Mr.

Mario @ 9884331255

MARKETING IN AIRLINES WITH A SPECIAL

REFERENCE TO JET AIRWAYS

\
Project Report submitted to Pondicherry University in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

(TOURISM)
BY
ARUN P
Register No 1084304

Under the Guidance of

Dr Y. VENKAT RAO
Faculty Guide
Head in charge
Dept. of Tourism Studies
Pondicherry University

DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM STUDIES

PONDICHERRY UNIVERSITY
 PUDUCHERRY-605014
2008-09

DEDICATED TO
MY FATHER, MOTHER AND SISTER

2
 DECLARATION

I, hereby declare that this project report entitled “MARKETING IN

AIRLINES WITH A SPECIAL REFERANCE TO JET AIRWAYS” is a
genuine record of data and information collected by me and submitted to
Pondicherry University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of
MBA(Tourism).

PUDUCHERRY ARUN P.
29 JUNE 2009

3
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to express my deepest thanks to Lord Almighty for all the wonderful
grace and blessing showered on me all through out this project

I deeply convey my heart felt thanks to Dr. Y. Venkat Rao, Head in charge,
Department of Tourism studies, Pondicherry University for his valuable
guidance during the project work.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Prof. G.Anjeneya Swamy, Head
of
the department for encouraging me and supporting me to complete this
project.

I acknowledge the assistance of Neil, Asst. HR Manager in jet airways,

international terminal, Chennai airport for their kind co-operation

I owe a tremendous depth of gratitude and respect to My Family members and

Friends, without whose help, I wouldn’t have come so far.

I finally thank all those who helped me intangibly in my pursuit towards

greater academics endeavors

ARUN P.

4
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the summer project entitled “Marketing in airlines,

with a special reference to Jet airways” which is bonafide record of work done
by Mr.Arun P., in partial fulfillment of the course curriculum of MBA Tourism.
He has prepared this report under my guidance and direct supervision.
I wish him all the best and his future endeavors.

Dr.Y.VENKAT RAO
Reader & HOD in-charge
Department of Tourism Studies
Pondicherry University

5
 INDEX

SL.NO. CHAPTER CONTENT PAGE NO.

1 I INTRODUCTION

AIRLINE INDUSTRY – AN OVERVIEW

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
SCOPE OF THES STUDY

METHODOLOGY

LIMITATION

2 II REVIEW OF LITERATURE

MARKETING
AIRLINE MARKETING

3 III ABOUT JET AIRWAYS

PROFILE

HISTORY

MARKETING

4 IV ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

SWOT ANALYSIS

DATA ANALYSIS

6
5 V FINDING & SUGGESTION

6 VI C ONCLUSION

7 VII BIBLIOGRAPHY

8 VIII ANEXTURE

LIST OF TABLES

Sl.no. Heading Page

1 First time traveler

2 Source of information about jet airways

3 Reason for traveling with jet airways

4 Getting the proper updates of jet airways

5 Source of getting updates of jet airways

6 Rating the efficiency of jet airways for

providing with latest updates
7 Brand preference

8 Method of booking ticket

9 Recommending friends or relatives

LIST OF FIGURES

1 Overall passengers 2000-2008

2 Indian carriers domestic market share

3 First time traveler

4 Source information about jet airways

5 Reason for traveling with jet airways

6 Getting the proper updates of jet airways

7
7 Source of getting updates of jet airways

8 Rating the efficiency of jet airways for

providing with latest updates
9 Brand preference

10 Method of booking ticket

11 Recommending friends or relatives

CHAPTER – I
INTRODUCTION

8
 INTRODUCTION

THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY - AN OVERVIEW

Few inventions have changed how people live and experience the world
as deeply as the invention of the airplane. World War II, like World War I,
brought new life to the airline industry. During the both World Wars,
government subsidies and demands for new airplanes vastly improved
techniques for designing and building them. World War II brought tremendous
long run gains for the development of the air transportation industry including, a
large body of experienced pilots, a large collection of aircrafts used in the war
field and above all the increased public interest to fly due to the motivation given
by the experienced military personnel. Following the Second World War, the
first commercial airplane routes were set up in Europe.

The next dramatic step in commercial aviation was the adoption of jet
liners during the 1950’s. This provided increased travel speeds, smoother flights
and enlarged passenger-seating capacity.

The airline industry again leaped forward in the 1970’s with the
introduction of wide-bodied aircrafts like Douglas DC-10, Boeing 747 etc. The
advantage was the increase in passenger comfort and seating and freight
capacity. The 1980’s witnessed still further improvements in aircraft technology.

The industry has progressed to the point now where it would be hard to
think of life without air travel. It has shortened travel time and altered our
concept of distance, making it possible for us to visit and conduct business in
places once considered remote. Many airlines foresaw a future explosive demand
for civil air transport, for both passengers and cargo. The global airline industry,
counting both domestic and international carriers, is a giant industry. As the

9
airline industry grew, new brands of airlines started coming up and so did the
travel industry’s dependency on it. If the airline industry could be described in
three words, they would be "intensely competitive market."

Air transport forms a unique global network linking people, countries and
cultures and lays a vital role in the further integration and development of the
world. It is increasingly accessible to a greater number of people who can now
afford to travel by air for leisure and business purposes.

Some of the salient features of air transport are:

• Over 1.8 billion passengers use the world’s airlines for business and
leisure travel. Research indicates that by 2012, this number cold exceed
2.3 billion

• Air transport is essential for world business – creating jobs and opening p
new market opportunities by attracting businesses to locations in the
developed and developing world. It moves products and services quickly
over long distances enabling economic and social participation by
outlying communities.

• Air transport provides 28 million direct, indirect and induced jobs

worldwide, a figure that is expected to rise to 32 million by 2012.

• The combined direct, indirect and induced employment created at

airports is 4000 jobs per million passengers served. The location of the
airport creates an economic ripple effect, attracting other industries and
business activities, and secondary support functions.

• Over 40% of world trade of goods (by value) is carried by air.

10
 • Aviation is directly linked to the tourism industry, generating receipts of
700 million euro per day, and creating considerable employment in the
aircraft and engine manufacturing industries and related activities.

The airline industry is classified into four categories by the Department

of Transportation (DOT):

• International - 130+ seat planes that have the ability to take passengers
just about anywhere in the world. Companies in this category typically
have annual revenue of $1 Billion or more.
• National - usually these airlines seat 100-150 people and have revenues
between $100 million and $1 billion.
• Regional - companies with revenues less than $100 million that focus on
short-haul flights.
• Cargo - these are airlines whose main purpose is to transport goods.

Major challenges facing the airline industry

Airport capacity, route structures, technology, and costs to lease or buy

the physical aircraft are significant in the airline industry. Other large issues are:

• Weather - The problem is that weather is variable and unpredictable.

Extreme heat, cold, fog, and snow can shut down airports and cancel
flights (which costs money). Weather is also the second-largest cause of
flight accidents.
• Fuel Cost - on average, fuel can make up 14-16% of an airline's total
costs, although efficiency among different carriers can vary widely. Short
haul airlines typically get lower fuel efficiency because take-offs and
landings consume high amounts of jet fuel.
• Labor - it is estimated that 40% of an airline's expenses are used to pay
pilots, flight attendants, baggage handlers, dispatchers, customer service,
and others.

11
 As a result of globalization the government opened the sky to many new
airlines. Consequently, the monopolists are facing competition from newcomers.
In many ways, the biggest winner in the deregulated environment was the air
passenger. Indeed, the U.S. witnessed an explosive growth in demand for air
travel, as many millions who had never or rarely flown before became regular
fliers, even joining frequent flyer loyalty programs and receiving free flights and
other benefits from their flying. New services and higher frequencies meant that
business fliers could fly to another city, do business, and return the same day, for
almost any point in the country. The result of liberalization was customer
delight. Since there are many options for the customers they will go for the best.
So every firm tried to make their products best to attract new customers at the
same time maintain existing customers.

Another reason why airlines want to retain customers is the cost. The
commercial aviation industry as a whole was affected by the September 11th
incident and the crisis in the Middle East. This led to the reduction in passenger
traffic. As a result many airlines could not survive. Due to high fuel prices and
other taxes many airlines wound up their services.

Historically, air travel has survived largely through state support, whether
in the form of equity or subsidies. Today, the pace of change in the airline
industry is faster than ever before. The industry is becoming increasingly
liberalized. The former blanket of regulatory protection is being swept away and
airlines are being forced to compete in all the aspects of product, price and
service. Its structure is changing, with airlines grouping together through
strategic alliances, equity swaps and franchising arrangements into so-called
“mega-carriers”. The segmentation of the market is evolving, with airline
customers becoming more demanding and, often, more price- sensitive as well.

Airline industry is one of the most competitive and growing industries in

the world as it leads to economic growth, world trade, international investment

12
and tourism. In the last decade, it has grown strongly by 7% per year for both
business and leisure purposes.

Airline industry is considered as one of the fastest expanding sectors of

the world with growth rates 2.4 times above the GDP rates on average. It is also
predicted to grow by an average of 5 % a year from 2000 to 2010 (IATA).

Airline industry is affected by the economical growth, trade and political

factors. As an economical factor, the increase in oil prices destroyed the
profitability of the global airline industry, accordingly it losses around $6 billion
in 2005 (IATA).

Due to the unstable political and economical situation, many airlines

companies started to modify their strategies and services to survive and succeed
in the airline industry. For example, many companies invested heavily in the
quality of services they provide by offering, e-booking system, new interactive
entertainment systems, more comfortable seats, low cost carriers and many
technological techniques. All of that was introduced to attract, return customers
and gain a competitive advantage.

Overall, the airline industry will recover as the number of passengers

seems to be doubled by 2010 to exceed 2.3 billion due to the tourism, trade and
economic development (IATA). Thus, Successful airlines will be those that
continue reducing their costs and improving their services by differentiating
from competitors to secure a strong position in the aviation market.

OBJECTIVES OF STUDY

General Objective:

• To acquire a vibrant knowledge about airline industry and get through

awareness regarding their operation

13
 • To study the importance of marketing in the airline industry

• To know about the various marketing techniques used by airlines.

Specific Objective:

• To identify the marketing strategies adopted by Jet airways

SCOPE OF STUDY:

The competency among private airlines is increasing in higher level, so

through the study about the marketing of major airline, effective marketing
strategies can be identified. The study will depict the new trends in the airlines.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research comprises defining and redefining of problem, collecting,

organizing and evaluating data, making deductions and reaching conclusions.

Research problem

The need for selecting the topic ‘marketing in airlines‘ for the study is
because airlines has increased demand and they need an effective marketing
strategy to survive in the highly competitive environment.

The study required both primary and secondary data.

Sources of data

The data for this study is collected from primary and secondary sources.
The secondary data and the relevant material were collected from the magazines,

14
company profiles, broachers, etc. The primary data source for the study is the
customers of Jet Airways.

Primary data
Since primary data is collected at hand it calls for a decision making on
research approaches, contact methods, sampling plan and research instruments.
Research approach includes observational research and experimental research.
Contact methods include, telephone interviewing, and personal interviewing. For
this project the datas were collected by contact method.. The main advantages
with this primary data's are that they give more information in greater depth and
have greater flexibility

Secondary data
Secondary data consist of information that already exists somewhere,
having been collected for another purpose. It is obtained more quickly and at a
lower cost. Secondary data provides the necessary information to do the work.
Generally the different sources of secondary data are internal sources, prior
research reports, government publications which provide summary data on
demographics, economic, social and other aspects. Periodicals and books,
commercial data and international data are the other sources of secondary data.
The secondary data for this study were collected from different sources
like books, magazines, journals, newspapers and websites.

Sample size

Here the sample size for this study was 50 questionnaires.

Research tool

15
 As a tool or as a device used for the research a well structured
questionnaire is adopted. The questionnaire consists of closed-ended questions
where the respondent is forced to select an answer from the given choices. Under
closed-ended questions there are multiple choices, so that the respondents don’t
have any problem to answer. By using the questionnaire face to face interview
were also possible. SPSS and EXCEL are also used to analyse the primary data.

Data analysis

The collected data was analyzed by using both quantitative and qualitative
techniques. Under the qualitative techniques, the collected data was converted
into numerical format in appropriate tables with percentage and diagrams. Each
numerical format was described by using qualitative techniques used in this
research

Period of study

The study conducted during the period of May11 to June 25-2009

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Every study has its limit, so does this study the major limitation was the time
constraint. Another limitation of primary data is that they are very much time
consuming and the researcher cannot be sure whether the information received is
relevant, accurate, current and unbiased. We will get only a vague idea about the
work. Another limitation of the study relates with the security of the airport in
Chennai. Due to the security reason, Jet airways can’t issue pass for us. That
affects the independence of doing our work. So researcher could only get limited
amount of primary data. Hence this research mainly depends upon secondary
data. But secondary data may not always provide all the necessary data that is
required for the project.

16
CHAPTER – II
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
17
18
 REVIEW OF LITERATURE

A study of relevant literature is an essential step to get a good

comprehension of what has been done and found out. Such a review will
bring in a new insight and will help the development of knowledge
regarding the topic. From the literature relevant to the present study which
has been collected from difference sources of reference, what researcher
had understood is described in this chapter.

MARKETING

The World Tourism Organization defines marketing as “a management

philosophy that makes it possible through research, forecasting, and selection to
place tourism products on the market most in line with the organizations purpose
for the greatest benefit.”

Marketing is a directed, goal-oriented activity that balances the objectives

of the product, or supplier within or to it, with the needs of the customers. It also
relies heavily on research to determine the needs of those customers so that the
proper elements of the product are offered to them. Marketing, then, is a system
of research and planning that establishes a complete operating philosophy and
set of policies, strategies, and tactics for an organization, including such matters
as size and scale of operation, style of furnishings, atmosphere, management
method forecasting, budgeting, pricing and promotion.

Marketing is that broad area of business activity that directs the flow of
services provided by the carrier to the customer in order to satisfy customers’
needs and wants and to achieve company objectives. Marketing is customer
oriented. Creating products and services that fulfill the needs of existing
customers and attracting new customers is the primary goal. Determining who
the customers are or could be and what their needs are is part of the process.

19
Marketing must also assist in achieving the company’s objectives; an acceptable
return on investment, a reasonable level of profits, and an adequate market share.

Approximately one-half of a major or national carrier’s employees are

engaged in the marketing process. Reservations personnel, ticket and customer-
service agents, baggage handlers, flight attendants, food-service representatives,
passenger and cargo sales representatives, and pricing and market research
analysts are involved in marketing the company’s product – air transportation

Without marketing and sales there would be no airline. Marketing is the

stimulus that encourages innovation, research, and investment. A carrier can
have the latest equipment and the most efficient human and capital resources
available, but unless somebody is there to sell the output produced, it is all for
naught.

Marketing is a ongoing process of planning and executing of the

marketing mix of products, services or ideas to create exchange between
individuals and organizations. Marketing tends to be seen as a creative
industry, which includes advertising, distribution and selling. It is also concerned
with anticipating the customers' future needs and wants, which are often
discovered through market research. Essentially, marketing is the process of
creating or directing an organization to be successful in selling a product or
service that people not only desire, but are willing to buy. Therefore good
marketing must be able to create a "proposition" or set of benefits for the end
customer that delivers value through products or services.

Two major factors of marketing are the recruitment of new customers

(acquisition) and the retention and expansion of relationships with existing
customers (base management).

Marketing methods are informed by many of the social sciences,

particularly psychology, sociology, and economics. Through advertising, it is

20
also related to many of the creative arts. Marketing is a wide and heavily
interconnected subject with extensive publications. It is also an area of activity
infamous for re-inventing itself and its vocabulary according to the times and the
culture.

Two levels of marketing

Strategic marketing - attempts to determine how an organization competes

against its competitors in a market place. In particular, it aims at generating a
competitive advantage relative to its competitors.

Operational marketing - executes marketing functions to attract and keep

customers and to maximize the value derived for them, as well as to satisfy the
customer with prompt services and meeting the customer expectations.
Operational Marketing includes the determination of the marketing mix.

Marketing as a system

Marketing is not a single activity or a series of several activities put

together but rather it is the interrelationship of many interdependent activities. If
is a system or an orderly process of coping with a variety of complex marketing
functions. Only if an organization views these functions as an interrelated system
will if achieve the goals of satisfying its customers and producing a desired level
at profit.

A systems approach to marketing also allows an organization to expand

its market penetration and successfully cope with its competition. We see a good
example of this with tour package companies. These firms put together packages
that comprise transportation, accommodation, sightseeing, and sometimes meals
and they sell the packaged product to the benefit of the suppliers (who can
expand their market) and the customers (who find it more convenient and less

21
costly to buy a package rather than try to assemble the various components
themselves)

Marketing is critical not only to profit oriented organizations, but also to

non-profit ones. An educational institute offering a tourism programs, for
example, must provide the right type of courses for the industry employers to
help ensure that graduates of those courses will be employable and have the right
education and training for their careers. This even in a non-profit organization if
is important to match the product with the needs of the market place.

Considerations of the External Environment

The way in which an organization plans and uses its marketing system is
greatly affected by certain external forces, many of which are outside the
organizations control. Marketing effectiveness can often be measured by the
creative way in which the organization continuously adjusts to these external
elements. It does this by forecasting how they are likely to change and using
internal controllable variables (such as human and financial resources) to cope
with these changes. Market demand can have an effect in two ways. The
economic viewpoint considers customers disposable and several economic
matters such as inflation unemployment, and interest rates. The behavioral
viewpoint concerns such matters as customer’s habits, lifestyles, motivation, and
similar sociological influences

Competition is probably the most important external factor that affects an

organizations marketing program. Unfortunately, most marketing managers
probably spend too little time researching the competition's own marketing
strategy in such areas as promotional activities and pricing policies.

Social enhances cover such matters as the consumer's disapproval of poor

service and supplier's poor product information, hidden costs, and misleading
advertising all organizations reputation. Legal and political factors include

22
legislation on pricing, resolutions concerning advertising, government controls
(such as liquor licensing of restaurants) and even international currency
exchange rates that can influence whether or not foreign tourist will visit a
particular destination.

Internal Elements Affecting Marketing

Many internal elements or variables also influence an organization

marketing efforts. The way in which these elements are combined and controlled
directs how the marketing plan will be implemented and ultimately will affect
profits.

The four Ps are:

• Product: The product aspects of marketing deal with the specifications

of the actual goods or services, and how it relates to the end-user's needs
and wants. The scope of a product generally includes supporting
elements such as warranties, guarantees, and support. The physical
appearance of the tourist destination, or of a business such as a hotel at
that destination, and how it compares with competitive product will have
a lot to do with how the product marketed and how it fares against its
competitors.

• Pricing: This refers to the process of setting a price for a product,

including discounts. The price need not be monetary - it can simply be
what is exchanged for the product or services, e.g. time, energy,
psychology or attention.

Pricing affects both sales and profits. To maximize profits, a

variety of pricing policies can be created, even for the same product. For
example, airline seats can be sold at first class, business class, or full
coach or economy fares or have several lends of discount, known as tied

23
 pricing, depending on the potential purchases to whom those seats are
being marketed.

• Promotion: This includes advertising, sales promotion, publicity, and

personal selling, branding and refers to the various methods of promoting
the product, brand, or company.
• Place: refers to how the product gets to the customer; for example, point
of sale placement or retailing. For most product distribution differs. With
manufactured goods, the items are distributed from manufactures to
wholesalers, to retailers, and finally to purchaser. In tourism, for the most
part the purchaser must be attracted and travel to the place where the
product is "consumed" or enjoyed. This requires proper selection of the
right channels of distribution to provide the tourist with information so
that he or she will be attracted.

Seven Ps

As well as the standard four P's (Product, Pricing, Promotion and Place),
services marketing calls upon an extra three, totaling seven and together as the
extended marketing mix. These are:

• People: Any person coming into contact with customers can have an
impact on overall satisfaction. Whether as part of a supporting service to
a product or involved in a total service, people are particularly important
because, in the customer's eyes, they are generally inseparable from the
total service. As a result of this, they must be appropriately trained, well
motivated and the right type of person.

• Process: This is the process(es) involved in providing a service and the

behaviour of people, which can be crucial to customer satisfaction

24
 • Physical evidence: Unlike a product, a service cannot be experienced
before it is delivered, which makes it intangible. This, therefore, means
that potential customers could perceive greater risk when deciding
whether to use a service. To reduce the feeling of risk, thus improving the
chance for success, it is often vital to offer potential customers the chance
to see what a service would be like. This is done by providing physical
evidence, such as case studies, testimonials or demonstrations.

Benefits

The marketing concept is based on the philosophy of considering the

needs and wants of customers and careful consideration of relevant external and
internal variables. It also implies that, by using effective marketing, the
organization will derive benefits that result in maximizing profits over the long
term. However, there are other benefits to an organization, such as:

• More complete understanding of which the organizations current and potential

customers are where they come from and what they like, and dislike about the
business.

• More effective use of the marketing budget, since the dollars spent are aimed at
specific groups of potential customers and use the most effective promotion
methods

25
• Better understanding of how the business compares with its competitors and
how to react to those competitors marketing strategies

• Better understanding of the economic and political factors that affect business
trends and marketing opportunities (such as when the business should expand
and/or create a new market).

AIRLINE MARKETING

Prior to 1978 virtually all air transport was heavily regulated. Fares,
routes, capacity and carriers were all subject to government approval on a
bilateral basis. The reasons for this are embedded in the development of airlines.
Historically, Governments have owned airlines for the purpose of national
defense and security in order to be able to requisition aircraft in the event of war.
Through the provision of state subsidies governments have been able to ensure a
national transport network, the threat being that without regulations certain
services especially those of low load or low yield, would disappear. The
subsequent emergence of national flag carriers resulted in the elevation of
airlines to a position of national prestige.

As The Airline Deregulation Act 1978 came, the situation irrevocably

altered in the domestic market of the United States. This provided the first real
evidence of what could happen once regulations were removed and opened up
way for the introduction of marketing techniques on an unprecedented scale. The
aims of the acts instigators were sound, to open up competition by exposing
airlines to market forces, which help promote greater choice and lower fares for
the customers. In the short term, exactly
this happened: new carriers proliferated, fares were lowered and new routes were
opened up.

Marketing is the management process responsible for identifying,

anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably. This is a dynamic

26
discipline, where customer requirements are in a constant state of evolution and
change. Airline marketing provides a particularly fascinating application of
marketing principles, which include industrial marketing and consumer
marketing. The future size of the market and possible future changes in customer
needs is very much important in airline marketing. Firms should have full
knowledge of the current and potential customers. The nature of sound
marketing policies will clearly vary according to the constraints and
opportunities provided by the external environment.

The application of marketing consists of seven stages.

1. The Customer
2. The Marketing Environment
3. Strategy Formulation
4. Product Design and Development
5. Pricing and Revenue Management
6. Distribution Channel Selection and Control
7. Selling, Advertising and Promotional policies.

The Marketing Mix

The 4P’s model is a powerful one. It’s application helps to achieve

business success.
• Product
• Price
• Promotion
• Place

PRODUCT

Airline product is what airline passenger consumes. The product may be

tangible or intangible

27
Tangible: Comfort of seat, Food served etc
Intangible: Service, attitude of cabin crew, attitude of ground staff etc.

Various Airlines product are as follows:

A. First class
B. Business class
C. Economy class
D. Inclusive tours
E. Stop over's
F. Connection service
G. Incentive packages
H. Excursion fares
I. Advance purchase excursion fares (apex)
J. Concorde flights
K. Cargo

PRICE

Customer is the person who decides whether the product is worth for that
price. The price of the product depends upon the demand. If the demand is more
and supply is less price will be higher. Demand depends upon an increase in
income of customer taste and needs, marketing needs, variables such as
promotion and distribution availability of substitute products etc. Airfares are
fixed through IATA (International Air Transport Association).

Different Pricing strategies

a) Prestige pricing

28
 In prestige pricing the airline prices the product heavily, So that the
passengers find it as a prestige to fly in that particular airline. It is projected as a
status symbol

b) Penetration pricing
The Company is established but they want to get into a new market. For
that they introduce their product at a discounted price or lower price, which give
the customers a feel or the experience of that product.

c) Cost based pricing

i) Cost plus pricing: - The airline first derives the cost, what all involved to fly
from one place to another and add the amount of profit to that and comes to a
final price.

ii) Break even pricing: -This can be done only when the market demand is high.
Price is fixed, above that point gets the profit. It is very difficult to fix a price
when the competition is high and the demand is very low.

iii) Target profit pricing: - Target a profit and the price the product according to
that to get the targeted profit.

d) Volume pricing
It is the incentive given to trader who sells large volume of product

e) Differential pricing
It is selling the same product in different rates at different markets.

PLACE (DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL)

In all areas of marketing links must be made between the customer and
the product. These links are known as distribution channels. Airlines use a
variety of such channels.

29
 AIRLINES

GSA OTHER AIRLINES TOUROPERATORS

AGENT AGENT

CUSTOMERS

Airlines

Some airlines opt for direct route. This is where the airline makes direct
contact with customers without any intermediaries. Direct channels bring the
advantage that no mark ups or commissions have to be paid to channel
intermediaries. They also allow producers to keep complete control of their
marketing activities. The airlines directly sell tickets to the customers.

Travel agency

The travel agency system is a dominant distribution channel for

activities. A travel agent can provide such a presence by selling tickets on behalf
of all airlines and tour operators and by also offering services such as hotels, car
rentals and theatre booking. A second advantage of travel agent is that they are
not heavy overhead burden for the airlines. It is true that all airlines have to incur
the costs of agency support in the form of such things as training for agency staff
and special telephone lines to deal with agents enquires. The principle though of

30
the agency relationship is that the airline only has to reward the agent with
commission when the agent concludes a piece of business on the airlines behalf.
The agent will issue tickets, assist with visa application and deal with
passenger’s queries about airport check in times, baggage rules etc

Tour operators

Another important sector of the distribution channel is the tour operators.

The airline produce plane loads of capacity, which is sold to tour operators. In
turn, the operators add in accommodation, surface transfers and other features of
holiday such as cultural tours or sporting opportunities to make up a complete
package. The tour operators are responsible for retaining these packages to find
customers.

Customers

The cornerstone of successful marketing activity is that firms should

obtain full knowledge of their current and potential customers. They should also
need to have the ability to forecast the future size of the market. And any
possible future changes in customer needs. For the airline industry customers are
those who make the decisions to travel.

PROMOTION

The broad general goal of an airline promotional activity is to increase

revenue and profit. To accomplish this, a carrier must engage in activities that
inform, persuade and remind customers in the target market about its services. A
major goal of promotion is to let the customers in target market know that the
carrier service is available at the right time, right place and right price.

31
 Airline offers various promotional techniques exclusively for the
passengers.

Selling The Product With Little Changes

Airline gives an extra facility, which is given on the same price to attract
passengers. For example City tour, hotel stays etc. Sometimes airlines offer
return tickets or offers free tickets for spouse. Festival or seasonal discounted
fares are there.

Stopovers

Another promotional measure of airline is giving free stopovers for the

passengers. Sometimes the accommodation and the city tour are given free by
the airlines.

Type Of The Ticket

The setting of different types of fares, each with their own set of
conditions and restrictions attached to them. EXECUTIVE, SAVER, PEX,
APEX, SUPERAPEX and SEAT SALE all differ in the flexibility they offer the
traveler and the price .The greater the flexibility higher the price. The lower fare
tickets are designed to fill up empty seats so that some revenue is gained. The
whole idea of attaching restrictions is to enable control to be exercised and to
ensure that full-fare paying passengers continue to pay the higher fare.

Inclusive Tours

To some extent, the use of scheduled seats /airlines as a part of inclusive

tour packages can be considered a marketing tool in that it is frequently a long-
term arrangement. Many-scheduled airline such as BA offer a block of seats to a
tour operator on the understanding that the seats are only sold as a part of

32
package. For the tour operator, offering a seat on a scheduled airline enhances
the up market reputation of the product and company and is a particular selling
point for the long haul travel. A limited upgrade promotion at time when seats
are flying empty assists marginally, increasing revenue and promoting the
product to potential business class travelers.

Alliances

Linked also to globalization, the rationale is to obtain a larger presence in

the global marketplace and to achieve various economics through linking
reservations, undertaking joint sales and marketing, offering special fares,
sharing facility and joint purchasing/maintenance agreements. Airline alliances
usually incorporate the following features
• Shared Airport facility
• Reciprocity on frequent flyer program
• Marketing agreements
• Improved connections
• Freight coordination
• Package tour Links

Intorsector Linkage

Airline gain marketing benefits from becoming involved with other

sectors in the chain of distribution. A natural development for airlines then is to
form links with hotels or even own them at airports on the basis that there will be
demand for the accommodation once the traveler has reached the destination.
Airline promotion has extended into tour operations. This has two facts:
the development of a charter fleet and a tour-operating program. The former can
be used either for their own tour operating program or leased to other companies.

33
BA has both its own charter wing and its own tour-operating program that uses
the scheduled service.
Finally, there is the link with other travel related companies such as
credit cards which put together special offers encouraging spending on the card
and promotion for the airlines.

Customer Retention

Quality service is the key to customer retention through customer

satisfaction. Customer who keeps on coming back is the goal. The focus must be
on retaining customers rather than simply trying to attract new ones.
A highly satisfied customer stays loyal longer. He pays less attention to
competing brands and advertising and is less sensitive to price. Highly satisfied
customer costs less to serve than new customers because transactions are
routinised.
This multiplied value, though more realistic, still underestimates the true
value of the customers. The customer can influence others through word of
mouth. Positive word of mouth can generate additional sales from relatives,
friends, and colleagues where as negative word of mouth can erase sales that
would have happened.
Loyal customers who keep on repurchasing are extremely valuable,
compared with the cost of attracting new customers through advertising, sales
promotion and other means, any effective method of retaining existing customers
who will continue to spend money with the organization must be important.
Airlines use the most effective customer retention programme, i.e. the frequent
flyer programme.

Frequent Flyer Programmes

FFP is a loyalty based scheme which provides upgrades, bonuses or free

flights, based on the number of miles flown by the passengers. FFP are now tied
into other products often non travel related including telephone companies,
credit cards, car rentals, tour operators, hotel chain and even stocks and shares.

34
Frequent flyer program is a major issue in airline marketing today. Frequent
flyer program is beneficial to passengers who fly frequently on specific airlines.
They can add miles to their Frequent flyer cards and can get free holiday
packages, special discounts on purchases, free gifts etc. Besides the rewards the
airlines provides separate reservations phone lines, a separate check in desk,
separate cabins on board the aircraft.

ADVERTISING

Advertising in airlines has gained a competitive edge nowadays. The

following are the current trends adopted by airlines for advertising:

• Sponsorship - Sponsorships are used by a firm to have its name associated

with an event, a team or competitor in exchange for money. Airline is
nominated as the official carrier for an event, as part of a deal to sponsor it.

• Database marketing - Database marketing will allow for finer market

segmentation and better targeting of marketing message. It permits messages
to be prepared and communicated only to those people that the airline wishes
to tell which demonstrate an airlines ability to meet a precise set of needs.

• Destination Promotion

• Internet - Internet advertising methods include search engine advertising,

display advertising, e-mail advertising, affliate advertising and interactive
advertising. One of the benefits associated with internet is the availability of
great amounts of information.

• Media advertising - This medium includes mass media such as newspapers,

television and radio advertising.

• Advertising in magazines - Magazines represent a significant advertising

medium for airline carriers. One of the reasons advertisers like magazines is

35
 the permissive nature of the medium. It allows readers to linger over a page
as long as they wish and to go back and look at it again any time they want as
compared with television and radio advertising, which do not provide such
freedom.

The airline industry is in the maturity stage, therefore there is a strong

competition in the market and the sales rate grows fast and then begins to
stabilize gradually. As the competition is more aggressive in this stage, the
advertising and sales promotion can be obvious

The airline industry’s main product is the seat in an aircraft that transfers
a customer from one point to another. But for airlines to distinguish themselves
from one another, they incorporate services around the seats that they provide
and with the tough competition that the industry has, travel has become more
accessible than before. More and more airline companies are joining the race and
all are fighting for a good share of the large market that they hope will result in
more economic profit. In result, airlines are always in the lookout for new
technologies and ways to provide the best product and services in the most
feasible way. The airline industry is a huge market as there are 900 airlines
companies internationally with total of nearly 22,000 aircrafts, nevertheless it
has a low growth rates as it is in its mature stage of life cycle.

Passengers 2000-2008 (includes both arriving and departing

passengers)

36
 From this figure we can find that the air-passengers are increasing with
respect to year. So more and more people depending on air travel. Hence
demand is increasing. So proper marketing technique and strategies would help
each company to conquer the business or to increase the total market share.

In the recent past Indian civil aviation sector has grown manifold. The
rapid growth of Indian economy has resulted in a spillover effect on the airline
industry in India. Several new players have entered the industry and many more
are about to enter the arena. The arrival of cheap airline carriers in India has
spiced up the whole affair. Suddenly the air travel is no more the monopoly of
the rich and the mighty. Now it has become a common man’s vehicle and
revolutionized the way a common Indian traveler used to travel. Here is a brief
preview of domestic airlines in India. This includes private airlines as well as
low cost airlines in India.

Here is a list of domestic airlines in India:

• Air India
• Kingfisher Airlines

37
 • Jet airways
• Go Air
• Spice Jet
• Indigo
• Paramount Airways

Indian carrier’s domestic market shares (%)

CHAPTER – III

38
ABOUT JET AIRWAYS

39
 JETAIRWAYS

PROFILE

Jet Airways is an airline based in Mumbai, India. It is India's second

largest international airline after Air India and along with its subsidiary, Jetlite,
the second largest domestic airline in India. It operates over 400 daily flights to
62 destinations worldwide. Its primary base is Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji
International Airport with secondary hubs at Bangalore, Brussels, Chennai, Delhi
and Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune as focus cities Under the guidance of its
Chairman, Mr. Naresh Goyal, Jet Airways won the ‘Best Domestic Airline’
award for the fourth consecutive year and the fifth time in the past six years at
the 18th annual TTG Travel Awards 2007. Jet Airways has also been voted the
Best Airline in Central/South Asia and India in an annual Global Traveler
magazine survey in January 2008.
Emerging as a world-class international airline, Jet Airways offers economical
air fares, a high quality of service and reliable and comfortable operations. From
smart and proficient crew to in-flight convenience, the airline offers many other
services including in-flight meals and in-flight entertainment, several check-in
options, such as Tele Check-in, Web Check-in, Kiosk Check-in at select
domestic airports and many other customer friendly facilities and services.
Operating three classes of service - First Class, Première and Economy, Jet
Airways has a wide cross section of partnership and alliances, and members of
its award-winning frequent flyer program, Jet Privilege, can enjoy special
benefits and earn JP Miles with carefully chosen program partners such as some
of the leading International airlines, hotels, banks, lifestyle, retail,
telecommunication, car rental and publishing partners.

Jet Airways Fleet

Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 84 aircrafts, which includes 10 Boeing

777-300 ER aircraft, 9 Airbus A330-200 aircrafts, 54 classic and next generation
Boeing 737-400/700/800/900 aircrafts and 11 modern ATR 72-500 turboprop

40
aircrafts. With an average fleet age of 4.3 years, the airline has one of the
youngest aircraft fleets in the world. Jet Airways operates over 385 flights daily.

SERVICES

Cabin Classes

With the arrival of its new Boeing 777-300ER and Airbus A330-200 aircraft,
Jet Airways has introduced a new cabin with upgraded seats in all classes. The
Boeing 777-300ER aircraft has three classes of service: First, Première
(Business), and Economy. The Airbus A330-200 aircraft have two classes:
Première and Economy. All Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 777-300ER aircraft
have this feature. Boeing 737 aircraft are configured differently. Jet Airways has
a three-star rated Business and First Class, and is in the top twenty-five business
classes reviewed by Skytrax. Economy class has been reviewed as a three-star
product by Skytrax.

First Class

First class is available on all Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. All seats convert to
a fully-flat bed, similar to Singapore Airlines first class seat but smaller. It was
the second airline in the world to have private suites (Emirates being the first
with its introduction in 2003 on their Airbus A340-500s). All seats in First have
a 29-inch widescreen LCD monitor with audio-video on-demand systems
(AVOD), in seat power supply, andUSB ports etc. Jet Airways is the
first Indian airline to offer fully-enclosed suites on its aircraft; each suite has a
closable door, making for a private compartment. Skytrax consumer airline
reviewers recently rated Jet Airways First Class as being 44th best in the world.

Première

Première (Business Class) on the Airbus A330-200 and Boeing 777-

300ER international fleet has a fully-flat bed with AVOD entertainment. Seats
are configured in a herringbone pattern (1-2-1 on the Boeing 777-300ER, and 1-

41
1-1 on the Airbus A330-200), with each seat offering direct access to the aisle.
Première seats on the A330-200s leased from ILFC are configured differently in
a 2-2-2 non-herringbone pattern. Each Première Seat has a 15.4-inch flat screen
LCD TV with AVOD. USB ports and in-seat laptop power are provided.

On the short-haul/domestic Boeing 737-700/800, all new aircraft are

equipped with AVOD. All seats are standard recliner business-class seats with a
few newer aircraft with electronic recline and massager.

Economy Class

Economy class on Jet's Airbus A330-200, Boeing 737-700/800 and

Boeing 777-300ER aircraft has 32-inch seat pitch. Seats on the Boeing 777-
300ER/Airbus A330-200 have a "hammock-style" net footrest. The cabin is
configured in 3-3-3 abreast on the Boeing 777-300ER, 2-4-2 on the Airbus
A330-200, and 3-3 in the Boeing 737. Each Economy seat on the 777-
300ER/A330-200 has a 10.6-inch touch screen LCD TV with AVOD.

Some recently acquired Boeing 737-700/800 aircraft also feature

Personal LCD screens with AVOD.

All three classes feature Mood lighting on the Airbus A330-200 and
Boeing 777-300ER, with light schemes corresponding to the time of day and
flight position.

In-Flight Entertainment

Jet Airways' Panasonic eFX IFE system on-board the Boeing 737-
700/800 and Panasonic eX2 IFE system on-board the Airbus A330-200/Boeing
777-300ER, called "Jet Screen", offers audio video on-demand programming
(passengers can start, stop, rewind, and fast-forward as desired). It has over 100
movies, 80 TV programmes, 11 audio channels and a CD library of 130 titles.
The system operates via individualtouchscreen monitors at each seat, and is
available in all classes.

42
Airport Lounges

Jet Airways Lounges are offered to First and Première Class passengers,
along with Jet Privilege Platinum, Gold or Silver card members. The
international lounge at Brussels has showers, business centre, entertainment
facilities and children's play areas.

Lounges are located in:

Indian Lounges

Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad Jaipur Kolkata Mumbai

International Lounges
Brussels, Newark

Jet Privilege

Jet Privilege is Jet Airways’ frequent flier program.

There are types of Jet Privilege cards. They are,

i. Blue
ii. Blue Plus
iii. Silver
iv. Gold
v. Platinum

DEPARTMENTS

1) Guest Service department

To serve the customers and for ticketing.

2) Operation Departments

43
 For operating Flight. It includes captain and other crew members.

3) Catering Department

To cater the costemers and crew members in flight

4) Traffic and Commercial department

For airport service

5) Medical Department

For medical assistance

6) Accounts Sections

To settle account

7) Engineering and Maintenance Department

To maintain and constructions

8) Cabin appearance department

To supervice the cabin operations

9) Security department

To ensure security in airport and flight.

10) Reservation and sales department

For marketing and sales.

11) RAMP(Regional Aircraft Movement and Parking)

To coordinate with dispatch for weather clearance and captain

clearance and to coordinate with cabin appearance for claiming within

44
 the stipulated time. Each flight will designated ramp staff to coordinate
with all other departments to make sure the flight departs within the
stipulated time

Awards and achievements

Jet Airways has been given a 3 Star rating by Skytrax.

• Airline of the Year ; recognised for its service and in-flight

experience
• Best First-Class Service in the World award at Business
Traveller’s 20th annual ‘Best in Business Travel’ awards
• Best Full Service Airline by 2006 Galileo Express Travelworld
for the sixth year in a row
• Best Customer Service by Freddie Awards 2007
• Indian Domestic Airline with Spectacular Growth at the
SATTE 2006 Awards
• Most Respected Company from Businessworld 2004 & 2003
• Best Business Class & Best Economy Class at feBusiness
Traveller Awards
• Best Domestic Airline at the Star Of The Industry Awards 2005
• Best Program of the Year by Freddie Awards 2007 & 2006
• Best Elite Level for the second year in a row, at the 21st Annual
presentation ceremony of the Freddie Awards 2008
• Best Bonus Promotion by Freddie Awards 2005
• Best Overall in In-flight Entertainment at the Avion Awards
2006
• India's Most Popular Domestic Airline at the SATTE 2006
Awards
• Best Single In-Flight Audio Program at the Avion Awards 2006

45
 • India’s Leading Airline at the World Travel Awards, 2006
• Best Technical Despatch Reliability by Boeing 2002
• Customer and Brand Loyalty award in the Commercial
Airlines Sector (Domestic), at the second Loyalty Awards
• Best Cargo Airline of Central Asia by Cargo Airline of the Year
Awards
• Best Domestic Airline award for the 4th consecutive year and the
5th time in the past six years at the 18th TTG (Travel Trade Gazette) Travel
Awards 2007
• Service Excellence Award at Global Managers in Jurassic Park
• India’s Most Respected Company in the Travel and
Hospitality Sector by Businessworld 2003
• Runner up for Best Affinity Credit Card by Freddie Awards
2006
• Runner up for Best Website by Freddie Awards
• Travel Entrepreneur of the Year award for Chairman Naresh
Goyal at the 18th TTG (Travel Trade Gazette) Travel Awards 2007
• Best Airlines Website by Genius of the Web Awards 2007
• First airline in the world to introduce IFE(Sky Screen) in a
Boeing 737 Next Generation.
• World's second airline to introduce private First Class Suites in
the air on their Boeing 777-300ER.

HISTORY

Jet Airways was incorporated as an air taxi operator on 1 April 1992. It

started Indian commercial airline operations on 5 May 1993 with a fleet of four
leased Boeing 737-300 aircraft. In January 1994, a change in the law enabled Jet
Airways to apply for scheduled airline status, which was granted on 4 January
1995. It began international operations to Sri Lanka in March 2004. While the

46
company is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, 80% of its stock is controlled
by Naresh Goyal (through his ownership of Jet’s parent company, Tailwinds,
and has 10,017 employees (at March 2007). Jet Airways Airbus A340-300 at
London in 2005 with the 1993-2007 livery Naresh Goyal, who already owned Jet
air (Private) Limited, which provided sales and marketing for foreign airlines in
India, set up Jet Airways as a full-service scheduled airline to compete against
state-owned Indian Airlines. Indian Airlines had enjoyed a monopoly in the
domestic market between 1953, when all major Indian air transport providers
were nationalized under the Air Corporations Act (1953), and January 1994,
when the Air Corporations Act was repealed, following which Jet Airways
received scheduled airline status.

Jet Airways Boeing 777-300ER in San Francisco in the airline's new

livery introduced in 2007

Jet Airways and Air Sahara were the only private airlines to survive the
Indian business downturn of the early 1990s. In January 2006, Jet Airways
announced that it would buy Air Sahara for US$500 million in an all-cash deal,
making it the biggest takeover in Indian aviation history. The resulting airline
would have been the country's largest but the deal fell through in June 2006.

On 12 April 2007, Jet Airways agreed to buy out Air Sahara for 14.5 billion
rupees (US$340 million). Air Sahara was renamed JetLite, and was marketed
between a low-cost carrier and a full service airline. In August 2008, Jet Airways
announced its plans to completely integrate JetLite into Jet Airways.

In October 2008, Jet Airways laid off 1900 of its employees, resulting in
the largest lay-off in the history of Indian aviation. However, later, the
employees have been asked to return to work. Civil Aviation Minister Praful
Patel said that the management reviewed its decision after he analyzed the
decision with them.

47
 In October 2008, Jet Airways and rival Kingfisher Airlines announced an
alliance which primarily includes an agreement on code-sharing on both
domestic and international flights, joint fuel management to reduce expenses,
common ground handling, joint utilization of crew and sharing of similar
frequent flier programs.

MARKETING IN JETAIRWAYS

Jet airways adopts differentiation generic strategy to gain a competitive

advantage amongst its competitors by offering the highest quality services in
order to be the best company in the market and differentiates from its
competitors. The airline has a unique virtual agency network with and
advertising agencies around the globe coordinated through its Empower extranet.
When the airline plans to launch a new campaign it distributes a briefing, invites
agencies to submit a concept and then chooses the best from a creative point of
view. Through such links each local agency is effectively part of a global
agency. This is the thinking that has produced a consistently excellent marketing
programme at Jet airways

The main marketing technique of jet airways is it’s frequent flyer

program -. Jet Privilege. With Jet Privilege one can enjoy a truly rewarding
experience with unique privileges across five membership tiers: Blue, Blue Plus,
Silver, Gold and Platinum Jet Privilege has won Freddie Awards considered
'Oscars' of frequent flyer programmes across the world, for five consecutive
years including the most coveted 'Program of the Year' Award 2006 and 2007 for
the Japan, Pacific, Asia, Australia region..

Jet airways are also into destination promotion. The airline offers various
holiday-packages for travelers to destinations, whereby they can stay at a hotel
of their choice, according to their budget. It is promoting Seychelles as a
holiday destination by offering budget packages to passengers. For example,

48
now jet airways have launched the programme jet2kerala. Jet2kerala is an
innovative joint promotion to make Kerala, renamed as God's own country, more
accessible to holiday packages low rates including highly discounted two way
airfares on Jet Airways to the three gateway cities of Thiruvananthapuram,
Kochi and Kozhikode from anywhere in India.

A low-cost airline business model is typically a niche strategy. It is aimed

at getting benefit from offer vacuums and from the service for pariah customers,
starting from visiting friends and relatives, ethnic and leisure based movements
and later climbing up to reach cost-conscious business travelers. The emphasis
on costs makes the distinction between full-service and no-frills. The low-fare,
low-cost operations require a much more radically deeper reengineering of the
entire value proposition and are not definitively sensitive only to one shot
actions. The low cost airlines product of jet airways; jetlite and jetkonnect are
very familiar among the customers because of its low cost and affordable nature
and so it is niche strategy of jet airways

The in flight magazine Jetwings offers the latest news within Jet airways,
the airline industry and other global issues; including entertainment, hospitality,
latest destinations, motoring and health. The lifestyle section covers lighter
subjects like movies, music and fashion. Jet also advertise their new products
through newspaper.

Jet Airways latest marketing strategy is by removing a row to gain

passenger space After having removed a row of seats from some of its planes to
increase overall leg room for passengers, Jet Airways (India) Ltd is using an
innovative, three-dimensional billboard campaign to sell the concept. Developed
by Mudra Group’s outdoor unit Primesite, the Mumbai billboards have images of
two chairs sitting close to each other, and then one drifting on railings to reveal
the message: “We’ve removed a row to give you more space.”The row of seats
has been done away with in Jet’s 737-800s series planes. Removal of rows to
create space for cramped passengers isn’t a new idea as many airlines, especially

49
in the US, have used similar tactics and messages to differentiate their planes
from rivals.:
Jet airways wanted to create an impact and effectively communicate that
they have removed a row of seats from domestic flights, thereby giving more
space on domestic flights. The outdoor innovation has only been done in
Mumbai considering the restrictions on the same in other metros communication
is doing through hoardings in Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata and Bangalore.”
Company is a large user of outdoor media and is believed to spend Rs10-Rs12
crore a year, some 20% of the airline’s marketing spend. Jet airways now
found a strong competitor in their own league in form of Kingfisher. There is a
switch taking place, with some customers shifting loyalties to Kingfisher. Jet
would grow to be the best premium brand in the whole country by highlighting
the service aspect. In service, they were unparalleled and premium. Today, it’s
different and Jet needs to speed up. They need to aggressively build themselves
as a brand, and advertise themselves like a consumer brand if they need to beat
Kingfisher.

50
 CHAPTER IV
DATA ANALYSIS AND
INTERPRETATION

51
SWOT ANALYSIS

Jet Airways has come off another difficult financial year, but an extensive
cost reduction programme launched in the second half of its latest financial year
is bearing some early fruit with a return to profit in the fourth quarter. This
SWOT Analysis reviews Jet Airways' internal strengths and weaknesses and its
external opportunities and threats.

STRENGTHS: Jet grasps the nettle, restructuring finally paying off

Financial discipline (not before time): Jet Airways' management is finally

executing an effective restructuring plan after some haphazard attempts over the
past 18 months to come to grips with a rapidly changing market.

Encouragingly, the airline generated a USD10.4 million net profit in the

fourth quarter to 31-Mar-2009, turning around a USD55.1 million net loss in the
previous corresponding period and a USD44 million loss in the third quarter.
This was to some extent driven by exceptional items such as income from sub-
leasing aircraft, changes to depreciation charges and tax credits. Full year losses
reached USD79.3 million in the 12 months ended 31-Mar-2009, following a
USD63.1 million loss in the previous corresponding period.

The improved fourth quarter operating result was achieved through an

extensive cost cutting programme that included network restructuring, the
deferral of aircraft deliveries for the next 1-2 years, rationalization of personnel
costs, restructuring of aircraft leases, debt restructuring, cash conservation/cost
savings measures and a focus on alliances. Jet stated the full impact of this
restructuring programme would be seen in the coming financial year.

WEAKNESSES: Brand confusion

Too many brands: A key strategy by Jet to "adapting to new market realities"
and capture price sensitive markets is its "Jet Konnect" product. Its third brand in
the domestic market (after Jet Airways and JetLite) risks further confusing the
travelling public in a highly fragmented market.

52
A Risky Combination: Although full details are yet to be released, Jet Konnect
is expected to operate as a low fare brand within the existing full service carrier's
operations. The danger is that such a model could result in the undesirable
combination of low fares and high costs. Several carriers in Europe and North
America have failed with such an approach. As demonstrated by the Qantas/Jet
star example, a more successful strategy is one where the low cost product is
operated as an independent subsidiary with independent management and a
Greenfield cost structure. That does not appear to be the intention with Jet
Konnect.

OPPORTUNITIES: Growth options limited to short-haul

Short-haul international expansion: In terms of route development, Jet's long-

haul ambitions have been put on hold until market conditions improve. It is
however planning to target short-haul (B737) opportunities, with new services to
Jeddah, Riyadh and additional services to ASEAN & SAARC region
destinations "in the near future". The expansion of its presence in these Middle
East markets, particularly Saudi Arabia, is crucial in defending Jet's network
against the growing Middle East carriers, but also creates opportunities for
increased hubbing over Mumbai and Delhi to its strong domestic franchise and
points in Southeast Asia.

Industry "consolidation": The return of the Singh Government should see an

easing of foreign ownership restrictions and could prompt more moves to
consolidate the Indian airline sector.

THREATS: Ongoing economic weakness and competitive tension

Loss of pricing traction: Jet Airways' steep capacity reductions have meant its
mantle as the dominant Indian carrier has passed to Kingfisher Airlines - and
with it the ability to influence pricing. Yields were down sharply in the final
quarter, increasing pressure on the airline to reduce its costs. Jet's passenger
numbers were down a significant 20% in the fourth quarter to 2.54 million, as
the airline reduced capacity by 9.3%. RPKs fell by 8.3%, resulting in a 0.8%

53
improvement in passenger load factor to 71.7%. The domestic market contracted
12% in the first quarter, with Jet ceding market share to Kingfisher and the
LCCs.

"Challenging" outlook: Jet Airways admitted the global economic

environment, coupled with economic realities of the airline industry in India
requires "exceptional efforts to return to breakeven and profitability". It expects
the year ahead to be "challenging", with sluggish demand for both domestic and
international operations and premium segments. It concluded, "with the
upcoming lean season, load factors and yields will continue to be under severe
pressure"

54
DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

First time traveler of jet airways

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid yes 11 22.0 22.0 22.0
no 39 78.0 78.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

22%

yes
no

78%

From the above diagram it can be identified that most of the travelers were
frequent flyers.

55
Source of information about jet airways

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid websites 34 68.0 68.0 68.0
friends/relative
13 26.0 26.0 94.0
s
newspaper 2 4.0 4.0 98.0
television 1 2.0 2.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

40

35

30

25

20

15

10

0
Websites Friends/Relatives Newspaper Television

From the graph, it can be identified that 68% of customers came to know about
jet airways through websites and 26% from friend and relatives.

56
Reason for travelling in Jet airways

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid quality of
32 64.0 64.0 64.0
service
good
1 2.0 2.0 66.0
connectivity
reliability 3 6.0 6.0 72.0
economical 14 28.0 28.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

From the graph, it is clear that 64% of customers make a choice of Jet airways
because of it’s quality of service.28% of customers because of it’s budget fare

57
Getting proper updates of jet airways

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid yes 41 82.0 82.0 82.0
no 9 18.0 18.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
yes no

From the graph, it can seen that, most of the customers getting proper updates of
Jet airways

58
Sources of getting updates

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid newspaper 31 62.0 62.0 62.0
magazines 15 30.0 30.0 92.0
mails 4 8.0 8.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

35

30

25

20

15

10

0
Newspaper Magazine Mail

From the diagram, it is clear that 62% of customers getting the proper updates
through newspaper, and 30 % from magazines

59
Rating the efficiency of jet airways in providing with latest updates

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid excellent 8 16.0 16.0 16.0
good 23 46.0 46.0 62.0
average 17 34.0 34.0 96.0
poor 2 4.0 4.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

25

20

15

10

0
Excellent Good Average Poor

From the figure it can be viewed that 62% of customers are satisfied with the
efficiency of Jet airways in providing the latest updates.

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Brand preference

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid jet 36 72.0 72.0 72.0
jetlite 14 28.0 28.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Jet Jetlite

61
From the figure it is clear that more customers are preferring to fly with Jet
brand than the brand jetlite. Jetlite is the low cost brand of jetaiways.

Method of booking ticket

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid Online 31 62.0 62.0 62.0
Directly 13 26.0 26.0 88.0
Travel
6 12.0 12.0 100.0
agency
Total 50 100.0 100.0

35

30

25

20

15

10

0
Online Directly Travel agency

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From the graph, it can be seen majority of the customers using online
transactions.

Do you recommend your friends/relatives to fly in jet airways?

Valid Cumulative
Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Valid Yes 44 88.0 88.0 88.0
No 6 12.0 12.0 100.0
Total 50 100.0 100.0

45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
yes no

63
From the figure it is clear that most of customers are satisfied with the service
provide by Jetairways and they would recommend their friends and relatives.

CHAPTER – V
FINDING AND SUGGESTION

64
From the study the extent of exposure that the researcher got are
summarized below

FINDINGS

• Now a days aviation industry is facing a huge competition between the

carriers. To know about the need and taste of customers is very much
important. As the major marketing technique Frequent Flyer Programme has
great influence in customers. The competition among FFP of major airlines is
also high. So that innovative methods will help for the success of airline
marketing. FFP as a loyalty based programme airline can retain the existing
customers.

• The Frequent Flyer Programme of Jet airways was found as an effective one.
It has a wide variety of offers. It has been found most of the passengers of jet
airways are repeat passengers; it could retain the customers.

• As per the response of respondent Jet airways seem to relying on it’s quality
service for attracting the customers. Finding reveals 64% choose jet airways
because of it’s quality of service.

65
• It is found that customers are getting proper and latest updates about jet
airways; mainly through newspaper. 92% of people says that they get
information through newspaper and magazine.

• An obvious weakness is the high prices of Jet airways due to its huge
investments in ordering aircrafts. Although it has opportunities many threats
are concerning it, such as increase of oil prices, and the spread of killer
diseases.

• The marketing strategies employed by low cost carriers like Jetlite are
significantly different from those employed by full service carriers
• Low Cost airlines slash traditional fare structures in a bid to offer a new
breed of highly price sensitive flyer the cheapest ticket.

SUGGESTIONS

• Alternative measures of taking jet airways image and brand name into the
drawing rooms of the people should be identified apart from online which
most of it’s people it seem to depend on. Those alternative measure can be
tele media advertising, giving priority for newspaper advertisements and
most importantly by sponsoring national and international events and sports

• Investigating technology is recommended for improving customer service

and Jetairways has to sign contract with an e-business company that offers
airlines technology solutions. E-CRM strategy is a new technology that
Jetairways should implement since Internet users' number is increasing. It
allows managing long term relationships with customers Generally,
Jetairways should do analysis for internal and external factors and its
competitors and develop new strategies to stay competitive in the maturity
stage.

66
• As the Airline industry is in the maturity stage, there is a strong competition
between airline firms. Each firm should use offensive strategies besides
doing analysis for internal and external factors that may affect its position.
Jetairways should aggressively market its product and services through
innovative techniques.

• Jetairways should enhance it’s connectivity across the country and even
outside inorder to sustain the business.

• Promotional methods should be changed as per the current market

• Airlines should give more emphasis on the yield than the revenue

CHAPTER – VI

67
 CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION

Marketing is a vital part of any successful business or campaign,

especially in the airline industry. In a rapidly changing world, deciding on the
best marketing strategy is of the utmost importance. As society becomes more
and more technologically advanced, new marketing options crop up every day,
and the most trusted methods of the past become tired and ineffective. In airline
industry, marketing and sales promotion work hand in hand to get maximum
output. Various airlines are using different marketing strategies and give
preference to creative and innovative ideas, which eventually give the success
stories. The airline industry is growing day by day , every airline is improving
their facilities through expanding seat capacity, finding new routes, discounting
fares etc. At present competency among airline is very high, so good marketing
is necessary for the all airlines.

68
 Successful airlines will be those that anticipate change and are ready for
it when it occurs. In the future, it is first of all certain that in terms of market size
and structure some established trends would develop further. The industry
continues to grow, though rates of growth will also increase. Airfreight will grow
more quickly than the passenger business. Business travelers in particular will be
more and more attracted by airlines that can provide them with frequent non-stop
services, something that is likely to see continuation of interest in smaller
regional jets, and a growing pressure in established hub and spoke networks. In
leisure travel, competition advantage will help those airlines that can achieve and
sustain a low cost base.

The airline industry-marketing environment will also continue to

develop. The airline industry will continue to be affected by the periods of low
passenger demand caused by wars, riots and other disturbances. The industry
will always be affected by the trade cycle. Successful airlines will be those that
use the more prosperous times to prepare for periods when growth slows or
stops. In terms of technological aspects of the marketing environment, the future
will be full of both challenges and opportunities. The challenges will come in the
form of addressing the competitive issues posed by the growth of
videoconferencing and other electronic means of communication.

The opportunities that technology provides will be enormous. The airline

product will change continuously. In future there will be virtual end of first class
service.

Now almost all the airlines are running in huge losses. In order to
overcome this they are encouraging various code sharing agreement. Almost all
the airlines are promoting various alliances. Through these alliances they can
improve better connectivity, frequency of service, network, passenger load, etc.
By this they can reduce their cost of operation also.

69
BIBLIOGRAPHY

References:

Books:

• Air Transportation - A Management Perspective by Alexander T Wells

• Airline Marketing and Management (fifth edition) by Stephen Shaw
• Marketing Management by Philip Kotler
• Introduction to Marketing by Geoff Lancaster and Paul Reynolds

70
• Jetwings ( In flight magazine)

Websites:
• www.jetairways.com
• www.google.com
• www.wikepedia.com
• www.asiapacificaviation.com

71
 ANEXTURE

PONDICHERRY UNIVERSITY
(Dept. of Tourism Studies)

72
 I am Arun P. Doing MBA (Tourism) and collecting data for
my research as part of curriculum. The information collected from
you will be confidential and used for academic purpose only.

QUESTIONAIRE

MARKETING IN JET AIRWAYS

Personal profile
1. Name :

2. Age :

3. Gender: Female Male

4. Occupation Status
 Government Staff  Business / Industrialist  Professional
 Student  Housewife  Other

5. Monthly Household Income

 Less than Rs.10000  Rs.10000 to 25000
 Rs.25000 to 50000  More than Rs.50000

Data profile
1. Are you first time Traveler of Jet Airways
� No � Yes

2. How do you came to know about Jet airways services

� Website � Newspaper � Television
� Friends/Relatives � Others

3. What made you to Fly with Jet airways

� Quality of service � Reliable
� Good Connectivity � Economical
� Safety and Security

4. Do you always get proper updates of Jet Airways

� No � Yes

5. Through which all sources, do you get the latest updates

73
 � Advertisements � Mail � Newspaper � Magazines
� Word of Mouth � Others

6. What do you Think about Jet Airways advertisements

� Effective � Real � Feasible � Others

7 How do you rate the efficiency of Jet airways in providing you

with?
Latest updates
� Excellent � Good � Average � Poor

8. Which brand do you prefer to travel?

� Jet � Jetlite � Jet konnect

9. How do you book your ticket?

� Online �
Directly (City or Airport Office)
� Through Travel Agency

10. Do you recommend your friends/relatives to fly with Jet

Airways?
� No � Yes

THANK YOU FOR YOUR KIND CO-OPERATION

74