Alternative Airlines improved customer experience and increased bookings
Alternative Airlines is a real-life example of how successful flight shopping puts customers first. An online flight search travel company covering more than 600 airlines, Alternative Airlines started integrating Routehappy in 2018 and attributes part of its recent corporate growth to increased bookings through improved customer experience and quick responses to traveler needs.
Business goal
Alternative Airlines needed a way to communicate the right flight information to customers while maintaining a quick and easy booking process.
Why Routehappy
Amenities data, UPAs (Universal Product Attributes), and UTAs (Universal Ticket Attributes) allowed Alternative Airlines to display consistent, targeted flight information to customers all over the world in a simple yet effective manner.
By opting to connect airplane content through APIs, Alternative Airlines has full control over the data it receives, allowing it to display content depending on business and market needs. Currently, Alternative Airlines is focused on displaying Amenities and UPAs to best meet consumer demand.
Amenities data is integrated into the Alternative Airlines website so it can deliver a seamless booking experience to their customers. This integrated data enriches shoppers’ process with information about the flight, seat pitch, aircraft type, configuration, Wi-Fi, and more. Shoppers will soon be able to use filters based on Amenities data to narrow their flight searches on the site.
Alternative Airlines uses visual images from UPAs to demonstrate the aircraft cabin and merchandising content onboard. Since COVID-19, it has also integrated Reassurance UPAs to inform shoppers about recent health and safety changes, boosting their confidence in buying tickets.
Alternative Airlines has also integrated UTA data to present customers with clear information about changes and cancellations, as well as checked bags and carry-on baggage.
Amenities data is integrated into the Alternative Airlines website so it can deliver a seamless booking experience to their customers. This integrated data enriches shoppers’ process with information about the flight, seat pitch, aircraft type, configuration, Wi-Fi, and more. Shoppers will soon be able to use filters based on Amenities data to narrow their flight searches on the site.
Alternative Airlines uses visual images from UPAs to demonstrate the aircraft cabin and merchandising content onboard. Since COVID-19, it has also integrated Reassurance UPAs to inform shoppers about recent health and safety changes, boosting their confidence in buying tickets.
Alternative Airlines has also integrated UTA data to present customers with clear information about changes and cancellations, as well as checked bags and carry-on baggage.
“I have no doubt that the level of content and data we integrated is a key factor in that growth. It’s a necessity to provide customers with that level of information on a flight product so they can make a very informed decision.”
- Sam Argyle, Managing Director at Alternative Airlines
Key results
Timely reactions to shifting customer needs
Alternative Airlines was one of the first OTAs to integrate Reassurance UPAs because its existing API connection made it easy. Consuming all ATPCO UPA categories at their disposal means they can process and display important content in real-time directly on their site.
“We saw an impact in conversion rates following the coronavirus outbreak,” said Sam Argyle, Managing Director at Alternative Airlines. “We became aware of Reassurance UPAs that airlines made quickly available through ATPCO in a format we could digest quickly, and we decided we had to show that content…so customers that are booking flights know what the airlines are doing to make it safe onboard and the flexible policies regarding cancellations and rebookings.
More conversions and a better experience
Integrating Routehappy Content allowed Alternative Airlines to add more dimensions to its flight search, so that shoppers can easily find the products that they really want. Because the data is so flexible, they could also experiment to find the right balance of information and the most compelling content for flight shoppers. A/B testing conducted in October 2019 proved that by showing amenities and UPAs to customers, total booking volume increased by 3.4% over the calendar year.
Amplified business growth
Since beginning their partnership with ATPCO in January 2018, Alternative Airlines has grown from a 7-million-dollar company to a 25-million-dollar company. “I have no doubt that the level of content and data we integrated is a key factor in that growth,” Sam said. “It’s a necessity to provide customers with that level of information on a flight product so they can make a very informed decision.
Conclusion
Starting its Routehappy Content integration a few years back put Alternative Airlines at the forefront of the industry when it comes to customer-first design—and it is realizing the benefits. Their forward-thinking integration and customer-centric business model helped them not only provide a better shopping experience, but also respond quickly to unexpected market needs with Reassurance UPAs. Starting with Routehappy content is easy!