We are going on a family vacation in a few months and as part of the adventure, there is a checkin process. 

 

For those of you who took extra Scantron bubble tests home, or of you just love government style tax forms, this is the thing for you.

 

As someone who is a nerd and loves technology, I am comfortable completing forms online. That said, I hate tedium and insanity. This form took over 20 mins and did nothing to make my experience more fun.

 

The crux is, what can you do to make it easier for your customer?

 

For example, the initial login has a requirement for:

• Last Name
• Sail Date (3 separate drop downs)
• Ship Name
• Language

This is not a large number of fields, except the 1990’s style date picker which is 3 fields, not 1.

 

Even if we don’t change the fields, this could be so much easier by asking:

• Last Name
• Ship Name

Most people would know that. From there, I am sure there will be a few duplicates, ask for zip code or travel agent / booking site. This could even be done from a multiple choice section the same way credit sites create questions.

 

When we ask people for information they don’t need to lookup, it is much easier. I say this as someone who is always asking for credit card statements, and I know how annoying they are.

 

From there, there is a insane number of fields, legal documentation, uploading photo with picky requirements and the list goes on.

Needless to say I was using words not appropriate for children and not in a travel mood when I was done. As someone who has spent countless hours around the world, I know travel, and this was more annoying than most. If it has to be done, have the booking company capture the info, and enter it… not the client.

 

As someone who especially values leisure time, this was not how I want to spend it or how Royal Caribbean would want me to describe the pre cruise experience.

 

I am confident there is some experience like this in all businesses, including my own… what is it in yours and most importantly,

How can you fix it?