Airtran 2009 Annual Report Download - page 17

8
Distribution, Marketing, and E-Commerce
As we seek to position our product and stimulate new customer demand, our marketing efforts are focused on
price-sensitive business and leisure travelers who are key to our success. We believe that targeting price-
sensitive travelers offers the greatest opportunity for growing our revenue base.
The primary objective of our marketing activities is to further an innovative brand identity that is visibly unique
and easily contrasted with our competitors. We communicate regularly and frequently with existing and
potential customers through the use of advertisements in or on: newspapers; satellite, Internet, and over-the-air
radio; broadcast, cable, and satellite television; out-of-home media; direct mail; e-mail; movie theatres; and the
Internet, as well as public relations efforts. These communications typically feature our destinations, quality of
product, such as Business Class, XM radio, our young all Boeing aircraft fleet and assigned seating, everyday
affordable fares and special sales promotions. We also promote the use of our http://www.airtran.com Web site.
During 2009, we introduced wireless, broadband Internet access on every flight including: Web, e-mail, instant
messaging and access to corporate e-mail and network systems (virtual private networks) through passengers’
Wi-Fi enabled mobile communication and information devices.
Customers may book flights with us through our Web site, other Internet Web sites, travel agencies booking via
global distribution systems (GDS), our Mobile-Web program, and our own reservation call centers. Our Web
site, http://www.airtran.com, continued to be our primary distribution channel and, along with our reservation
call centers, accounted for 67 percent of our total bookings in 2009. Travel agency Web sites such as
http://www.Travelocity.com and http://www.Expedia.com, corporate booking agencies, and traditional travel
agencies represented 33 percent of our total bookings.
On our customer friendly Web site, passengers can select their seats, check in, and print their own boarding
passes, purchase trip insurance, and book both hotel accommodations and car rentals with Hertz.com. Our Bye-
Pass self-service kiosks facilitate check ins at the airport and provide our customers with an additional
opportunity to purchase Business Class upgrades. Over half of our customers now check in using
http://www.airtran.com or Bye-Pass self-service kiosks.
During 2008, we adapted our reservations system to accommodate industry standard electronic tickets, or E-
ticket, capability. This feature enables travel agencies, travel management companies, and online travel
distributors using certain GDS systems to issue conventional, industry standard electronic tickets that greatly
improve the efficiency of the ticketing, accounting, and post-departure reporting aspects of air travel. We
believe this feature will improve revenue from these travel companies.
We charge a convenience fee for bookings made using our internal call centers. We believe this fee is consistent
with other booking channels that provide interactive travel assistance, namely travel agents. We also offer Bill
Me Later and PayPal payment options for call center and online bookings at http://www.airtran.com. These
options provide expanded payment options for our customers and may help reduce our distribution costs going
forward.
We offer our customers an affordable Business Class product. An AirTran Airways Business Class cabin is
configured with two-by-two oversized seats with more leg and seat room than the typical coach cabin. For a fee,
our Business Class is available via an upgrade program that can be purchased within 24 hours of travel. Select
members of our A2B Corporate program and Elite members in our A+ Rewards program may also receive
complimentary Business Class upgrades when purchasing certain fares.