Davidson On 'Why The Latest BTC Allegations Don't Add Up And What We Can Do About It'
The following guest column was contributed by Farelogix CEO Jim Davidson.
OK, I'll admit it: Lately I have been trying to take a more passive role in travel industry public discourse. After the surprising accusation that I was leading a cult-like movement toward innovation and against the status quo, I decided to "turn the other cheek," "start with a fresh page," "take one for the gipper," and just shut up. I had even decided to stop my "incessant incantations" on XML (oooh that seductive XML...XML...XML...XML.).
Sorry, where was I? Oh yes, my incantations.
As those who run with me in my inner circle know, I have been a long-time student of the ancient arts of spell-casting and mind control. But up until very recently, the only spell I have been able to cast was putting an accidental curse on Mike Premo of ARC that makes him feel compelled to wear a bow tie whenever he leaves the house. And I'm still working to correct that one. So for several reasons, I hereby promise no more incantations. However I can't stop being incessant and vocal when I see danger and hypocrisy afoot in our industry, which brings me to the purpose of this article.
Standardized Creativity? Homogenous Product Differentiation? The Quest For Control Of The Airline Product
Farelogix is highly supportive of management and settlement standards being developed around the merchandising process. We have been the leaders in developing the first ARC certified EMD (both EMD-A and EMD-S), which is in full accordance to the IATA reporting standard. Farelogix merchandising solutions also fully support ATPCO fare filings if airlines opt to use ATP instead of alternative merchandising solutions in the market.
I recently attended the CASMA meeting in Montreal. I was invited to participate on a panel to discuss “value-based” merchandising, which I was honored and pleased to do. Engaging in fruitful industry dialogue, in particular about critical topics such as airline merchandising, is well worth the time and money investment required to prepare thoughtful, provocative and hopefully entertaining presentations. It was clear that several other presenters share this view. The quality of presentations, however, is not the focus of this letter.
It is no secret that one of the most powerful ways to influence individual and societal behavior is fear. Just turn on the evening news or read a history book to see all kinds of examples where scaremongerers – those who exploit others’ worst fears for political or commercial benefit – manage to scare people into doing what might otherwise not make logical sense.
It is tremendously disappointing to see the extent of scaremongering (or fearmongering, for readers in the US) taking place right now within the travel industry. I am referring to the recent communications from the Business Travel Coalition (BTC) on the topic of airline direct connects and ancillary services.
The Merchandising WIIFM (What’s In It for Me?) Series
In this series of articles published on The Beat blog, Jim explores the merchandising movement from various perspectives and points of view, asking the question ‘What’s In It for Me?’ and exploring the value proposition across the travel supply chain.
Apr 14, 2010 Part 5: Airline Merchandising, The WIIFM (What's In It For Me?) Series: Enough Already, Stop Waiting, Take Action!
So here we are, Merchandising WIIFM Series Installment 5, and instead of the planned content (a rather pithy piece on portable merchandising), I'm grumpy and have decided to vent. Hopefully my rantings will prove interesting enough for you to keep reading.
Feb 25, 2010 Part 4: Merchandising: Just Because It’s Complex Doesn’t Mean We Have to Make It Hard
So far, we’ve established that there are a number of opportunities associated with flight merchandising -- new revenue streams, revitalized supplier-customer relationships, and a way for airlines to finally move beyond commoditization and truly differentiate their product. We left off our last installment, however, with an important question: “How will this rapid adoption of airline merchandising be possible, given the complexities that characterize airline and agency operational and technical supporting processes?”
Feb 4, 2010 Part 3: Merchandising: Challenges, Opportunities, Truth And Myth
No more pithy intros or recaps of the last article; it's time to get right into it. Here we go: The search for truths and myths about airline merchandising. For some, the reality of developing, implementing, and distributing an effective airline merchandising product is way too complex to even imagine. This is a myth.
At a macro level, there are really only two major challenges that need to be overcome in order for merchandising to flourish. There needs to be a solid value proposition to motivate buying behavior, and there needs to be operational and technical process to allow the transaction to take place. This is a truth.
Jan 21, 2010 Part 2: Airline Merchandising, The WIIFM (What's In It For Me?) Series - Just The Facts Please!
Last week, I introduced a blog series on merchandising. The first installment focused on the fact that there is a wide range of opinions and emotions across the travel industry regarding this new phenomenon called merchandising. I also pointed out that there is a fair amount of misinformation and misunderstanding on the topic, and this often inhibits effective discussion and debate. So, in the hopes of leading to more fruitful and informed discussions for all of us, this second installment is a short primer on merchandising lingo. The intent here is to give us all a baseline understanding about this powerful movement that is unfolding in our industry.
Jan 13, 2010 Part 1: Airline Merchandising, The WIIFM (What's In It For Me?) Series - Why are we so anxious about airline merchandising?
There, we said it! The question everyone always has but seldom asks in public--what's in it for me?--is now out in the open, so we can talk about it more freely. We can finally begin to have some much-needed, intelligent conversation and debate about airline merchandising, without hiding behind fear, apprehension, or lack of understanding. We can begin to address questions such as these: What is it, really? In what shape and form will this new industry beast show itself? What are the technological, commercial, and adoption implications? Why is it so scary? And yes, we can even address the big question: What's in it for me? Read the full article here
August 24, 2009
GUEST: Davidson On The Purpose Of Business Travel
I have the pleasure of speaking at many industry conferences around the world, where I meet with global travel management companies, airlines, the global distribution systems and a variety of top execs from third-party companies.
The general tone this year has been very serious, with many of the presentations and discussions focused on the economy and its negative impact on our industry. What I found most intriguing were those that attempted to address the reduction in travel, or specifically "alternatives to business travel."
First, let me say there is absolutely no acceptable or viable alternative to business travel. I have always had a very simplistic definition of business travel: "Travel for the purpose of creating or maintaining business." Put simply: It's all about increasing revenue. Read full article here
