From the few tickets that were sold by Alaska Airlines and former British Midland in December 1995 via the industry’s first airline booking engine websites, global online travel has grown to generate today more than half a trillion dollars in annual revenue. This development has brought significant changes to the airline business, travel markets, and consumers. Today, airlines worldwide not only use e-commerce for online marketing and selling but also as a platform to offer unique services and capabilities that have no counterpart in the physical world.
This book is an in-depth introduction to airline e-commerce. It covers a broad scope of areas that are essential to an airline’s ongoing digital transformation.
- Digital properties & features
- E-marketing
- E-sales & distribution
- Web customer service
- E-commerce organization
- E-commerce strategy
Written by an airline e-commerce expert and illustrated with numerous examples of leading airlines in this area, Dr. Hanke provides for comprehensive "behind-the-scenes" details of how airline e-commerce works. This book is a crucial companion for students and practitioners alike because it allows the reader to acquire a thorough foundation of airline e-commerce. Furthermore, the book enables the reader to appreciate the ramifications of airline e-commerce in certain corporate areas and to take effective action for a successful e-commerce strategy.
1. Introduction
1.1. The Opportunity
1.2. Airline E-commerce: What is it Really?
1.3. How Did It Get Started? A Brief Overview of the Beginning of Airline E-commerce
1.4. Fundamental Airline E-commerce Concepts
1.5. The Value Proposition Of Airline E-commerce
1.6. New Rules of the Game: The Attention Economy
1.7. Legacy Airlines vs "Dotcom" Airlines
1.8. Managerial Issues In Airline E-commerce
2. Digital Airline E-commerce Properties in Airline E-commerce
2.1. Airline E-commerce Properties: An Overview
2.2. Features on Airline E-commerce Properties: A Quick Tour
2.3. The Impact of Globalization, Personalization, and Web Accessibility On Digital Airline E-commerce Properties
2.4. What Platforms & Features to Implement and How?
3. Airline E-Marketing
3.1. Introduction
3.2. The Rise of Airline E-Marketing
3.3. Why Is E-Marketing So Attractive?
3.4. First Marketing Principle: "Know Your Customer"
3.5. The Rise of the Millennial Traveler
3.6. Airline Marketing Communication with Web Travelers
3.7. Traditional Media3rd Party Formats Deployed in Airline E-marketing
3.8. Digital Media Deployed inby Airline E-Marketings in Marketing Communication
3.9. Email Marketing
3.10. Social Media Marketing
3.11. The Role of Social Media Influencers
3.12. Airline Blogs
3.13. Airlines & 3rd Party Blogsging Platforms
3.14. Game Advertising
3.15. The Role of Gamification in Airline E-Marketing E-commerce
3.16. Airline Social Media Communities
3.17. Airline Mobile Marketing
3.18. Computing Wearables: The Next Frontier for Mobile Marketing?
3.19. The Management ofManaging your www.Airline.com Domain Names
3.20. Building aa Solid Airline Domain Name Portfolio
3.21. Dealing with Domain Name Squatters
3.22. Anti-branding Corporate Hate Sites: The Ultimate Brand Infringement?
3.23. Something to Watch Out for: The Rise of Social Squatting
3.24. Critical Success Factors for Managing aAn Airline Domain Name Portfolio
3.25. Airline Web Site Design & Web Traveler User Experience
3.26. Ergonomic Factors
3.27. The Role of Digital Media Agencies
4. Airline E-Sales & Distribution
4.1. E-Saless & Distribution Overview
4.2. Setting the Stage: A Brief History of E-sales & Distribution
4.3. Marketplace Structures
4.4. Selling Directly vs Selling Indirectly
4.5. Deep Dive: Profiling the Market Segments
4.6. Profiling the Players
4.7. Ancillaries: Airlines Turning Into Merchandising & Becoming Retailers
4.8. The Cost of Airline E-Sales & Distribution
4.9. The Issue of Direct Connect
4.10. Open Booking: The Corporate Version of Direct Connect
4.11. Airline Online Pricing: An introduction
4.12. Issues to Look Out for in Airline E-sales & Distribution
5. Multi-Channel Customer Service For Web Travelers: A Guide & How to Optimize It
5.1. Introduction
5.2. Web Traveler Preferences in Customer Service
5.3. Web Customer Service Issues: Why They Exist
5.4. Resolving Web Customer Service Issues
5.5. The Cost of Customer Service
5.6. Web Customer Service Channels: Detailed Overview
5.7. Emerging Web Service Channels
5.8. Web Customer Service: Who Is Organizationally Responsible for Managing It?
5.9. Analytics & Measurement of Web Customer Service
5.10. The Tiered Multi-Channel Approach
5.11. The Importance of Seamless Web Customer Service
5.12. Developing Integrated Multi-Channel Capability
6. The Airline E-commerce Organization
6.1. Introduction
6.2. The Right Airline E-commerce Organization: Does It Exist?
6.3. The Role of Resources, Values, And Processes in an Airline Organization
6.4. Types Of Organizational Structure: Who Is In Charge?
6.5. The Dedicated E-commerce Organization: A Closer Look
6.6. Inside the E-commerce Box: Key Roles & Areas for a Successful Organization
6.7. Towards An Ideal Airline E-commerce Organization
6.8. What Is Going On At Airlines?
6.9. Formal Airline E-commerce Organization Charts
6.10. What is the Ideal Digital Leadership at an Airline?
6.11. The Leader of Airline E-commerce
6.12. Challenges in the Airline E-commerce Organization
6.13. The Future of Airline E-commerce Organizations
7. Airline E-commerce Strategy
7.1. Airline E-commerce Strategy: Definition and Necessity
7.2. The Strategy Process in Airline E-commerce: Getting Started
7.3. The Quiet Beginning of Airline E-commerce Strategy
7.4. Drivers of Airline E-commerce Strategy
7.5. The Airline E-commerce Mission
7.6. The Identification and Setting of E-commerce Goals
7.7. Strategic Analysis
7.8. Supporting Organizational Arrangements
7.9. Building an Airline E-commerce Strategy
7.10. Implementing Strategy
7.11. How Ready Is Your Airline to Embark on a Transformation Course?
7.12. Measuring Airline E-commerce: The Digital Airline Score (DAS)
7.13. How to Improve the Level of E-commerce Use and Adoption
7.14. Conclusion
Biography
Michael Hanke, formerly with United Airlines, leading the carrier's worldwide e-commerce activities for united.com, is founder and managing director of SkaiBlu, an airline e-commerce consultancy based in the US. He received his doctorate in Air Transportation from Cranfield University, UK; his graduate studies were completed at the London School of Economics with an MSc in International Strategy and Diplomacy, and at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with an MBA. Michael earned his undergraduate degree in Business Administration at the University of Hamburg, Germany. He holds an FAA private pilot license.
‘Dr Hanke’s book provides a fascinating insight into the history and growth of e-commerce in airlines, as well as the challenges now facing companies within this fast-paced area of our business. A great read for practitioners and customers alike.’ — Kevin McQuillan, Head of ba.com and mobile channels, British Airways
‘This book is long overdue. Peppered with numerous airline examples of good, inadequate and bad practice. It explores and analyzes all the key areas of airline e-commerce. This is essential and fascinating reading for anyone directly involved but also for anyone wishing to understand how airlines or other tourism sectors can maximize the benefits offered by the digital revolution.’ — Rigas Doganis, Chairman European Aviation Club, Brussels, formerly non-Executive Director of easyJet and South African Airways
‘Michael Hanke has that very rare combination of excellent professional experience, creativity and the ability to set out in writing necessary to produce a very important work. And that is precisely what he has done with this obvious labor of love. It will I am sure have very practical value to its readers.’ — Peter Harbison, Executive Chairman, CAPA - Centre for Aviation
