CarTrawler’s Post

🚀 The 2024 CarTrawler Yearbook of Ancillary Revenue by IdeaWorksCompany is here, and it’s packed with insights that you can’t afford to miss👇 Key takeaways: - Ancillary revenue for the top 10 airlines skyrocketed to $54.1 billion in 2023, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. - Loyalty programs shine with a 32.2 billion dollar boost, up 18.6% from 2022. - Passenger demand for premium services is soaring, and ancillary revenue is following suit, with airlines tapping into new opportunities for growth. For more details: https://lnkd.in/eEPeYB42 #AviationIndustry #AirlineRevenue #AncillaryRevenue #AviationInsights #AirlineInnovation #CustomerExperience #PXCom #LoyaltyPrograms #PassengerExperience #AviationData

The ability to drive ancillary revenue separates the most profitable travel companies from the others - as it offers customers the opportunity to gain more value which can be sold at much higher margin than flights. Having a best-in-class car rental proposition is an obvious example- customers are already purchasing elsewhere and research shows that many of them would be happy to buy via their airline partner. But not all propositions are created equal! Some are a white label with a “sticker”, and some are a completely bespoke booking engine on desktop and mobile powered by proprietary cross selling technology and seamlessly integrating into your loyalty program though earn and redeem. There’s also a misconception that it’s a big IT project to do this properly- CarTrawler has integrated and started to make money for the worlds largest travel companies in weeks… so if you’re tasked with driving travel revenue, and you don’t have the best solution, you’re not providing the best customer experience, you’re not leveraging your brand, and you’re leaving money on the table. And that’s something you can change much more quickly than you think!

Airline loyalty that actually delivers? Not a myth. CT Chronicles S2 brings you a candid chat between Rategang Moroke (Corporate Traveller) and Byron Lottering (Airlink) about the airline’s new Skybucks loyalty programme. They break down how Skybucks is redefining perks for the modern business traveller – they don’t just sound good on paper; they’re practical benefits that actually make your life easier. From clever point-hacking to unlocking premium experiences, discover how business travellers are turning miles into meaningful rewards. Ready to make your loyalty work harder for you? Tune in for some insider tips and tricks: https://okt.to/NWQgpw #LoyaltyProgrammes #AfricanBusiness #Airlink #CTChronicles #CorporateTraveller

Airline loyalty that actually delivers? Not a myth. CT Chronicles S2 brings you a candid chat between Rategang Moroke (Corporate Traveller) and Byron Lottering (Airlink) about the airline’s new Skybucks loyalty programme. They break down how Skybucks is redefining perks for the modern business traveller – they don’t just sound good on paper; they’re practical benefits that actually make your life easier. From clever point-hacking to unlocking premium experiences, discover how business travellers are turning miles into meaningful rewards. Ready to make your loyalty work harder for you? Tune in for some insider tips and tricks: https://okt.to/IerWuj #LoyaltyProgrammes #AfricanBusiness #Airlink #CTChronicles #CorporateTraveller

This episode: Why Skybucks is your ticket to better flights. Byron Lottering, E-commerce and Loyalty Manager at Airlink, sits down with Corporate Traveller’s Rategang Moroke. #Skybucks #TMC #businesstravel #corporatetraveller #Airlink #dutyofcare #sustainability

Airline loyalty that actually delivers? Not a myth. CT Chronicles S2 brings you a candid chat between Rategang Moroke (Corporate Traveller) and Byron Lottering (Airlink) about the airline’s new Skybucks loyalty programme. They break down how Skybucks is redefining perks for the modern business traveller – they don’t just sound good on paper; they’re practical benefits that actually make your life easier. From clever point-hacking to unlocking premium experiences, discover how business travellers are turning miles into meaningful rewards. Ready to make your loyalty work harder for you? Tune in for some insider tips and tricks: https://okt.to/HGyeFY #LoyaltyProgrammes #AfricanBusiness #Airlink #CTChronicles #CorporateTraveller

#ancillaryrevenue hits new record at $148.4B, according to IdeaWorksCompany and its latest CarTrawler reivew. Ancillary revenue contributes a crucial 14.9% to #airline revenue across the globe. For individual #airlines, this contribution can range from a low of 2% to a high of 56.4%. The upward march of ancillary revenue has recovered from a severe pandemic-era drop. The record result for 2024 reveals the resiliency of revenues generated by a la carte items (such as baggage and assigned seats) along with commissions generated by car and hotel travel sales, and co-branded credit card programs associated with frequent flyer programs. https://lnkd.in/eiYJ3njg

Why Haven't Airlines Cracked Interline Ticketing with NDC Yet? A humorous take on a serious question. Ah, interline ticketing—a topic that sparks joy & dread in the hearts of airline IT departments. With NDC (New Distribution Capability) promising to revolutionize how we book flights, you’d think interline ticketing would be a piece of cake by now. But here we are, still trying to get airlines to play nicely together in the sandbox. So, why hasn’t it happened yet? The “Herding Cats” Problem: Getting multiple airlines to agree on the same technical standards, processes, and data formats is like trying to organize a group of cats. Each airline has its own systems, priorities, and quirks. And let’s face it, cats don’t like to share! The “Who’s on First?” Dilemma: Interline agreements involve complex revenue sharing, passenger data exchange, and operational coordination. Everyone’s trying to figure out who’s responsible for what, and in the meantime, the passenger is left wondering who’s flying the plane. Standards Are Great… Until They’re Not: While NDC is all about standardization, the reality is that different airlines interpret these standards in slightly different ways. It’s like everyone is cooking from the same recipe but adding their own secret ingredients. The result? A stew that doesn’t always taste the same. But don’t lose hope! The industry is making strides, and with each NDC version, we’re getting closer to making interline ticketing as seamless as booking a single airline. It’s a journey, and like any good trip, it’s taking a bit longer than expected—but we’ll get there. 🙂 So, here’s to the dream of booking a multi-airline itinerary without a headache, and to all the airline IT folks out there who are making it happen (or at least trying to). Keep up the good work! #Aviation #Airlines #NDC #Airlineindustry #InterlineTicketing #TravelTech #Innovation #AirlineIT #IATA #Airlineretailing #Ancillaries #LCC #FSC #ULCC

Yesterday at the TravelTech Show in London we've taken the pulse of airline distribution. The audience included travel buyers and travel management companies who were curious to hear about airlines' progress with offers and orders. If I can pick three points from our discussions: 👉 The debate has moved from "why" and "when" to "what" and "how". Julian Meersse shared the 2030 timeline of Lufthansa Group for Offers and Orders. I explained our role at Threedot in supporting airlines, travel agents and technology companies in this transition to digital retailing. 👉 Offer personalization: I was asked to pick a use case in the corporate space. I gave the example of an airline and a corporate negotiating a special deal with specific benefits per type of staff. How long does it take to implement the agreement in a GDS with filed fares? Can NDC and dynamic pricing help reduce the timeframe from one year to one month or one week or one day? 👉 Order servicing: I reacted to the pain point of servicing NDC bookings. Technology solutions exist today, as showcased at the event, where travel agents can automate post-booking activities for NDC bookings with the same features as in a GDS. So what is slowing down the implementation of such solutions? #traveltech #airlineNDC #theshowmustgoon

What are my takeaways from the airline conference #t2rlengage 2024 I was privileged to attend again? 📌 NDC benefits for travelers have not progressed much past lower fares (Read: innovation with NDC is still lacking) 📌 More NDC distribution deals are being signed especially within GDSs 📌 Offer / Order is still coming... 📌 Conversations between airlines and sellers are becoming constructive, it's something I've heard several times I also got promises from some airlines they will join my podcasts to talk more about their travel seller teams! 📌 Codeshare needs to die. Few disagree 📌 There's a live outside NDC... The incredible results easyJet is achieving on virtual interlining (thanks to Dohop) is one great example. Watch this space travel sellers! 📌 Travel sellers dependancy on GDSs remain, stronger than most expected 📌 Personally I'm worried about a total lack of understanding of the impact of Offer Order amongst travel sellers. It's something to work on with airlines to avoid the initial NDC rollout mistakes Overall, the hunger for better retailing results amongst airlines was very evident. Investment in this space is intense. I'm really pleased to hear travel sellers being added to conversations here. A huge thank you to Richard Clark for having me there and congratulations to T2RL for an incredibly successful event.