ATLANTA, Oct. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- When Expedia
announced its "Upgrade Options" display this week, it was no
coincidence that Delta (NYSE: DAL) was named as its sole U.S.
airline partner.
The partnership builds on Delta's customer-driven approach,
offering a full description of the flight experience passengers are
buying. Expedia's new display lists fees for checking bags or
canceling a reservation, as well as the perks of a particular fare.
Delta provided all of the product, fare and cost information.
The move, which attracted media attention, signifies the latest
step in Delta's effort to consistently give customers the
information they need to make educated choices about the kind of
onboard experience they want, whether buying through delta.com,
traditional or online travel agencies.
"By partnering with online travel agencies, Delta is giving our
customers more control in the type of travel experience they'd like
to have on Delta versus simply choosing the lowest available fare,"
said Chris Phillips, Managing
Director – Distribution.
Having made progress through a steady stream of onboard
investments and upgrades, Delta announced a range of flying
experiences for its customers in 2012.
Today, those offerings include Delta One, First Class,
Delta Comfort+, Main Cabin and Basic
Economy. They provide customers with a variety of options -- from
perk-packed to essentially just the seat -- all with the common
denominator of Delta's unmatched operational reliability and
customer service.
Simultaneously, the airline was working to make the choices and
prices transparent to customers not just on delta.com, but anywhere
the customer chooses to shop for Delta flights. That's when Delta
decided to team up with online and other travel agencies to ensure
all customers would have a transparent view of options when booking
Delta flights.
Historically, both traditional and online travel agencies relied
on commoditized shopping displays that differentiate airline
carriers only by logo and price.
In addition to its partnership with Expedia, Delta had
previously worked with Orbitz to enable a display providing a more
retail shopping experience. The Orbitz partnership was the
first step in providing customers the same level of choice, control
and transparency that Delta customers have on delta.com.
"When we started clearly showing our customers on delta.com
their options for booking First Class, Delta Comfort+, Main Cabin and Basic Economy,
the overall reaction was very positive," said Phillips. "We found
that, given a clear choice, customers often choose to buy the full
experience versus just the lowest available fare. The natural next
step was to take this best-in-class online shopping experience to
all of our distribution channels, including the online travel
agencies."
The numbers back up Phillips' comments on consumers' reaction to
the changes. Delta President Ed
Bastian noted in last week's earnings call with investors
that Delta Comfort+ sales are up 42 percent and more customers are
choosing First Class.
Delta Air Lines serves more than 170 million customers each
year. Delta was named to FORTUNE magazine's top 50 World's Most
Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired
airline for the fourth time in five years. Additionally, Delta has
ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for
four consecutive years, a first for any airline. With an
industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection
carriers offer service to 319 destinations in 58 countries on six
continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs nearly 80,000 employees
worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft.
The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and
participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture
with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a joint venture with
Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta
offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and
markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles,
Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK, New York-LaGuardia,
Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita.
Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities,
global products and services, and technology to enhance the
customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional
information is available on the Delta News Hub, as well as
delta.com, Twitter @DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta,
Facebook.com/delta and Delta's blog takingoff.delta.com.
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SOURCE Delta Air Lines