Low-cost carriers woo with low-cost frills

Of all the hullaboo in the aviation sector oflate, there was one trend that caught my attention. This was low-cost airlines(LCC) trying to build brand loyalty among corporate travellers by offering them ‘frills’.
I wonder if you folks picked this one up, but low-cost airlines are now giving the ‘recognizable’ corporate traveller a little snack-pack to munch on his way into ‘business land’. The complementary snack-pack offered consists of a sandwich, a soda and an optional pack of crisps.
Interestingly, the leisure/visiting friends and relatives (VFR) traveller who picked up his ticket by himself, is left alone to fend his hunger pangs or pay for an overpriced pack of cashew nuts.
India’s LCC’s must get their priorities right, especially when it comes to understanding the business traveller and what he expects from an airline. The corporate traveller in today’s world is not going to switch his loyalty for a sandwich. His expectations from a “frill” would ideally be in the form of a service that would make his life simpler and more productive. This could be a tele-check-in service, return flight check-in, redeemable flier miles, special offers and deals on radio taxi rentals and most importantly, special last minute deals on hotels in case his day extends to the next.
On the other hand, the leisure traveller needs the sandwich, the crisps and the soda. Chances are that the poor bloke’s on an empty stomach after travelling in an auto-rickshaw for over 50 minutes, wrestling his way through traffic and reachng at the check-in counter at 0500 am.
Customer delight and customer experience are two marketing buzzwords that can play a huge role to airlines building brand loyalty.
08/10/08 Mark D Martin/Daily News & Analysis

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Categories: Low Cost General Oct 2008