May 12, 2025
Need help with your trip through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)? SEA has you covered! Whether you're gearing up for a big trip and need to check a few travel details with airport staff, or you're already at the airport facing unexpected hiccups, or just had a fantastic experience you want to share — the SEA Customer Care team is here for you! You can reach out on the channel that works best for you to get help from a real person.
When you reach out, you won’t be communicating with bots or automated responses. You'll chat with real people, ready to assist with problem-solving, personalized travel tips, and the latest airport updates and impacts. From answering your emails and DMs to responding to your social media shoutouts, help is just a click away.
Meet the team behind the screens
Get to know the friendly faces working behind the scenes to make your travel experience smoother.
Dianne
Tell me about your background and your journey into this role?
I’ve been with the Port since 2017. I started working in airport customer service as a Pathfinder and then worked in aviation security before coming into this role.
Why and how are digital communications an important part of the customer experience?
Digital communication is a way to communicate to a wider audience, and people often reach out to us before their trip to start planning. By allowing people to communicate with us through social media or email, we’re able to give more people a voice and hear how they are experiencing SEA Airport in ways that we may not see ourselves. We reach out to relevant departments to relay comments, questions, complaints, and compliments, and find solutions to your travel problems.
What customer service principles does your team live by?
Imagine the customer you’re working with is your family member traveling and they are going to have a lot of questions. You want to help your family member as much as you can. We hear from many people traveling for the first time, or who are elderly, or overwhelmed in general and haven’t flown in a while. I’m always thinking this person could be my auntie or uncle. I try to lead with kindness because you always treat your family with respect, I hope. Even though we can be considered a large organization, we will get back to you as soon as we can. Whether it is question, complaint, or compliment, we try to answer or get back to every customer that comes in to contact with us.
What is the most important thing you’ve learned to support customers?
It is important to touch base with customers, even if you don’t have the answers yet and things are taking longer than you thought. I let them know I’m looking into this, and that it might take a bit, but I will get back to them. I get a better interaction if I let the customer know what is happening with their question even if it’s something small, and they really appreciate that.
What do you love about your job?
I wasn’t sure what my next steps were after being a Pathfinder and answering questions and assisting people at the airport. I didn’t know where else this airport knowledge would be helpful, but it turns out it’s a perfect fit for this role. I’ve also been able to incorporate tips and information into blog posts on our web site, and seeing people use that information to improve their journey is super cool.
When I help people out with pet-related questions I ask them to say hi to their dog for me, and a lot of times they will send dog photos and say, “Here he is. He says ‘hi’ back.” People also will send me vacation photos. These people feel comfortable because we get to know each other and I love learning about them and hearing about their vacation!
Raeanna
Tell me about your background and your journey into this role?
I studied marketing in college and graduated three years ago. Previously I worked in a photography studio, where I provided customer service by phone and in person. I also have a background in visual communications, social media, and content creation. I first started at the Port as a Human Resources intern, and when this customer communications role came up, I knew I had to apply.
Why and how are digital communications an important part of the customer experience?
Questions and complaints help us improve our service and digital communications can show us how to do better. We forward traveler emails to leadership and make relevant parties aware of what is happening and what needs to be improved to create a better travel experience. Compliments are always nice too, so our team can recognize the people that are providing good customer service and encourage more of that across the airport.
What customer service principles does your team live by?
Our main guideline is to lead with kindness. Each day comes with different challenges and customers are so different in the way they ask questions. It’s fun to see what customers bring to us and figure out how we can best help them.
What has surprised you the most about working with customers?
Sometimes customers will come in angry or upset and the way you handle situations can diffuse the situation. Customers will often be surprised to find that our response was really helpful. Sometimes they aren’t expecting anyone to respond at all. Even if they seem upset it’s important to remember that they are just trying to find some help getting around the airport.
Trudy
Tell me about your background and your journey into this role?
I’m the newest employee on our team, and I started in this role a little more than two years ago. Previously I worked in nonprofit communications, and I also have a degree in environmental studies.
Why and how are digital communications an important part of the customer experience?
It’s a really good way for customers to plan their trip in advance because even if their question is something that the Port doesn’t have a direct connection to, we have contacts with other agencies and departments and a broad sense of how the airport works. We can get you the answer you need or direct you to where to go to get your question answered or comment addressed.
What does a typical day look like for you?
We reply to customer questions via email and social media. We follow up on stakeholder emails to find more information related to a customer inquiry. We compile relevant things happening around airport to share in the This Week at SEA newsletter for airport employees; that helps everyone stay in the loop to make your travel experience better. We update customer service-related pages on the website. We attend meetings so we're aware of what's impacting travelers and can advocate for customers in decision-making settings.
What customer service principles does your team live by?
We lead with kindness, curiosity, and community in our work. A big part of our workflow is leaning on each other. We respond to different questions and compliments each day. Sometimes we have no idea how to respond so we bring it up to the whole team, and we all work together to figure it out.
What has surprised you the most about working with customers and about this job?
I’m surprised how much I know about this airport after just two years, and that has made me a way more confident traveler. My husband works in aviation so he would always lead the way in the airport but now I do that.
We have such a great team. There is so much trust and warmth, and we are constantly learning. Our department encourages us to expand skill sets we are interested in expanding, and it’s a very supportive work environment.
What is the most important thing you’ve learned to better support customers?
The power of an apology. Even if it is not something we did, if someone wants to hear sorry, I will give them sorry. We can still be sorry to hear about their experience even if it wasn’t our fault.
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