Loyal passengers and ancillary revenue. The benefits of connectivity and infotainment for transport operators
We live in the era of the connectivity revolution, a phenomenon dated back to 2007 with the drop of the first iPhone, which drastically changed consumer's behavior making smartphones the biggest driver behind this revolution.
Nowadays, ordinary consumers expect internet access everywhere making mobile internet a part of the mass market. At the same time, they are also more spoiled for the customer experience they are offered expecting brands to provide them with a multi-channel journey to ease up their purchase experience.
Passengers expect connectivity onboard and data packages
As ordinary customers are also passengers, this behavioral shift is reflected on passenger's expectations on board – creating room for new strategies and revenue streams for transport operators.
Offering a high-quality onboard broadband as one of the benefits of transport operators is practically inevitable: hosting a quality connectivity solution creates an occasion for potential passengers to choose a transport operator A over an operator B. Because being online is essential not only for business travellers but also for regular passengers. Moreover, for a premium (faster or more data) connectivity, passengers are willing to pay extra, especially in some parts of the world. And by paying we mean not only by money but also in a form of consuming advertisement.
Making such a service available is something that might be perceived as just a bonus, but in reality it is of key importance during the decision making process and the loyalty of the customer to a certain company over time.
However, connectivity is not the only benefit to improve passenger experience onboard.
Inform and entertain – for loyal passengers and ancillary revenues
A great infotainment platform improves communication between company and passenger: with an accurate digital communication strategy, transport operators have the chance to care for customers from the ground to their final destination.
It's a business' task to create a valid strategy to enhance the end-to-end journey in relation to the passenger's touch-points, with features that can range from a pop-up message with their ticket, to sharing information on departure time, journey overview or delays, clear communication of security measures, onboard services pre-ordering and e-commerce offers, or even targeted advertisement.
And the latter, targeted advertisement, is of particular importance: in an industry where the competition on ticket prices is strong, companies should be considering activating new monetisation channels.
Especially in current times when transport operators are facing a significant drop in revenue due to the pandemic, it is essential to focus on business strategies to create new ancillary revenue streams and ways to improve “Passenger x Km” revenue, particularly with economy class travellers.
The upside of introducing onboard connectivity allows advertising to be hyper-targeted (operators have data on passengers and know in which class they are traveling) on a highly captive audience (Passengers can spend anytime from 1 up to 20 hours on board looking to be entertained or/and make the best out of their time). A functional connectivity can then create additional valuable data sources which come with the chance of an even more personalised passenger experience.
In conclusion, transport operators, when identifying their business strategies, should pay particular attention to the technologies which will allow them to improve their passenger care, consolidate relationships with passengers and allow them to be more attractive to potential customers while making room for new revenue streams and the creation of an overall more “connected” business.
Whether a business is looking to install or upgrade their connectivity with data packages, or unify their communication on a single platform, Passengera can successfully deliver all solutions tailored to the company needs and help identify the optimal ancillary revenue structure. Get in touch at: sales@passengera.com
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