UKtravel agents should follow the lead of USagents by finding new ways of adding value for the customer in the light of the increasing threat of direct sales, according to Ryanair Direct chief executive Caroline Green.
She argued US agents have accepted the inevitability of on-line direct sales and have begun tackling the problem head on by introducing service charges for extra services, such as arranging visa or passport applications.
She said “It’s not fair to make service charges for booking simple air seats because agents are already getting a commission from the airline. What they should do, as the US does, is go on the net, get the package of information together about a destination and sell that – then it’s fair to charge.”
Agents should also specialise in niche products which require a greater need for face-to-facediscussion.
“Travel agents are the traditional intermediaries, along with global distribution systems, but they are having to adapt and change their roles to ensure they are not sidelined. USagents have already done this.”
She said the multiples were concentrating on developing their front-end sales tools to make the booking process easier in the travel agency.
“They are improving the customer interface at branch level in the hope that the customer will stay with them but they should be developing a bookable site at the same time.”
She said that GDSs, too, were being affected by the net. For example BA was targeting sales so that 50% of its bookings were made on line by 2002 – a massive threat to GDSs. She also attacked GDSs, particularly Galileo, for refusing to accommodate low-cost airlines.
“Our airline does not require a high degree of functionality because we have a simple product but Galileo will not reflect this in how much it charges.”