The State of Airline Retailing: A whitepaper overview
At a time when competition in the airline industry is higher than ever, it is important for companies to take a critical look at their airline retail strategy. Created in collaboration with LeapShift and Airline Information, The State of Airline Retailing aims to unravel the complexities of airline retailing, examining its existing form and uncovering genuine customer desires.
The survey ran earlier this year and respondents included employees from a hybrid carrier, full-service carrier, low cost carrier, and some that were not airline employees.
Here are a few of the takeaways from this paper:
- No respondent believes airlines are doing a very good job at retailing and only 14 per cent believe airlines are doing a good job.
- 63 per cent offer or plan to offer bundles with flights and hotel.
- 84 per cent already apply or plan to introduce dynamically priced ancillaries.
- There is a weak ability to sell partner products.
- Customers are asking for integrated and linked loyalty propositions with hotels/car hire/retail companies.
- Customers are commonly asking for flexibility on all fares at an additional cost and curated offers.
- 47 per cent of respondents were using their loyalty program to create relevant and personalised offers to their customers.
The study also looks towards the future, listing dynamically priced seats and bags, discounted flight and hotel bundles, and using loyalty points for discounts as just some of the areas airlines are planning to develop.
Overall, the changing landscape of airline retailing offers airlines new opportunities to capture more revenue and create an improved customer experience. Leveraging technology, data, and analytics, airlines can provide more personalised services and deliver on customer expectations.
See the full whitepaper here.
