STENA Line has launched an advertising campaign to promote its new fluid pricing strategy on Irish Sea fast-ferry routes.
The operator is using national and local newspaper advertising to push its prices under the brand name ‘Liberty’.
Sales and marketing director Tim Hayes said the main burst of advertising would take place between now and the end of April, but the campaign was likely to continue into the summer.
“We want to instill the idea that there is something completely new happening in the market this year,” he said. “People tend to think these are transient prices.”
Stena has published lead-in fares only for its 2000 programme. Once the cheapest block of tickets for a particular sailing is sold out, the price will automatically rise to a higher level and this will continue until a sailing fills up (Travel Weekly November 11).
Previously, the company published a more complex sales structure for the entire year, which was only changed if it wanted to offer a special deal.
Hayes claimed that forward bookings were 28% higher in January than in the same month last year, a trend he attributed to the new pricing strategy.
He is aiming to increase Stena’s overall Irish Sea bookings by 15% in 2000. However, he refused to reveal precise figures.