Cathay Pacific sets up on-line bookings site

Consumer strategy

Cathay Pacific sets up on-line bookings site

Report by LOUISELONGMAN

CATHAY Pacific has launched an on-line booking facility for the public but claims it is not turning its back on the trade.

The airline is preparing to run a major drive flagging the new facility next month, which will coincide with a new Cathay Pacific advertising campaign.

Cathay Pacific marketing manager Paul Cruttenden said: “We are not aspiring to become a big direct-sell airline. We are reliant on the trade to push sales; the trade is fundamental to us and is our key means of distribution.”

The booking facility, at www.cathaypacific.com, will enable customers to buy tickets and collect them either at the point of departure, by mail, or through Cathay Pacific’s electronic-ticket system, at airports with an e-ticketing service.

The carrier’s October advertising campaign will target an increase in market share on a number of key routes.

The five main destinations have been highlighted following the introduction of Management Information Data Tape technology, a system which allows Cathay to assess each route’s market share.

The main route is Cathay Pacific’s hub in Hong Kong; additional routes that need extra support include Taipei, Cebu, Manila, Kuala Lumpur and Seoul.

Cruttenden said: “These routes are growing markets for both business and leisure. We want to tell people we are flying there, and to increase the number of passengers flying into our main hub in Hong Kong.”

Take off: the carrier seeks to hike sales on key routes