p18 columnist Sept4 28/8/09 17:18 Page 18
news comment
ttglive.com
Amanda Wills Virgin Holidays
“All of us in travel must fight
for customer choice and
deliver the advance sales
that make cuts less likely”
A
nother month on and August has storm has passed. Customers aware of the
confirmed . . . as much as it hasn’t. choice advantages of booking early will help us
Weather? Unpredictable. Signs of help them (very Jerry Maguire).
a bookings recovery? Yes, no, We know the advantage of the late deal:
maybe, perhaps. nobody’s knocking it – not even us, honest! But
So what’s got us this far, now we’re all in the I’m all for well-rounded, informed arguments.
thick of it rather than in trepidation of what I’ve found they can lead to “everyone’s needs
“it” is going to be like? It’s our dogged sifting being met”, as Oprah might say if she popped
through bad news and continual adding to the up at WTM.
“What we DO know is…” list. Here’s mine: As an industry we need to protect the depth
■ A united industry effort is the only plausible and breadth of our offering, parallel to the
way to arrest the ever-shrinking booking ongoing search for “efficiencies” (such a
window. deceptively cuddly word for cuts).
■ Customers have a right to make informed I often see it in print, hear it at func-
choices in a climate where value for tions: “We sell memories, not just pack-
money is not just a “jazz hands” catch- ages”. I agree. That’s why protecting
phrase at the end of a DFS advert. It’s a choice, so we can tailor experiences, not
deal-breaking reality. just talk “bespoke”, is logically helped by
■ Advance bookings (aside from their demonstrating the edge beyond price
surprisingly fair prices), tick many held by the early doors booking.
“it’s my only holiday this year” Things we need to keep as the third
boxes: room upgrades/lounge ac- quarter dawns: GSOH and capacity.
cess/free nights. The “early edge” We’ve had some fun recently; business
choice of hotels, departure dates, and humour are not mutually exclusive
destinations, experiences. Ad- and lead to nuggets of creativity just
vance bookings are the photo-nega- when they’re most needed. In our chirpy
tive of the “insert here” package mindset, let’s fight for customer choice
■ Late deals have their place. Hey, we all and deliver the advance sales that make
set them up, and we all continue to sell them. cuts less likely.
■ Capacity is at risk. Let’s all make eye contact We’re looking for the point of return, not
now, on behalf of our late deal-giddy customers, the point of no return from this recession.
with the very real possibility that the choice – to Let’s not tie our own shoes together by set-
have choice – could be made for us all if we don’t ting up a sales kiosk on the runway, guys.
see booked customers on the advance horizon.
We all know that cuts made “temporarily” Amanda Wills is managing director
are often tough to get back in place once the of Virgin Holidays
18 04.09.2009
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