The TravelMole Interview: Alicia Gardner, Sabre

Agents should consider using websites as loss-leaders, according to Alicia Gardner (left), vice president of Sabre’s online travel solutions division.

Ms Gardner says agents could choose to distribute airline web fares at zero commission as a way of encouraging loyal customers to stay with them, rather than deserting to other online travel portals.

Ms Gardner said: “Some agents may choose to have a loss leader in one area, but not all areas. If they can retain the majority of their customers and getting new customers even if it means they end up processing the booking offline it might keep their clients loyal.”

She argues that while agents could choose to lose money on the website, they would have the chance of earning extra revenue when the customer also then came into the agency to book a longer, more complicated trip. Ms Gardner says these are the kind of itineraries where agents can feel justified in charging a fee because they are providing a real service to the customer.

And she says that agents should not assume that their clients will not pay fees. She says that this is proved by what has already happened in North America, where although there has been “some fall out” other agents have successfully made the transition to charging customers for the service they provide.

Ms Gardner argues that this is just one approach that could be taken – for example another approach could be for agents to just put their own negotiated rates online. However she stresses that all agencies should try to think ‘outside the box’ when it comes to keeping long term ownership of their customers. Clients should be able to go to their agent for all their bookings, regardless of the channel they want to use. Otherwise they risk the client going elsewhere.

She said: “It is time for agents to take control of their own destiny by looking at additional revenue streams. You can either be on the sidewalk watching the bus go by, or you can get on board.”

According to Ms Gardner, online competitors such as Opodo have to spend massive amounts on marketing their websites because they do not have the customers already. However existing offline agencies do – and can easily direct clients to their website as they already have their e-mail and postal addresses in their databases. She said: “They are trying to take your business away so the trick is to hold on to them by offering them whatever channel they want.”

See our previous stories:

03 May 2002: Champion Travel launches online bookings
19 Apr 2002: Sabre Q1 figures show bookings down 14%
09 Apr 2002: Sabre acquires remaining Travelocity shares
09 Apr 2002: Sabre becomes leading GDS in Greece

See previous TravelMole interviews:

29-Apr-2002: Carolyn Ezzell, Delta Air Lines
23-Apr-2002: John Davis, Pegasus Solutions
15-Apr-2002: Gregory Hunt, ABTA Arbitration Scheme
09-Apr-2002: Stuart Winter, Atinera
03-Apr-2002: Roberto Da Re, Dolphin Dynamics
26-Mar-2002: Arnaud Debuchy, Amadeus
19-Mar-2002: Helen Baker, Lastminute.com
12-Mar-2002: Pat Minogue, Galileo
07-Mar-2002: Jon Hart, MyTravel
28-Feb-2002: Lawrence Hunt, Rapid Travel Solutions