Low-cost carriers double ad spends, hike promos

Mumbai: As competition in the low-cost carrier (LCC) space increases, many of them have doubled their advertising spending, increased promotional offers and even gone in for a completely new look and feel, as they take on growing competition from the likes of Kingfisher, Jet Airways and Air India.
Spice Jet, for instance, has doubled its ad spending from 2 per cent of its turnover last year to close to 5 per cent this year. This July, for the first time, the LCC began considering a television campaign as it moves away from only price point or promo-driven advertising to promoting its brand and services.
Likewise, in the past two months, GoAir has increased the pace of its promotional offers to every fortnight, increasing its load factor during the period from 5.4 in June to 5.7 in July. And this in spite of full-cost carriers like Jet Airways and Kingfisher expanding their existing budget operations. Besides, promotional offers, GoAir has also gone in for a complete new look and feel that includes a logo change and new uniforms for its staff, changing the look from informal to formal attire.
Even the three-year-old Indigo Airlines launched its first TV commercial this April, showcasing the airline running a smooth operation and catering to demanding consumers’ service expectations even though it offered a low-cost service.
The fleet of budget airlines is expected to double from 75 at the start of the year to over 150 by year-end.
25/08/09 Sapna Agarwal/Business Standard

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Categories: Low Cost General Aug 2009