London, February 23 2011: Collinson Latitude, a provider of ancillary revenue products and services, is today launching a campaign called ar2 to demonstrate how companies can maximise profits from ancillary revenue programmes.
ar2 defines not only the philosophies, but also the practical steps, that airlines, hotels and travel service providers need to take to ensure ancillary revenue programmes achieve much more than just one-off, short-term boosts in income.
Collinson Latitude director Janet Titterton explains: “ar2 is all about developing long-term, sustainable relationships with customers, driving up revenues by maximising new and existing ancillary revenue opportunities. If you want to retain profitable customers for life, you need to add value to their travel experiences, not costs.”
Increasing customer spend whilst also increasing customer satisfaction can be quite a challenge, which is why companies need expert third-party support. “There are no easy answers here,” admits Titterton, “and no one-size-fits-all products to buy. Each company needs to find unique, sophisticated, tailor-made solutions. That’s why data is such an important element of ar2, because each company’s customer base is different. A better ancillary revenue programme does not necessarily mean a radical overhaul of a business plan; it starts with better analysis and exploitation of the customer data you already hold and then relevant actions thereafter.
“Hotels, for example, know so much about their customers, from their preferred holiday destinations to their favourite after-dinner drinks, that putting together an appealing subscription package of benefits – lifestyle benefits that extend far beyond the hotel itself – is a real possibility. Low-cost airlines, similarly, might realise that many of their customers will pay for the convenience of a single-price ticket package of otherwise unbundled elements – such as fare, baggage allowance and onboard meal. After the long-term trend for unbundling, we’re likely to see a turning of the tide and a re-bundling process. Intelligent, targeted re-bundling encourages travellers to spend more money to achieve a greater sense of value and convenience.”
Collinson Latitude is this week exhibiting at the ‘Loyalty 2011’ conference in Fort Worth, Texas. Together with sister company ICLP, Collinson Latitude will also be hosting a workshop at the event to suggest how long-established loyalty programmes can be refreshed, strengthened and made more profitable through the seamless integration of new multi-channel tools.
