Why Southwest is so succesful.

[ATrude777]

http://southwest.com/about_swa/press/independence_air.html

SWA is offering FREE Stand by for all Indy Air passnegers after today at 7pm. They have up to March 6th, 2006 to make their travel, and will be done for flights and cities SWA serves with Indy and also will allow "via airports" such as IAD, via BWI, GSP, via RDU. etc etc.

GREAT MARKETING, free advertising, low bookings anyway on Southwest for the next two months, the passnegers get to fly SWA, see the great service and will come back, brilliant Southwest, simply brilliant!

Alex

[Crunk415balla]

Wow! Thats really smart!

[stlgph]

Another way to look at is they are desperate to get back their customer share that fled Baltimore Washington and is now used/and in "tuned" with getting lower fares out of Washington Dulles instead.

They're completely doing whatever they can to ruffle United's feathers here.

[Van Hoolio]

Free standby is a good idea. They are required to offer standby travel for $50 each way, so they're only out the fifty bucks I guess.

Mike

[stlgph]

This is also one of the slowest travel times of the year so the seats should be available. Southwest, once they fly the inconvenienced traveler, as with any carrier in this situation, gets the money originally paid for the ticket.

Since Fly I was at Dulles, the chances are most likely a lot of travelers will be seeking to get on with United. Which brings us back to the point I made about Southwest doing this to draw the crowd up to Baltimore where now they can get something for the seats that otherwise would have gone out empty.

[FlyingPhotog]

This is also one of the slowest travel times of the year so the seats should be available. Southwest, once they fly the inconvenienced traveler, as with any carrier in this situation, gets the money originally paid for the ticket.

Since Fly I was at Dulles, the chances are most likely a lot of travelers will be seeking to get on with United. Which brings us back to the point I made about Southwest doing this to draw the crowd up to Baltimore where now they can get something for the seats that otherwise would have gone out empty.

You can't blame WN for trying to gain passengers. The day you say something positive about Southwest will bring on the apocalypse.

[ATrude777]

You can't blame WN for trying to gain passengers. The day you say something positive about Southwest will bring on the apocalypse.

Paul- gotta admit he DOES have a point. Those seats are going to fly empty anyway, why not grab those passnegers for free, they wont loose anything, they still get the money from the other airline and if they offered the passengers a GREAT service for FREE, Passengers will certainly remember this and look to Southwest for their next flights. Great marketing strategy and SWA isnt really loosing anything here.

Alex

[chrisburns]

So wow they are doing what a lot of airlines are doing. Big deal.

If the service was the same as my flights DEN-LAS-DEN the other day, people are going to wonder why everyone thinks they are so widely praised, because on that flight you couldn't tell the difference in service from WN to many legacy carriers.

[ExpressJet145]

I recall when southeast went under, USAir, and a few other majors offered distressed passengers help also. All the airlines do it usually, its a marketing plea to gain the trusty customer in my eyes. I dont think thats "why they are succesful" lol. Indy didnt go under 30+ years ago .

[ATrude777]

So wow they are doing what a lot of airlines are doing. Big deal.

If the service was the same as my flights DEN-LAS-DEN the other day, people are going to wonder why everyone thinks they are so widely praised, because on that flight you couldn't tell the difference in service from WN to many legacy carriers.

Southwest is offering it for FREE, others are making them charge as high as 50 dollars.

Theres the difference.

I recall when southeast went under, USAir, and a few other majors offered distressed passengers help also. All the airlines do it usually, its a marketing plea to gain the trusty customer in my eyes. I dont think thats "why they are succesful" lol. Indy didnt go under 30+ years ago .

Yes, but still charged money.

This event is not the SOLE reason SWA is succesful, but it helps.

Alex

[chrisburns]

Southwest is offering it for FREE, others are making them charge as high as 50 dollars.

Theres the difference.



Yes, but still charged money.

This event is not the SOLE reason SWA is succesful, but it helps.

Alex

While that may be true, just because southwest makes a profit doenst mean much when they still have the lowest load factor in the industry, and now with people using more search engines for travel those people that were on I-Air probably wont find them since they may or may not know that Southwest is too scared to publish air fares on the search engines.

It's not going to help very much since most of those pax were in cities which WN doesnt serve. Some cities might see some traffic but not really that much.

[ATrude777]

While that may be true, just because southwest makes a profit doenst mean much when they still have the lowest load factor in the industry, and now with people using more search engines for travel those people that were on I-Air probably wont find them since they may or may not know that Southwest is too scared to publish air fares on the search engines.

It's not going to help very much since most of those pax were in cities which WN doesnt serve. Some cities might see some traffic but not really that much.

Southwest is not to scared, if they were then jetblue would be to scared as well. It is simply easier and cheaper to make people book on their own website, SWA used to be able to be bookable thru "other 3rd party sites" but complications arose when expedia would not direct the sale to SWA. So SWA pulled out and just said "hey, we are booking only at southwest.com or on the phone."

As for cities, no it wont help but NW is allowing VIA airports as mentioned, IAD via BWI, GSO via RDU etc etc.

Alex

[stlgph]

You can't blame WN for trying to gain passengers. The day you say something positive about Southwest will bring on the apocalypse.

No, I'm not saying anything bad about it all. Southwest is definitely trying to get their name out onto something where United and other carriers have home field advantage. For travelers in the D.C. area holding Fly I tickets, their first instinct will be to go head to Dulles and deal with one of the carriers out there.

Since Dulles and the 'new' markets previous served by Fly I that were opened by the idea and availability of low cost air travel for those in the markets, Southwest is needing to do something to remind travelers of their existance at Baltimore.

Southwest is offering it for FREE, others are making them charge as high as 50 dollars.
Theres the difference.

Of cours they are going to do that. It's the old bait and switch tactic. Why offer comps when simply, you don't have to?

Southwest is not to scared, if they were then jetblue would be to scared as well. It is simply easier and cheaper to make people book on their own website, SWA used to be able to be bookable thru "other 3rd party sites" but complications arose when expedia would not direct the sale to SWA. So SWA pulled out and just said "hey, we are booking only at southwest.com or on the phone."

As for cities, no it wont help but NW is allowing VIA airports as mentioned, IAD via BWI, GSO via RDU etc etc.

While "scared" is not a word I'd use, I'd say more along the lines of "concerned" and "watchful." JetBlue is making a splash at Washington Dulles and United and Ted continue to have a presence there. With Fly I out of the way, Ted will more than likely be expanding out of Dulles along some of Fly I's more popular routes, which mirror cities served by Southwest out of Baltimore. Same with JetBlue.

If many airlines are smart, out of Dulles, they won't be raising fares sky high, but they'll keep them very much in check with fares offered out of Baltimore. This will keep the populous of that area from going back to Baltimore.

It used to be said that American was the major thorn in the side for Southwest and vice versa. If you ask me, United has made it clear they are ready for the challenge. And if JetBlue has any further expansion out of Baltimore, they will finally be announcing their intentions to compete with Southwest for market share in shared/service cities.

[screaming_emu]

While that may be true, just because southwest makes a profit doenst mean much when they still have the lowest load factor in the industry...

who the F cares about load factor if you're making a good sized profit and your competition isn't?

[stlgph]

who the F cares about load factor if you're making a good sized profit and your competition isn't?

when your fuel hedge runs out, you suddenly begin to care.