Understanding market profiles of consumers - how data analytics is reshaping the industry

19 March, 2020

For decades airlines carelessly discarded information about their customers, leaving this powerful tool in the hands of intermediaries and the GDSs. As airlines sought to wrest back market power and to reshape their focus from flying towards distribution and other revenue forms, this coincided with vastly increased computing power and an ability to assimilate vast amounts of data into something meaningful.

Understanding the profile of the consumer is invaluable, especially in a region such as Puerto Rico. Over the past two years, the role LCCs have played in boosting capacity to Puerto Rico has led to growth returning in 2019. The US is Puerto Rico's largest air travel market, and the largest airline serving the island, JetBlue, has a reasonably positive outlook for the country as it has worked to adjust its capacity to Puerto Rico in the last two years.

Inevitably some airlines are more advanced than others, so the gap between big and small tends to grow. As one of the discussion topics at the forthcoming 2020 Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit, CAPA - Centre for Aviation will explore this subject and especially look at categories of activity where analytics is being used effectively.

The discussion will look at what streams are possible in converting data to save costs and generate revenue; who actually has the capability to use data effectively - and is outsourcing necessary; and , of course, look at the big consumer data aggregators and see if they will play in the airlines' park.

NOTICE: Informa, Aviation Week Network and CAPA - Centre for Aviation are constantly monitoring the COVID-19 situation as the safety of customers and staff is always its top priority. At this stage, the CAPA Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit will continue to take place as planned on 7-8 May in San Juan, Puerto Rico. We are following official guidance and working with our venue partner to put the best preventative measures in place.

CAPA's Global Airline Outlook for the 2020s predicted that at some stage during the first half of the decade there will also be an economic downturn, possibly very substantial. On historical trends it is already well overdue and there is little to predict just how great the scope will be. The coronavirus outbreak has meant that this is now an inevitably for many countries.

As the foremost authority on aviation in the world, CAPA's events provide cutting edge knowledge about strategic market trends and dynamics to help attendees make informed decisions, delivering the information and connections needed to inspire and improve business. The 2020 Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit is this year taking place at the Hyatt Regency Grand Reserve Puerto Rico between 7-8 May 2020.

North American Airlines face a mixed outlook for 2020 as uncertainty over the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX narrowbodies lingers and the prospects of weakening economic trends continue to grow. There's growing concern that an imbalance between supply and demand will occur once the MAX returns to service, particularly so in the US, which would create pricing pressure.

The summit will examine key commercial and operational issues affecting airlines and airports across the Americas focusing on both domestic issues and growth prospects in key international markets. CAPA will challenge leaders of the aviation industry to reflect on what is needed to drive the industry forward, using examples of innovation in outside markets as a benchmark to follow.

This high level forum will also examine the geopolitical outlook and its potential changes following the 2020 election, airline infrastructure reform, as well as the continued development of route economics as new aircraft technology opens up ultra long haul markets. The disruptive role of new distribution options and an increasingly demanding customer profile will inevitably be a key feature as 2020 heralds the next generation of developments in this area.

New to the 2020 Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit will be an injection of stimulating discussion on the evolving LCC market. North American LCCs are the most mature in the world, but recently they've faced headwinds to keep costs competitive while increasing revenue, as ULCCs become a significant force.

The dedicated LCC Summit sessions will assess the current state of the competitive LCC landscape, how to improve profitability and unlock sustainable growth prospects in key markets. As domestic pressures increase, strategies now stimulate trans Pacific, trans Atlantic, Latin American and Canadian network thinking.

FIND OUT MORE… visit the 2020 Americas Aviation & LCCs Summit homepage to find out more about this not-to-be-missed opportunity to discuss relevant issues impacting the aviation sector and learn meaningful insights from your industry peers.