Journal of Marketing Practice: Applied Marketing Science

Developments in airline marketing practice

John C. Driver,
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 JMP:
AMS Developments in airline
5,5 marketing practice
John C. Driver
134 Senior Lecturer, Department of Commerce, Birmingham Business
School, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
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Keywords Marketing strategy, Airlines, Market segmentation, Brands

Abstract Discusses how marketing practice is competitively evolving as airlines, in a code-sharing
environment, seek to be more effective, efficient and profitable. It complements changes to airline
structures in routeing, staffing levels and technology, and by establishing strong brand presence is
a means for customer attraction, retention and network expansion. Distribution channels are
changing as travel agencies are affected by airlines direct sales and Internet-based interactive
communication. Traditional segmentation tactics directed to business travellers, through frequent
flyer programmes and premium services, are threatened by businesses economising, staff
reductions and the increasing importance of the leisure traveller. An overview of international
practice is taken and points illustrated, where appropriate, by examples of specific airlines.

Introduction
In many ways current marketing activity of airlines is following traditional and
well-tried methods which reflect decisions regarding the product/service
provision of routes, seat allocation and types, in-flight and ground-based
services, the price structure, distribution channels and promotional activity.
The marketing environment, however, is becoming more competitive, as the
international market is expanding and airlines are returning to profit after the
recession of the early 1990s (Betts, 1994). Many developments have been
technologically pushed: thus larger aircraft have increased capacity, leading to
reduced real fares and improved many aspects of the in-flight experience
(though the tendency to larger aircraft might now be ended (Skapinker, 1995a));
computer reservation systems have simplified flight booking; airport
infrastructure investment improved the pre- and post-flight aspects of travel;
computer systems to manage reservations and yields; and investment in air
traffic control systems and flight navigation systems improved the punctuality
of airlines.
The change from former conditions of relative monopoly and regulated
competition on some routes is challenging airlines to pay greater attention to
their customers and marketing effort is becoming more important. This is
alongside the efforts to reduce costs by new arrangements with employees
(e.g. Robinson (1994)), the outsourcing of non-core services (catering,
administration, ground handling, maintenance, etc.) and the rationalisation of
distribution channels. Cost reductions and improved efficiency are symptoms of
Journal of Marketing Practice:
Applied Marketing Science, Vol. 5
No. 5, 1999, pp. 134-150. MCB
University Press, 1355-2538 John C. Driver
 structural change in the industry which has more obvious manifestation in the Developments in
expansion of networks as airlines form various kinds of alliance, including code airline marketing
sharing, and they specialise on particular routes or sectors, increasingly to practice
benefit from the hub and spoke organisation.
Airlines are complex organisations and the traditions and practices of
production orientation, which was fostered by the monopolistic practices of a
regulated industry, are not easily overcome, but good marketing, in its many 135
forms, is increasingly seen as the key to airlines competitive success.
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Competition still proceeds in an environmental context where access to routes

and free market solutions are constrained. A companion paper considers this
context in greater detail with an emphasis on the cost basis of prices and the
airlines product mix (Driver, 1999).
This paper examines some of the issues concerned with the conspicuous
marketing activity as airlines are actively engaged in the development of
branding strategies to integrate their services, establish identities and images
both for their employees and customers. It considers computer reservation
systems, frequent flyer programmes, segmentation strategies, advertising
communication, code sharing and the emerging opportunities of the Internet.

Computer reservation systems

Part of the expansion of worldwide aviation is due to the increasing
convenience by which intended journeys can be organised. The available seats
are primarily distributed through travel agencies, though some airlines
maintain their own dedicated city retail outlets and increasingly direct
telephone based direct selling organisations. This complex selling and
reservation system depends on the investment, primarily by airlines or
consortia of airlines, in computer reservation systems (CRS). CRS owners
charge subscription fees for agency use and airlines booking fees on tickets
sold. These fees are ultimately reflected in airfares as part of the distribution
cost of marketing seats. With both agencies and the airlines reliant on CRS the
issue of distribution cost, primarily the margins exacted for the services given,
is becoming increasingly important as is the use made of the data collected by
this means.
There has been concern about the market power given to operators of
particular CRS and the partiality of systems both in the exclusion rationalised
on technical grounds of other rival systems and the influence owners can
exert over travel agents and other airlines. American Airlines recently
concluded that its use of CRS data was not immoral, despite public concern,
since the data are available to everyone, and we enjoy no greater access to them
than anyone else (Travel Weekly, 1997). Market power has enabled selectively
high booking fees combined with a differential (lower) level of service for some
airlines. These issues have led to increasing regulation of CRS systems (Avmark
Aviation Economist, 1991). Allegations that six American airlines were using a
CRS as a means of establishing a price fixing ring have been denied but
following Department of Justice pressure the practice has been discontinued
 JMP: (Tomkins, 1994). CRS owners have used the data stored to analyse the customer
AMS specific data of their rivals using that information for strategic and tactical
5,5 advantage this was one of the forms of abuse alleged against British Airways
by Virgin in the infamous dirty tricks case (Gregory, 1994; Jackson, 1995).
Other forms of alleged abuse include the selective display of some airline
flights to the detriment of alternatives. Initially CRS owners arranged for their
136 own flights to be displayed first on possible flight listings and systems have
also showed a display bias in favour of online over inter-line connections.
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Insistent customers could require alternatives but many would normally

satisfice and accept what was on offer without necessarily trying to optimise by
reviewing all alternatives, which clearly takes greater time and effort. Travel
agencies in turn were given override commissions if they exceeded threshold
levels of sales (also commission earning) so they too had an incentive, besides
reducing transaction time with a given customer, to favour particular airlines;
this too may have anti-competitive effects (Feldman, 1994). Code sharing also
gives a carrier, operating with a code sharing partner on a given route, two
showings on screen one for each partner with an obvious prejudice against
non-code sharing competitors. The contracts that CRS owners have imposed on
agents have also been criticised. Of particular concern were the provision for
tying commissions to the subscription to CRS and the length of contract
entailed often five years with substantial penalties for early cancellation, as
much as 80 per cent of the supposed sacrificed bookings commission according
to a liquidated damage clause.
Though increased regulation of CRS has ameliorated many of the worst
practices, the role of the emergent no-host independent systems has obvious
merit where vested interest is largely avoided and information provision is
separated from economic incentive. Nevertheless, considerable market power
remains in airline-owned CRS, though they are indispensable tools on which
world aviation depends and, increasingly, complementary services such as car
hire, hotel booking and other travel services are arranged.
The use of CRS is not total. Niche airlines may have other ways of organising
their reservations. An interesting example is provided by ValuJet which,
operating out of Atlanta to primarily leisure travellers in a 200-750 mile radius,
has a direct selling strategy to both the public and travel agencies (Nuutinen,
1994). Telephone booking and use of credit cards is facilitated by a much
simpler fare structure than is conventional indeed it has six basic fares based
on 21-day, seven-day advanced booking and a walk up fare adjusted for day
and time (to reflect peak and off-peak rates). It does not impose a requirement
for return trips or a condition for a Saturday/Sunday night stay. It obviates the
need for more sophisticated yield management systems by operating simple
rules. For example, no more than 45 per cent of capacity is sold at the cheapest
fares. By largely reducing the payment of travel agency fees and avoiding CRS
fees, it is able to pay 68 per cent less than the industry average in commissions
per ASM (available seat mile).
 With average ticketing costs at $15-$30 in the industry to cover labour, Developments in
printing and travel agency commissions, a ticket-less system has many airline marketing
advantages though companies funding the business traveller may require practice
some documentation to support employee travel claims (Griffith, 1995). ValuJet
operates like car hire and hotel companies with telephone issued confirmation
numbers, which in turn lead to issued reusable plastic seat numbers at the
check-in in the order of passenger arrival, and plane boarding is then organised 137
in numerical sequence. There are no airport lounges nor frequent flyer
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incentives and no meals in-flight, just beverages. However, ValuJet is about to

introduce a frequent flyer programme in line with other budget airlines
probably on the basis of number of trips rather than miles flown, c.f. Southwest
(Beddingfield, 1997).
Although the dedicated comprehensive and customised automated systems
which support this operation are much simplified by ValuJets avoidance of
inter-line arrangements (though 30 per cent of passengers do connect with other
flights), there are no international services and a relatively small number of
flights (114 maximum a day between 17 cities). The efficiencies gained more
than offset the higher advertising costs for a direct selling operation and have
given ValuJet the second highest system yield (14.24 cents per RPM (revenue
passenger mile) to US Airs 15.91 cents per RPM) for the second quarter of 1994
and the lowest operating cost per ASM in the industry at 6.32 cents (third
quarter 1994) (Nuutinen, 1994).
Major airlines are also experimenting with ticketless travel though the
concept may have limitations for routes involving a change in airline in mid-
trip. Delta has introduced smart cards for ticketless travellers which are read
at the boarding gate but then a paper receipt is issued. Fully automated entry
may be developed later (Griffith, 1995). American Airlines, for selected routes in
the USA and the top 21 domestic airports, launched in June 1996 interactive
software, claiming Our ticketless travel system, for instance, will allow
customers to easily make or change their domestic travel plans over the phone
or by using AAAccess software, and then bypass ticket counters with our
automated boarding. While other airlines have offered bits and pieces, we are
the first to close the technology loop on the travel process for individual
customers, from booking to takeoff (PR Newswire, 1996).
The drive by airlines to reduce costs in distribution and the issuing of tickets
has led to a confrontation of the US airlines with independent travel agencies
who made 4b in commission in 1994. Rather than pay 10 per cent commission
on the ticket issue it is proposed (but is now subject to an antitrust case as all
major airlines followed Deltas initiative) to limit payment on the 65 per cent of
their revenue on domestic flights into bands, such that a maximum of $50 is
paid for a round-trip ticket costing more than $500; $25 for one-way tickets
costing more than $250. This saved airlines some $500 million a year (Taylor,
1995). The agents fear that one-third of the 34,000 agencies will be forced out of
business as ticket issuing becomes uneconomic and they are forced to try to
charge consumers for arranging flights but consumers can avoid this by
 JMP: dealing directly with airline offices (Tomkins, 1995a,b). The use of the Internet
AMS to cut costs of distribution have led some airlines to omit agents from the online
5,5 ticketing process for some fares, e.g. BA, Delta and Lufthansa, whilst others, for
example Continental, Northwest and KLM, will limit commissions for online
sales to 5 per cent (Levere, 1997).

138 Frequent flyer programmes (FFP)

Dominant practice in air seat pricing is to achieve load factors, which exceed
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break-even and contribute to profit by differential pricing of seats (Hanlon,

1994). The more discretionary, price sensitive leisure traveller is attracted by
typically discounted fares in the airlines effort to fill the seats remaining after
allocation to higher fare passengers, for which they reserve portions of
available seats in different classes of fare, and/or sell blocks of seats to
intermediaries. In this case, the capacity provision is essentially for the
business traveller and flight frequency is similarly determined. Lumpiness in
capacity provision, whether there is excess or unfilled capacity, stems both from
the uncertainties of demand and the characteristics of the aircraft allocated to
particular routes. If real demand is more efficiently determined by changes in
passenger communication and ticket conditions, in principle, capacity
allocation can be more appropriate. Broad industry averages for the achieved
load factor which it must be appreciated differ by season, route, etc. are of
the order of 65 per cent. 1994 figures for the US majors average 66.3 per cent;
European short/medium haul, 60.5 per cent and long haul 73 per cent
(Nuutinen, 1995, p. 27). An ICAO figure for 174 airlines worldwide for 1994 was
67 per cent (preliminary estimate) (Avmark Aviation Economist, 1994, p. 24).
The break-even load factor of US airlines is of the order of 65-67 per cent
(Nuutinen, 1994).
The relatively small margin between average break-even load factors and the
achieved load factors intensifies the need of airlines to both attract and retain
customers. It is in this regard that the business traveller to the extent that this
person is a frequent traveller assumes greater importance and accounts for
one of the most conspicuous marketing initiatives of airlines, the FFP.
One study suggests that just 3 per cent of US passengers are frequent flyers
in that they fly more than 12 trips per annum. However, 3 per cent represents 27
per cent of total trips and an excess of 40 per cent of revenue (Toh and Hu, 1990).
In 1995, frequent flyers earned 1.9 trillion miles of credit (Peterson, 1995). More
recently, one passenger on United amassed a total of two million frequent flyer
miles and had a plane named after her (Wall Street Journal, 1997), and Randy
Petersen, who formed the monthly magazine InsideFlyer for the frequent flyer,
has gathered more than eight million miles on more than 70 programmes
(Beddingfield, 1997).
Frequent flyers typically belong to several FFPs, which give them attractive
benefits. Enrolment, however, is not quite the same as active participation with
an average membership of programmes more than two. In the USA over 20 per
cent of leisure travellers are enrolled in FFPs, but the device is of particular
 interest to business travellers (Toh et al., 1996). Indeed such is their interest Developments in
and the demonstrated propensity of employees to incur overuse of airlines airline marketing
in terms either of non-direct routes or unnecessary journeys, that FFPs have practice
been vigorously criticised by employers (Stephenson and Fox, 1993). They
object where the structure/requirements of FFPs encourage travelling in higher
classes of fare level or trigger bonus thresholds associated with increased
benefits. One estimate of the scale of inflated travel expenses for American 139
business is $6.3 billion (Fox, 1992). The scale of FFP sponsored free travel is
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impressive. One estimate put this at some 15 million round trips with a $100m
per year brokerage in the USA buying/ selling air miles (Humphreys, 1991) and
another put it at 76 million free domestic trips in the USA due to 32 million
people enrolled in an average of 4.7 FFPs (Arnesen et al., 1997). Airlines with
FFPs (now over 70) gain potentially valuable direct market research from the
enrolments to their programmes and joining bonuses are offered frequently as
an incentive.
As a device for encouraging flights, and as a means for employees to receive
substantial fringe benefits from their employers, FFPs have been conspicuously
successful. However, airlines have to ensure free passengers are not at the
expense of ASMs for fare paying passengers and that the value given is
ultimately cost-effective. Under the increasingly competitive conditions airlines
are seeking to reduce their costs of FFPs, so apart from ticket restrictions on
certain flights/times or routes, the giving of other benefits accommodation,
entertainment, etc. is a way of ensuring against a direct diminution of airline
revenue. Moreover, the involvement of partners helps to defray the costs of the
incentives of both parties. Certainly as a competitive device in contested
markets, FFPs are a prerequisite for inclusion of an airline in the travellers
choice set and may even become a crucial determinant.
The wider implications of FFPs are not without significance. With the tying
of promotional flights to a particular carriers routes, FFPs are clearly more
attractive to travellers for airlines with large route networks. This may lead to
concern about an impediment to competition, the more so since the existence of
FFPs can be seen as a barrier to new entrants to the airline industry. To some
extent this may be ameliorated or increased where there are partnerships
between airlines through code sharing or other agreements for the
reciprocal use of air miles.
Moreover, the attractiveness of air miles as an incentive extends beyond the
airline industry. In the UK, air miles offer benefits of flights for non-flight
related products (though British Airways was a significant shareholder) and
credit/charge card companies have tied miles/points to cumulative expenditure
through their cards. For instance, American Express offers points for each
pound spent, with 10,000 qualifying for an economy return London-Dublin
flight on Virgin Freeway (American Express, 1995).
As air miles from these proliferating opportunities are consumed by the
relatively small up market, high income business segment, so travel agencies
commissions, for flights which might have been taken through them, are
 JMP: reduced. Also they are denied a source of market research information from
AMS which they too could benefit. Ultimately if travel agents income is threatened
5,5 then the CRS services, which they operate, will require increased commissions
and the net benefit of FFPs to airlines will be reduced as changes in distribution
channels are required.
With the possible transfer of net benefits from the fare paying public to
140 employees, either through a general increase in airline (marketing) costs and
thus prices per mile, or through the subsidisation of employees on required
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travel by their employers, or both, the FFP initiative initially by American

Airlines in 1981, not just as a marketing gimmick, but with a real purpose, to
encourage use of the then unfamiliar hub concept in the USA has potential
seeds for its own demise. This is possible through:
the potential nullifying of competitive benefits as airlines have to offer
the same scale of benefits;
the fragmentation of the market as hotel chains, car rental chains,
telephone companies and in principle other organisations all offer
miles;
increased interest by the revenue authorities and airline regulatory
authorities concerned with the anti-competitive and discriminatory
aspects of FFPs (in Australia the frequent flyer benefits are taxable
(Lyons, 1993)); and
the increasing incentive for employers to limit the benefits to their
employees through direct dealing with airlines or intermediaries
regarding travel arrangements.
With large agencies in the USA dealing with corporations and charging
arrangement fees and refunding agency commissions (Tomkins, 1995b; Taylor,
1995), there may be scope for the effective price promotional benefits of FFPs to
accrue to employers.
For both leisure and business markets increasing use of the database
information to create segments and to foster relationships with customers is
likely to be the way ahead with targeting of relevant information and incentives
(Gilbert, 1996). FFPs are increasingly indistinct and ubiquitous and though they
are likely to remain as the dominant promotional device for the present their
longer-term future is more uncertain especially as some airlines withdraw the
upper classes of fare which have attracted the greater number of miles
(Skapinker, 1995b).

Corporate image and communication

Airlines are primarily definable by their network operations in terms of the
number of destinations served and their geographic dispersion. The ability to
achieve extensive coverage and frequency is clearly related to size in terms of
the aircraft fleet, employees, provision of ASMs, RPMs, and the set of airports/
cities served. Size in marketing sense also requires corresponding presence
 in distribution channels both wholly owned and in contractual/agency Developments in
relationships and increasingly with presence on the World Wide Web. These airline marketing
complex interrelations coalesce in the concept of a brand, which may be practice
expanded to include notions of a badge of origin, the promise of performance,
the value of reassurance, transformation of experience, social connotation and
personality (Feldwick, 1991).
The purpose of branding is to reflect a distinctive competence in comparison 141
with alternative brands to allow the brand name, symbol or identity to mean
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something distinctive and with a corresponding appeal. Ideally consumers

retain that brand in memory it is not only part of their evoked set of brands
when air travel is contemplated but is in their choice set and ultimately may
lead to the preferred choice. The attributes of the airline that contribute to its
image are only partially related to direct operational and flight factors.
Corporate/brand presence impinges on consumers in many other ways through
a variety of media. A mixture of publicity and public relations activity defuses
information of many aspects of the corporation. Thus its financial standing,
profitability, share price (if any), employment record, relations to other airlines,
relations with the corporate and general public contribute fragments which
combine in consumers perceptions of an airline. This is the backdrop against
which explicit corporate communication is conducted and into which both
travellers direct experience is interwoven and word of mouth and any vicarious
experiences are set.
Airlines are excellent examples of an almost industry-wide use of the
company/corporation name as a brand. For flag carriers national, primarily
governmental owned airlines the brand has connotations of the country with
perhaps pre-eminent appeal to its nationals and friends as the service
characteristics reflect a distinctive character in use of language, cuisine,
nationality of employees, base location and general familiarity. Without
distinctive characteristics essentially derived from a national culture the airline
brand must signify other attributes which ultimately depend on a corporate
culture and the way this finds expression in customer related ways.
Customer involvement in air travel is likely to affect the way in which these
strands of information are used (Laurent and Kapferer, 1985; Pritchard and
Howard, 1997). Highly involved people will actively process relevant
information and even cause them to seek it. Uninvolved customers may, until
sensitised in some way, have only hazy knowledge of the brand and perhaps be
indifferent to its characteristics. Though paradoxically they may have retained,
perhaps through repetition of corporate advertising, an image based solely on
marketing communication of the brand.
Airlines differ in the way in which they conduct their marketing
communication and the extent to which they use advertising and other elements
of the promotions mix, in terms of both the absolute expenditure involved and
their style. They have different regard to the significant features that should be
overtly communicated and the way in which different themes and tactics relate
to a coherent strategy.
 JMP: For relatively large airlines, emplaning many millions of customers per year,
AMS there is the additional challenge of trying to make advertising relevant and
5,5 meaningful to essentially different segments of customer whose interests may
conflict. They must avoid a blandness, which lacks appeal and leads to little
consumer awareness, as their message is lost in the general clutter of
advertising.
142 With the airline product having to conform to being a safe, affordable,
convenient and efficient air service for consumers the Department of
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Transportations generic view (Shenton, 1994) there are great difficulties, in an

essentially common environment, often with virtually identical aircraft and
similar airports, in achieving brand differentiation in specific competitive sub-
markets. However, sub-markets do differ and the corporate brand must be
accommodated to their various demands and constraints. For these reasons it is
not surprising that airline advertising in particular, and corporate
communications in general, do have many differential features as airlines seek
to influence travellers and establish brand images.
There are competing objectives in the drive for globalisation and regional
specialisms which different carriers attempt to solve with varying approaches,
including the acquisition and divestment of routes. A few examples illustrate
this. Under the umbrella of The Worlds Favourite Airline slogan, BA has
appointed an experienced brand specialist from outside the travel industry.
The move further confirms BAs commitment to market itself as a customer
focused, brand-led company as it strives to make a global imprint (Lee, 1995).
Following an investment of 115 million, including promotion of 30 million, in
its (sub) brands of First World and Club World (OConnell, 1995) from June 1997
a new 6 billion programme of investment in new services, products, aircraft,
facilities and training was initiated based on what is claimed to be the largest
consumer research exercise in the history of the travel industry; the aim is to
establish British Airways as the undisputed leader in world travel as it flies into
the twenty-first century and to build on its British strengths (BA Website;
http:// http://www.british-airways.com/). Though some observers considered
that a de-emphasis of Britishness was intended in the adoption of abstract
world images, BA states: At the heart of the new corporate identity is the
creation of more than 50 world images, which will appear on the airlines 300
aircraft plus ground vehicles, stationery, signage, timetables, baggage tags and
ticket wallets everything that bears the British Airways name. The companys
corporate palette of red, white and blue is being brightened and lightened, more
closely drawn from the British Union Flag than the current scheme, to reflect
the airlines British heritage.
BAs modification of physical image is but a part of a growing recognition of
its embracing influence in communicating not just a symbol but also an
attendant set of more tangible benefits to passengers, as well as more intangible
associations. Other airlines have also changed their appearance: thus China
Airlines now wishes to communicate its private, non-governmental status;
Cathay, as Hong Kong reverts to China, wishes to shed Britishness in the
 Asian market; and the lower service, budget operators, e.g. Southwest and Developments in
Uniteds Shuttle, establish a differentiated image from the full service mega- airline marketing
carriers (Nelms, 1996a). practice
For airlines with global aspirations, the communication of attributes to
match differing consumer perceptions across nations and cultures is more
difficult. BAs attempt to be a global brand stems from its realisation that 60 per
cent of its passengers originate outside the UK. For the three largest American 143
airlines brand image overseas is only now becoming important, especially as
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they have lacked the credibility of other American brands in the world market-
place and the natural association of national brands, and each was previously
mainly a domestic carrier, with Pan Am and TWA being foreign carriers (even
in the USA they are seen as essentially the same, with similar route structures,
fares and levels of service) (Underwood, 1997). American launched its first
image campaign outside the USA in January 1996, with a $30 million media
budget; Deltas $30 million sponsorship of the Olympic games in Atlanta in
1996 owed much to its global aspirations (Nelms, 1996b) and United has split its
domestic and global advertising accounts in part to transform its image as a
newcomer, when in fact it is the worlds largest airline.
Communication style is a complementary feature to corporate image and is
well exemplified in airline advertising. Contrasts may be seen in the rather
jokey, but attention grabbing and informative, approach of the Australian
airline Quantas with its print advertisement message Introducing a
breakthrough in aircraft design. Wings. every Business Class passenger now
gets their own wings. Theyre built into the headrests of our new seats In
1979, Quantas originated the idea of a dedicated Business Class. It was a
breakthrough in the way business passengers fly. Sixteen years later we are
making the idea take wing again. This contrasts with the somewhat defensive
and staid Delta Airlines advertisement in the UK press with text Delta airlines.
Youll love the way we fly. We believe our passengers love the way we do things
According to the US DoT, Delta last year received fewer complaints than any
other international carrier (and this from a nation that likes complaining a lot)
There is no big secret to our success. We have nice people to serve good food
in comfortable surroundings. Any airline could do it. Fortunately for us not too
many do. But dont take our word for it, fly with us. Last year we carried 87
million people. We cant guarantee they all loved the way we fly. Its just a
suspicion. This is somewhat ironic given reports that as a result of cost cutting
and staff reductions its reputation for customer service was threatened (Sidel,
1996).
The search for the relevant discriminating factor to influence brand choice
finds many means of expression. Two further examples are contained in a
single Lufthansa 1995 advertisement namely attributes of its FFP and flight
cuisine: How many reasons can there be for joining an airlines frequent flyer
programme? 10,000. Thats how many bonus miles well credit to your miles
and more account when you join. So with Lufthansas reputation for service
including award-winning cuisine there is something to look forward to. As for
 JMP: other products and services, the airlines advertising accounts are increasingly
AMS open to competitive agencies in the quest for more effective advertising.
5,5
Communication and the Internet
The use of the Internet by airlines to communicate information is becoming
prevalent, from relatively slow beginnings in the middle years of the decade.
144 This relates both to hard information, in the form of schedules and the
availability of fare information, and to the softer areas of more general company
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information. Web presence is itself significant but the design of the site even
more important. From a consumer perspective it must be relevant and useful,
with easy navigation features so that the time spent on a visit is fruitful.
Moreover, the site should invite revisiting for there is a critical difference in the
initial motivation to visit and to contact again. In addition, incentives to register
an e-mail address, so that relevant communications can be transmitted at a later
date, is also desirable. Management strategies to encourage visitation include
the facility to pursue carefully selected other sites which should be constantly
updated. Clearly access to other forms of country and destination data are the
kind of links suitable for an airline, as are other travel related services such as
hotel listings, car rental information, currency conversion data, visa
requirements, etc. A useful non-commercial site to link to any specific airline is
http://w2.itn.net/airlines/
Web presence is increasingly seen as a way of communicating brand
personality, which should be consistent with other forms of corporate
communication. It should reflect the investment in brand development and
provide reinforcement of all other marketing activity. Yet the Web offers the
chance to communicate additional attributes and site style is extremely
important, if difficult to articulate and quantify. In principle, the site offers a
one-to-one relationship to the visitor and should have immediately
communicable positive features. This is more difficult to achieve with an
international audience. There is the issue of differing languages which
Lufthansa only partially solves with four non-identical Web sites for German,
Swiss, Dutch and UK offices (Rosen, 1996) and the tradeoffs that have to be
made in the balance between textual and graphic information which affects
download time and colours the consumers perception of the data.
Brand personality is an elusive entity, but where there is an association with
a well-known and credible personality, brand associations are enhanced. This,
of course, is the reason for so much celebrity advertising for other products. For
the airline industry an appropriate example is Richard Bransons Virgin
Airlines, where the generic features of his diverse brands, customer service,
quality, warmth, honesty and youth (Bird, 1997), translate and complement the
airlines image. Consistent with this was the personal statement Welcome to
Virgin Atlantic on the Web. Since taking off in 1984, Virgin Atlantic has been
different from other airlines. Weve led the way with customer service, new
technology and innovation so, its great to be the first UK airline to publish
 information on the Internet (July 1995). Notice that the claim reinforces the Developments in
image of technological and marketing innovation. airline marketing
Communication is only relevant if it leads eventually to some expression of practice
consumer behaviour in brand selection or in terms of purchase. The Internet
has the unique ability to marry these two aspects and to make action possible
on the receipt of information. The business traveller, in particular, is
increasingly empowered to arrange travel through use of the Internet. From a 145
lap/desktop PC airline schedules are becoming more accessible and although
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final reservation by direct arrangement by this means is currently impeded by

security shortcomings, telephonic reservations via credit/charge card or
business are entirely feasible. It is likely that the business market will become
heavily dependent on this means of organising travel. However, on the launch of
Travel Window in the UK, which can display up to two million discount fares,
the comment was made by the Association of Travel Agents I cannot imagine
that a businessman is going to want the added responsibility of making his own
travel arrangements, or have the time to wade through the pages he will need to
make them (Wharton, 1995). Certainly there is a significant challenge to make
Web sites more user friendly and effective in time and cost terms if they are
going to displace travel agencies services.
If and when direct communication via the Internet is commonplace, between
the business traveller and the selected airline, a closer matching of availability
to demand is likely to follow and the fare premiums for ticket flexibility likely to
reduce. (Ticket flexibility, including the right to refund and route change, is a
substantial factor both in the cost of higher classes of fares and in the
prevalence of no shows on certain flights.) It would then follow that intra-flight
service dimensions would be better matched to directly related cost factors of
additional space, comfort and personal service, features which on a strict cost
allocation basis can justify fare differentials of 4:2:1, for first, business and
economy classes (Doganis, 1991, Ch. 11).
The potential of the Internet in actually selling tickets to both business and
general travellers is considered to be vast, though the rate of acceptance has not
been as fast as some expected. Alaska Airlines and British Midland were the
first in December 1995, and by June 1996 the former was the leader in Internet-
based sales (Tebbe, 1996a) but the latter received only a few hundred a month in
1997, whilst American receives about 1 per cent of its business through Internet
related sources (Levere, 1997).
The Internet has unique features for the communication of promotionally
priced fares, indeed some airlines, e.g. Northwest Airlines, have restricted deals
exclusively to it with reductions of 70 per cent off regular advance fares (Roman,
1996). American, too, have Internet-only fare deals and information services
mainly for the impromptu traveller. This type of niche marketing is barely
profitable in the short term especially if the relatively affluent and computer
literate potential traveller is encouraged to trade down when otherwise fares
that are more expensive might be bought (Tebbe, 1996b). However, in the longer
term with the combination of phone and Internet-based private information
 JMP: search tending to replace the use of agencies, this segment becomes
AMS increasingly valuable (Flint, 1996). The costs of Web installation, at between
5,5 $840,000 and $1.25million, about four times the initial estimates, make the
cultivation of customers on this medium essential (Tebbe, 1996a). Another
factor, which is likely to lead to the greater use of the medium for ticket sales, is
the establishment of the Secure Electronic Transactions Protocol, in June 1997,
146 as a potential solution to the real fears consumers have had about purchasing
directly through the Internet (MasterCard, 1997). However, not everyone is
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sanguine about the prospective adoption of this technology (Garfinkel, 1997).

The creation of other Web-based sites for the marketing of airline seats, and
other travel services is currently under way, e.g. Electronic Travel Auction,
(http://www.etauction.com/contract.html) (Meetings and Conventions, 1997).
Even IATA is stated to be considering a Web site for the airlines to advertise
and sell often discounted tickets (Kornik, 1996). Travelocity operating with the
SABRE CRS gives online information for 700 airlines, reservations and tickets
for more than 400, and information and reservations for 35,000 hotels and 50
car rental companies and more (http://www.travelocity.com/). The combination
of information provision and management systems for the control of travel
through the Internet and company intranets is also now possible through
TravelNet Voyager (Business Wire, 1996).

Code sharing
All aircraft flights are designated by codes which signify the operator by two
letters, though with the proliferation of carriers three characters are beginning
to be used and the flight, by number (IATA, 1994). Code sharing, in one form,
is the use of a single code for different operators on an inter-line journey. The
inter-line connections are necessary when airlines are not of sufficient size to
provide online connections of sufficient frequency and extent. Thus BA is
proposing a code sharing arrangement with Iberia to achieve greater
penetration in Latin American markets (Elliot, 1997). Code sharing clearly
requires close co-ordination of the participant airlines at least for the routes
concerned; a relationship which preserves independence for operations
elsewhere and is more limited than formal mergers and other structural
arrangements for an extensive discussion of airline alliances see (Burton and
Hanlon, 1994). Essentially code sharing has been portrayed as a marketing
device, as a consumer oriented initiative.
Certainly, if a complex route involving changes of aircraft and carriers can be
designated by a single code there is an apparent simplicity to the journey at the
time of booking. In practice the characteristics of the flight may be little
changed from a non-code sharing inter-line flight on the same route though
baggage may be checked through to the final destination. The advantages,
however, are more for the airlines concerned than the passengers, though the
code sharing does contribute to the continued existence of connections as the
airlines assume mutual interests. Indeed code sharing can be the initial step for
 changes in the ownership structure of the airlines, typically where (if allowed) Developments in
smaller airlines are absorbed into larger ones. airline marketing
Code sharing, however, has some explicit disadvantages from a marketing practice
perspective where customers discover by experience the true nature of the
flight, especially if there are differences in the standards of service provided by
the co-operating airlines. This may be most conspicuous where a presumed jet
flight route with higher levels of comfort, lower noise, vibration, etc. 147
partially comprises stages with turbo-prop aircraft. This mismatch can
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threaten the standing of the brand image of airlines so expensively nurtured in

other ways. Code sharing agreements are expanding fast, though this does
require governmental approval and there is a background of discontent about
them. To illustrate, the US Transportation Secretary received a letter from
Senator Ford in 1993 I, for one, am rapidly coming to the conclusion that code
sharing may be the consumer rip-off of the decade. On its face, code sharing is
inherently dishonest. In virtually any other area of the economy, it would be
fraud to engage in such a practice (Skapinker, 1995c). British Midlands
managing director recently stated A set of industry standards which will seek
to ensure increased competition and fullest possible information, and which we
all agree and support, is the least the customer deserves (Independent, 1995).
Another form of code sharing is the use of the designator code of one airline
for the flights of another airline on the same route, be it a complete or partial
substitution for the designator airline. This may enable a higher frequency of
flights to be operated than either airline could individually provide. Though
there have been fears expressed that this arrangement could lead to a reduction
in capacity on thin routes as one airline eventually pulls out, to the detriment of
competition. An example of this was Sabena ceasing to fly from Brussels to
Atlanta following a code sharing agreement with Delta (Skapinker, 1995c).
However, where flights are shared, airlines can still compete to acquire the
passengers.
The impetus for code sharing is the expansion of air service provision by any
airline without incurring the capital costs of route development and aircraft
acquisition. There is the additional benefit of gaining access to congested
airports by code sharing. Thus, Delta denied access to Heathrow but flying into
Gatwick gained access to the former through code sharing with Virgin Atlantic
(Skapinker, 1995d).

Conclusions
As airlines have had to become more competitive, they have striven to reduce
costs, primarily through the reduction of staff and the outsourcing of non-core
activities. Their prime competitive advantage is the network and scheduled
flights, and consideration of these is the key criterion of consumer choice.
Network rationalisation and expansion have been a dominant strategy and this
has widened the basis of competition as airlines, dominant in some areas, seek
to penetrate or expand in new ones. To facilitate this marketing competition has
been concentrated on corporate branding both to attract customers and to
 JMP: establish strong distribution. Branding has tended to permeate marketing
AMS oriented airlines and has served as a focus for staffing initiatives as services
5,5 ancillary to the core product of transportation act as discriminators between
airlines. Travel is an experience good (though consumer perceptions prior to
experience are important) and satisfactory service or better is likely to be
rewarded with renewed patronage. Thus, all features of the travel experience
148 need to be coordinated and offer efficiency and value for money. Any negativity
in the travellers experience will prompt more active consideration of
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alternatives.
Marketing competition centres on the communication of precisely what
services are offered, though given the complexity of pertinent information the
consumer must be attracted and prepared to invest time and effort in more
detailed consideration. This task has traditionally been eased by the specialist
services of travel agencies or airline direct sales outlets. However, part of the
airlines moves to reduce costs has threatened the structure that is based on
computer reservation systems and complementary systems. There is increasing
evidence that the development of interactive Web sites can fill this gap and
electronic systems of ticketing, billing, emplaning, are all tied to this
development.
Traditional marketing devices will have to adapt to this new environment.
Corporate advertising will help establish presence and promotional offers
provide consumer incentives to consider particular airlines. The longer-term
future of FFPs looks more uncertain as are the best strategies to retain the
business traveller. Some airlines are investing in premium services at high
prices where they believe status, exclusivity and exceptional levels of service
are demanded. Others are abandoning such services at least on some routes.
The mass market is expanding and this increases the scope for niche
marketing, which is so evident in the operations of budget airlines, supersonic
flights and the charter sector. Code sharing, however, is currently tending to
blur the underlying consumer preferences for distinctive services which will
ultimately lead to further changes in industry structure as cost levels,
economies of scale and scope and effective marketing shape the new order.

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