-

TELLING
Millennials are most interested in emotions
and images. The airport must be brought
alive for them through story-telling. PAGE 23
THE AUGMENTED SELF
The individual is more powerful than ever thanks
to people's ability to get diverse, decentralised,
and immediately accessible information

THE POWER OF CONNECTED

COMMUNITIES
Millennials like sharing their passions and bringing
them alive as part of a community. Any person can
disseminate, produce, discuss, and freely join
“virtu-real” communities based on shared ideas
and interests.
Social media are, moreover, millennials’ favourite
media, and are their go-to vehicles of information
to sustain communities.

INFLUENCERS
Millennials have explored and become aware of
their power of influence. Their likes and ratings
carry immense power; internet users are
becoming key creators of value for all actors.
The content-producer consumer is becoming
part of the media: influencer bloggers are
becoming true spokespeople for brands, and as
well as new means of influence and
distribution for brands. PAGE 24
THE AUGMENTED SELF
ULTRA-PERSONALISATION

Millennials claim unity in diversity.

They expect products and services to be
exclusive and personalised.

WELL-BEING

Millennials need to enjoy themselves and

perform self care.
They're looking for well-being, which
translates into exercise, relaxation,
meditation, massages, etc., but also for
natural food. they want to eat a healthy
(fresh, local, unprocessed, organic and
vegan, etc.) diet.

PAGE 25
POWER SHIFT
A change in power distribution

HORIZONTAL AND COLLABORATIVE

ATTITUDES
Now that knowledge is accessible and
democratised, it's no longer the property of a
selected few. Hierarchical, traditional institutions
and structures are now being challenged and
stripped of their aura. Any vertical hierarchy is
being questioned against new standards of
horizontal, collaborative power held by ordinary
citizens.
Millennials latch onto brands they perceive as
being their equals, and prefer brands that co-
create with them.

GOOD DEAL GENERATION

Ultra-pragmatic and with much lower
purchasing power than their elders,
Millennials always look for the best offer at
the best time.
They expertly track and compare prices,
and always seek discussion and
information on social media.
PAGE 26
POWER SHIFT

SHARING ECONOMY

Alert and clever, Millennials short-circuit

middlemen and hierarchies, especially by
calling on the sharing economy (sharing
services, one individual selling services to
another, etc.), which aligns more with their
aspirations and lifestyle (networks, horizontal
structures, pooling resources, collaboration, etc.)

PAGE 27
INTER-MINGLING
This generation has always known a globalised world
that's both multicultural and grounded in local
communities
New individual and collective identities are emerging

LIFESTYLE CONSUMPTION
Millennials are attracted to brands that match up to
their personalities and values, because these brands
help affirm their identities.
They tend to be looking for their place among the
crowd and are searching for identity: “you are what
you buy”.

GLOCAL
This generation is both multicultural and
grounded in local communities. Millennials
have always lived in a globalised world.
They are open to the world and other cultures
(from which they draw inspiration and then mix
with various influences), and feel they belong
to a diverse, varied, and international
community.

PAGE 28
ETHICS
The search for meaning and a return to values

NO BULLSHIT
Because they have instantaneous access to a multitude of
information sources, Millennials are flooded with
information, and, therefore, they verify it. They easily
decode advertising, images and discourse, and are wary
of pandering discourse.
Irritated by formal, stiff language, they believe a brand's
authenticity is more important than the content it
communicates. They expect more transparency.

HUMANITY AND SOLIDARITY

Millennials identify with “living together” and
want to re-build ties.
They want to find solidarity and place human
beings back in the centre of things.

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Millennials have hope for a better world and
want to help build it. Sensitive to various
causes, including sustainable development, they
want to be positive agents of change and
expect brands also to commit to co-creating a
better and more sustainable society together. PAGE 29