marketing plan of turkish airlines

London Metropolitan University

CA3002C Aviation Commercial Planning and Marketing Tutor: Nicholas Coleman

Turkish Airlines Marketing Plan (Portfolio) Summer/Winter 2010/11

UK

By Nikola Georgiev Student ID: 07059973



Table of Contents:

1. Introduction

2. Business Strategy

2.1. Airline Overview 2.2. Existing Market 2.3. Competitors Overview and Situation analysis 2.4. The Competitors 2.4.1. British Airways 2.4.2. Pegasus Airlines 2.4.3. Easyjet 2.4.4. Competitors products 2.4.5. Competitive advantage of Turkish Airlines. 3. Strategic Marketing Focus.

3.1. Mission 3.2. Goals and Objectives 3.3. Values 3.4. Core competencies 3.5. External Environment -PEST Analysis 3.6. Internal Environment SWOT Analysis 4. Marketing Plan

4.1. Target Market 4.1.1. Market Share Estimates by Class 4.1.2. Load Factor 4.1.3. Turkish Tourism and Business segments 4.1.4. Expatriates in Turkey 4.1.5. Transit Passengers of Istanbul 4.2. Intended Strategies 4.2.1. Market Penetration (Improving In-flight services) 4.2.2. Market Development (Extending new routes) 4.2.3. Product Development (First class private suite) 4.2.4.Cost reductions 4.3. Marketing programmes 4.3.1. Product 4.3.2. Price 4.3.3. Promotion 4.3.4. Place 4.3.5. Customer Service 5. Conclusion 6. Appendices (Tables and Charts) 7. References



1. Introduction

A comprehensive marketing plan for Turkish Airlines, particularly focusing on its services, product differentiation, target markets and customer segments is vital to ensure its survival against the existing services provided by its competitors - British Airways, Pegasus Airlines and Easyjet.

The objective of this marketing plan is to further develop Turkish Airlines market

share in summer 2010 and winter 2010/11 period through marketing programs and

initiatives. The task undertaken begins with overview of the company, its products for the UK

market and competitive advantage, followed by an in-depth analysis of the current situation

on the London, Manchester and Birmingham to Istanbul routes, by providing extensive

analysis of overall capacity between the city pairs and analysis of the competition. These

actions are being performed in order to better understand where Turkish Airlines should

focus its marketing campaign and how it should differentiate its product. The report also

looks at the airline internal strengths and weaknesses through SWOT analysis and identifies

the airline external operating environment through PEST analysis. Marketing promotions

highlighted in this marketing plan serve to increase market share in the short term while the

advertisements seek to increase product and brand awareness in the long term. Finally, the

report will be concluded with an overall summary of the company situation, market share and

evaluation of its future marketing activities.

2. Business Strategy

Turkish Airlines has pursued a strategy focused on growth and development for many years and is now one of worlds fastest rising airlines. A clear measure of Turkish Airlines rise is its status as one of the worlds 4-star airlines, as measured by Skytrax(1), which has covered the airline sector for 18 years. Turkish Airlines now has its sights set on a 5-star rating. Constantly seeking innovation, which it passes onto its passengers through high quality service, Turkish Airlines is an airline that rapidly implements transformative solutions in support of growth and development. Acting on these values, the airline will continue to build upon its success as it advances towards becoming a global airline and a Turkish brand name recognized around the world. 2.1. Airline Overview

Turkish Airlines, Turkeys national flag carrier, was founded in Ankara on 20 May 1933 as State Airlines Administration, under the direction of the Ministry of Defence. In 1955, it was restructured into Turkish Airlines. 25% of the company was sold via an SPO under a privatisation programme in 2005. Today 50.9% of the company shares are public, while the rest remain state-owned.

In 2008, Turkish Airlines has kept its position ranked as one of the fastest-growing airlines among European Carriers in terms of capacity and traffic growth. When considering the economical crisis affecting many European Carriers and leading them to decrease their operations; Turkish Airlines has increased its annual passenger and the Available Seat Kilometer (ASK) by 15% and 11,3% respectively. With its fleet of 127 aircraft, in 2009 Turkish Airlines carried 22, 5 million passengers and the number of transit passengers have increased by 41, 3 % across a network comprised of 145 International and 36 domestic destinations From Istanbul, Turkish Airlines operate various onward connections throughout the Middle East and Central Asia. Turkish Airlines also have an extensive network of domestic flights, with the shuttle service between Istanbul and the Turkish capital Ankara being particularly well used. Since April 2008, Turkish Airlines became a Star Alliance member enabling the company to offer even more destination through the code share flights

of its partners.



2.2. Existing Market

Turkish Airlines is one of the major operators connecting directly UK with Turkey (and

beyond) from London - Heathrow through its major hub in Istanbul Ataturk Airport. Despite

there are other airlines servicing London Istanbul route, such as Pegasus Airlines and

Easyjet, Turkish Airlines main competitor remains British Airways. Although Turkish Airlines

compete with a very strong positioned and well known operator as BA, the company remains

very stable and its market share is estimated to be 54% of the total market (Reuters 09).

Another advantage of Turkish Airlines is that the company serve the route to Istanbul

through regional airports in the UK, as Manchester (the 2nd largest airport after Heathrow)

and Birmingham. Never the less, it also operates flights to Istanbul from other airports such

as London Gatwick and London Stansted. Table 1 below shows the current flight schedule of

Turkish Airlines from UK to Istanbul.

Table 1

From To Flights Per

Day

Birmingham International

Istanbul Ataturk International

1

London Gatwick Istanbul Ataturk International

2

London Heathrow Istanbul Ataturk International

3/5

London Stansted Istanbul Sabiha-Gokcen 2

Manchester Istanbul Ataturk International

2

Source: Turkish Airlines

2.3. Competitors Overview and Situation analysis Turkish Airlines competes with three main airlines on the route London Istanbul. These

are: British Airways that execute flights from London Heathrow to Istanbul Ataturk (2-3 flights

daily), Pegasus Airlines serving London Stansted Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen (1 flight daily)

and Easyjet serving London Gatwick Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen (1 flight daily) (2). Based on

the above information, Turkish Airlines main competitor is British Airways as a full service

airline providing connection from main-to-main airport, whilst Pegasus Airlines and Easyjet

are LCC executing flights from secondary airports to Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen airport

located further away from Istanbul in the Asian side. Turkish Airlines is the only company

serving airports as London Gatwick, London Stansted, Manchester and Birmingham in

addition to its main London Heathrow base.

2.4. The Competitors

Competitors for Turkish Airlines are classified as direct and non-direct threat. Although BA is a direct threat to Turkish Airlines, the latter possess the advantage of servicing different airports around UK, targeting local communities and businesses on a wider spectrum.



2.4.1. British Airways British Airways is the main competitor of Turkish Airlines on the route LHR IST. It is a full service airline the national carrier of Great Britain. Its strong position in the UK market is well defined. BA serves more than 680 destinations (3) around the world some of which on code share bases with One World partner airlines. 2.4.2. Pegasus Airlines Pegasus Airlines is a LCC servicing London Stansted Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport. The airline is not classified as a main threat to Turkish Airlines services as it operates from secondary airports and its product has a low value compared to the full service of Turkish Airlines. One advantage of this carrier is the fact that it has extensive route connections in regional Turkey. 2.4.3. Easyjet Easyjet is a Low Cost carrier servicing London Gatwick - Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport.

The airline is not classified as a main threat to Turkish Airlines services, even though it

operates from the 2nd largest airport in London Gatwick. Its product has a low value

compared to the full service of Turkish Airlines. The airline is better positioned with flight

services within mainland Europe and has no regional connections within Turkey.

2.4.4. Competitors products Pegasus Airlines and Easyjet, as low cost carriers have well defined product structure mainly targeting the leisure market. Their product value refers to the low cost model with fewer services on board -product that can mainly be directed to travellers on a budget (no seat allocation, paid snacks and baggage allowance, etc.). Their flights are operated either from/or to secondary airports which are no attractive to wider group of passengers (especially business). Therefore their product and marketing strategy differs from the one of Turkish Airlines. British Airways is a full service airline that provide similar product to Turkish Airlines and

therefore is considered as the main competitor. They provide the economy (leisure traveller)

product along with the upper economy and business class experience. BAs main advantage

on the route IST-LHR is the onward connections they provide to the rest of the world from

their operating hub LHR or through its One World airline partners. They also operate 2-3

flights daily feeding their extensive routes worldwide.

2.4.5. Competitive advantage of Turkish Airlines.

The most important factor separating Turkish Airlines from its competitors is its success in

maintaining reliability, speed and timeliness without compromising service quality. Flying

Turkish Airlines is an experience of its own, always associated with the Turkish hospitality

experience of comfort, quality pre-boarding and onboard services and great customer

service.

Turkish Airlines competitive advantage in UK is based on its flight operations from three

London airports and two regional operations - Manchester and Birmingham, enabling the

company to increase its market share and passenger network. Flights frequencies are

another advantage that boosts passengers flying the airline to increase enormously.

Regional connections from its main hub in Istanbul, as well as more than 145 onward

connections to the Middle and Far East and Asian countries(and further 940 destinations

with its code share partners), enables Turkish Airlines to be one of the most desirable

airlines.



The onboard product combining economy service focused to the leisure passengers,

together with the unique business passengers product, providing services, such as

dedicated check-in points, exclusive security gates and effortless passport control at low

fares assign the airline as one of the most preferred among different group of passengers.

3. Strategic Marketing Focus The strategic marketing plan for 2010/11 is focusing on promoting Turkish Airlines as the most favourable airline in the UK by empowering its brand name and creating better awareness of the airline website and its products amongst the British public, local Turkish communities and businesses. 3.1. Mission To become a preferred leading European air carrier with global network coverage, thanks to its strict compliance with flight safety, reliability, product line, service quality and competitiveness while maintaining its identity of the flag carrier of the Republic of Turkey. 3.2. Goals and Objectives

Turkish Airlines main goal is to become the most preferred operator on flights to Turkey (and beyond) for both leisure and business travellers. Another major goal for the company is to be the bridge between the Asia and European markets through their Istanbul hub. This goal will be achieved by strong focus on transit passengers.

The main objective of the marketing plan for Turkish Airlines is to increase the generated

revenue in the business segment in order to secure the financial sustainability and future

growth of the company and its premium product in the UK market. This will primarily be

achieved in three stages; firstly by defining the market to narrow the market focus to

consumers and businesses that are qualified to or are already users of business class air

travel, secondly by further identifying the available market from London and the rest of UK to

Istanbul and finally targeting the potential market for additional leisure and business travel on

the route. Each segment of the market will be targeted to increase Turkish Airlines sales and

improve the airlines load factors. Table 2 below summarises the marketing objectives:

Table 2

Objective Time period

Increase revenue in business segment by 15% Summer 2010/winter 2010/11 Increase market share by 4% to 58% By the start of Summer 2010 Increase market share to 62.4% During Summer 2010 Increase load factor from 68% to 72% By the start of Summer 2010 Further increase of load factor by 5% to 77% During Summer 2010/Winter 10/11 Promote thy.com for bookings to reduce cost Throughout the whole period Promote first class product and onward flights from London to the rest of the world via Istanbul

Throughout the whole period



3.3. Values With flight safety and customer service quality as its two indispensable values, Turkish Airlines acts with the awareness of being the flag carrier of Turkey. Another important value that the airline tries to maintain on a regular basis is value for money cheap tickets with no compromises on services provided. As the 20th Star Alliance member, Turkish Airlines took its place among the giants of the worlds aviation sector, having completed an array of membership steps in areas ranging from information technology infrastructure, marketing, sales, customer service and ground operations. Turkish Airlines quality and safety have received global exposure through the Star Alliance broad network, leading to sharp increases in passenger numbers. 3.4. Core competencies

Over the past five years, Turkish Airlines has shown a tremendous development by becoming one of the fastest growing airlines in the world. In 2009 Turkish Airlines celebrated its 75th anniversary. It is an important milestone in the company's history as the company joined one of the most prestigious airline alliances in the world - Star Alliance - the world's biggest airline marketing partnership, but also was awarded 4-star quality assurance by Skytrax. Summing up the company experiences, Turkish Airlines is today a 4-star airline with a fleet of 130 aircraft flying to 145 destinations around the world. In addition, passengers can benefit from more than 940 destinations on Star alliance partners network. 3.5. External Environment - PEST Analysis*

Political

Turkey 50.9% of the company shares - public, the rest remain state-owned ; strong political/governmental backup; UK Possible political instability that could worsen the relations between the 2 countries ;

Economical

Turkey dynamic economy; relatively large geographical area (780,000 sq km); increasing disposable income among its population; UK Economic downturn can result in decline of air travel particularly for business traffic;

Sociological Technological Turkey unique growth opportunity; population of 75 million; UK Huge presence of Turkish community ; Growing UK population and increasing demand for travel products ;

Turkey & UK New fleet ; e-ticketing ; e-services ; e-customer care;

* Please refer to Appendix 1 for detailed PEST Analysis



3.6. Internal Environment SWOT Analysis*

STRENGTHS

Turkey Expanding home market economy and favourable demographic; Strategic geographic position; Substantial cost advantage over rivals; Rising market share; Star Alliance membership and close relationship with Lufthansa;

UK Substantial market share; Great flight frequency; 3 London airports + 2 regional services; Great product and customer services;

OPPORTUNITIES

Turkey A growing market, despite the economic crisis; A popular tourism destination; Benefiting from liberalisation policies; UK Extend coverage into Scotland; National Flag carrier European Capital of Culture 2010 Airline; Business customers focus; Drawing passengers into onward flights from Istanbul hub;

WEAKNESSESS

Turkey Higher risk organic growth strategy; Massive fleet growth to fund; Under-utilising the potential of a strong alliance;

UK Market adaptation product; Product differentiation; Brand/ specific product awareness;

THREATS Turkey LCCs increasing their presence ; Currency shifts may inhibit profitability; UK LCCs increasing their presence; British Airways product differentiation; British Airways coverage expansion;

*Please refer to Appendix 1 for detailed SWOT Analysis



4. Marketing Plan 4.1. Target Market

Market segmentation will allow Turkish Airlines to concentrate its resources in markets where its competitive advantage is at its greatest and hence its returns are highest. The market segmentations strategy will focus on attracting three different types of

passengers although the overall product offering in each case will be virtually identical on

service, they will vary on price. Distinct marketing techniques will be used to create a

competitively distinctive place for the product and the Turkish Airlines brand in the minds of

the targeted consumers.

The primary target market for the airline is corporate business air travel. The main need of

this type of customers is the corporate discount available in return for volume. The company

product will be positioned to these customers to provide significant cost savings over

competitors. Both London and Istanbul are cities with many multinational companies and

businesses, which create a vast market for corporate travel. Corporate travellers that Turkish

Airlines should be targeting include, Deutsche bank, PwC, Delloit, Shell and several other

prominent corporations with links in Istanbul and London who fly business class and has

significant volume of business travel between the pair cities.

The secondary target market for the airline is the small business and independent business

travellers who typically fly from Heathrow to Istanbul but also from the industrial cities

Manchester and Birmingham. The product will be positioned for these customers by

providing a FFP and a business class fare that is significantly lower than most traditional

fares (the two main needs of business travellers according to surveys). The product will also

be positioned to this target market as the one with the highest levels of service on board the

aircraft, significantly higher levels of comfort offered by the seats and a higher degree of

luxury compared to the competition.

The final target market for the airline is the luxury travel market that exists from London and

Manchester to Istanbul. The product will be marketed and positioned to these customers as

a first class service at business class fares. These customers are generally uninterested in

the frequency demanded by business travellers.

4.1.1. Market Share Estimates by Class

The leisure passengers are the main income generator for Turkish Airlines, whilst business passengers remain at a lower level. The following table represents the market share estimates by passengers class for flights from London (3 airports), Manchester and Birmingham (in total). Table 3

Leisure 54%

Business 32%

Source: Reuters



4.1.2. Load Factor

The following table 4 shows Turkish Airlines traffic (RPK), capacity (ASK) and load factor in % from 2005 Sep 2009. Table 4

Source: Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation and Turkish Airlines

Based on these figures and the growth on previous average load factors of 68%, the

marketing plan main objective will be to increase the airlines average load factors to around

72% towards the start of the summer period, giving the airline a substantial 58% market

share of the total business and leisure capacity offered on the London to Istanbul route.

Through increased marketing and focused advertising campaigns, the marketing objective is

to further increase load factors by 5% over the summer period to 77% (so the airline will be

operating with very healthy, profitable load factors) and thus increasing Turkish Airlines

market share to 62.4%. (Figures calculated from Table 3 and Table 4)

4.1.3. Turkish Tourism and Business segments

Istanbul as Turkey's cultural and financial centre, extends both on the European (Thrace)

and on the Asian (Anatolia) side of the Bosphorus and is thereby the only metropolis in the

world which is situated on two continents. The city has always been the centre of the

country's economic life because of its location as an international junction of land and sea

trade routes. The opening of specific markets in the city during the 1980s further

strengthened the city's economic status. Istanbul is also Turkey's largest industrial centre. It

employs approximately 20% of Turkey's industrial labour and contributes 38% of Turkey's

industrial workspace. It is one of the most important tourism centres in Turkey. There are

thousands of hotels and other tourist oriented businesses in the city, catering to both

vacationers and visiting professionals. In 2009 a total of 23.1 million tourists visited Turkey

(TurkStat), most of whom entered the country through the airports and seaports of Istanbul



and Antalya. It is also one of the world's major conference destinations and is an

increasingly popular choice for the world's leading international associations. The city is

becoming increasingly colourful in terms of its rich social, cultural, and commercial activities.

While world famous pop stars fill stadiums, activities like opera, ballet and theatre continue

throughout the year. During seasonal festivals, world famous orchestras, chorale ensembles,

concerts and jazz legends can be found often playing to a full house. The Istanbul

International Film Festival is one of the most important film festivals in Europe, while the

Istanbul Biennial is another major event of fine arts. Istanbul have been selected to be the

European capital of culture for 2010, which gives further opportunities for Turkish Airlines as

the flag carrier and official ambassador of the city as a travel destination. Istanbul generates

55% of Turkey's trade and 45% of the country's wholesale trade, and generates 21.2% of

Turkey's gross national product. In 2008 companies based in Istanbul made exports worth

$41.4 billion and imports worth $69.8 billion; which corresponded to 56.6% and 60.2% of

Turkey's exports and imports in that year (TurkStat). Further to that, many multinational

companies have branches, which brings in and out a lot of business traffic. The city is very

familiar to expats that have chosen it for their new home.

4.1.4. Expatriates in Turkey

The latest statistics from TurkStat, the Turkish Statistics Institute, reveal that there has been a steady increase in the numbers of expats going to live in Turkey year by year. Whilst exact TurkStat figures relating to the number of expats coming from UK are not available, their latest findings do show that now around 235,000 Britons moved to live in Turkey in the last couple of years as the appeal of the nation grows and becomes more widely appreciated.

4.1.5. Transit Passengers of Istanbul There were 2,706,614 transit passengers at Istanbul Ataturk Airport in 2009. This is an increase of 6.4% compared to the preceding year. As the main carrier at Ataturk Airport, Turkish Airlines have the opportunity of a bigger exposure to transiting passengers, that could choose the airline for their onward travel or in near future. Turkish Airlines main goal for 2010 is to create a bridge between Europe and the East through its Istanbul hub, focusing on all transit passengers. 4.2. Intended Strategies

The marketing strategy serves as a foundation for the marketing plan and sets out the strategic approach that the plan will apply in reaching the marketing objectives set. Promotions like companion free offers, advanced in-flight technology and world class cuisine are all marketing strategies that Turkish Airlines competitors embrace to capture premium travellers. The airline marketing strategy therefore has to be designed to promote the airlines superior service and product at a price lower than the competitors inferior product to attract consumers. Once the airline, via its unique product, has established a relationship with the consumer its goal is to retain those customers by enhancing their experience through increased customer service and higher level of quality offered, as a single bad experience on Turkish Airlines will drive customers back to British Airways (and other airlines). 4.2.1. Market Penetration (Improving In-flight services) Improving in-flight services is a major move that could separate Turkish Airlines from its competitors. Providing a different in-flight product, such as catering that influence the Turkish tradition (cuisine) and hospitality, and specific product tailored for the business travellers focusing on their needs and wants, would attract more passengers looking for enjoyable and influential travel experience. Entertainment and communication in-flight systems are major advantage of Turkish Airlines.



4.2.2. Market Development (Extending new routes) A great opportunity for Turkish Airlines, as the largest carrier for Turkey in the UK market is to expand its presence and extend the route network into Scotland. This will enable the company to draw huge amount of traffic, knowing that the Scottish travel market is a lucrative opportunity. 4.2.3. Product Development (First class private suite) Turkish Airlines is one of the very few airlines in the world that implemented private suite on its long haul fleet. This is a unique product focused towards the needs of superior customers and awareness of this product in the UK market will increase the passenger demand for the onward flights of Turkish Airlines from Istanbul. 4.2.4. Cost reductions Cost reductions can be achieved by reducing the office premises and ground staff the airline use. Focusing on online bookings, e-customer services and e-technology will be a major objective in achieving cost cuts. Thus, the benefit would be given to consumers in the way of cheaper tickets or special discounts. 4.3. Marketing programmes Turkish Airlines marketing promotions will be designed to enable the airline to exceed its

marketing objectives by increasing interest in the product and the willingness of consumers

to buy it. This section of the report proposes several marketing promotions for the airline to

increase their sales, brand awareness, and loyalty from existing customers beyond that

which can be provided by advertising alone.

Advanced Booking Price Promotions

The main aim of the price promotions will be to reduce the number of empty seats on the

aircraft and hence to maximise revenue. Assuming that the existing target load factors are

sufficient to generate significant profit additional seats which otherwise would be empty

could be sold at significantly reduced prices, however they must still yield a profit for the

service provided. Turkish Airlines price promotion will provide significantly low prices for

customers who are able to book an anytime seat over one calendar month in advance. This

promotion will be targeted at leisure travellers as it is assumed that a majority of business

travellers book their seats close to the required date of departure as they are required to

leave on short notice.

Three for Two

The main aim of this promotion is to generate additional revenue while not overbooking the

aircraft or undermining the passengers who have not utilised this promotion, which would

most likely be the case if a buy one get one free promotion were offered. This promotion is

based on a consumer or group of consumers purchasing two full fare return tickets and

receiving a third one free. This promotion could enable three consumers to travel at once for

the price of two, general trends of leisure travellers, or enable a single consumer who

purchases two tickets within a month, general trend of a business class consumer, to be

offered the third one free. The free ticket will be restricted and must be used within a period

of one month. This promotion will be designed to run in May, June, July and August when

target load factors are less than 60%.



Promotional Items for On-line Bookings

All consumers who book flights in August through to December directly through

www.thy.com will be offered free Istanbul sightseeing tour cards or similar organised tours.

This is designed to increase load factors above target load factors for these months but also

to reduce distribution costs of tickets. For all business passengers on onward flights from

Istanbul, 1 or 2 free nights at luxury hotels will be offered.

Turkish Airlines Triple Points Frequent Flyer Program

Miles&Smiles is already a rewarding and generous scheme where passengers can redeem

rewards and take advantage of many benefits. In April, June and Oct, the airline will offer

triple points on all bookings made on-line.

Summary of Marketing Programs

Marketing Promotion Period

Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Advanced Booking Price Promotion

Three for Two

Gifts for On-line Bookings

Frequent Flyer Triple Points

4.3.1. Product Turkish Airlines product is providing economy and business class travel between London,

Manchester, Birmingham and Istanbul. The airline method of providing its services is what

differentiates its product and allows it to offer vast benefits, such as space, seats, comfort

and in-flight services, as well as genuine gestures such as Istanbul sightseeing cards and

chauffeur services to the existing economy and business class passengers.

Turkish Airlines product must be positioned to the target market as one that meets and

exceeds the needs of both leisure and business class travellers, who would normally fly with

LCC like Easyjet or Pegasus (leisure passengers) or British Airways (business

passengers), through increased product innovation and quality. The product focused

towards business travellers allows them to hold in flight meetings in comfort and order meals

and services to suit their timetable and specific needs. Although business class travel is not

a new product, Turkish Airlines product has improved to the highest level possible, to

compete with its major competitors mainly based on price differentiation.



4.3.2.Price

Table 5 below shows the online published fares of THY versus BA.

Airline Economy Fares Business Fares % cheaper than British Airways

Economy Business Turkish Airlines

95 (15 days advanced)

380 63.3% 70.37%

British Airways

150 (30 days advanced)

540

Table 5 comparison of airline pricing strategies Mon 10 to Fri 14 May 2010

The main pricing strategy of the company is to maintain price leadership. While Turkish

Airlines pricing allows the company to achieve its financial goals, i.e. make a profit, it

undercuts the realities of the marketplace for the product and service offered by its

competitor operating out of London Heathrow. Based on competitor pricing customers would

be willing to buy at Turkish Airlines prices. Turkish Airlines pricing strategies support the

products positioning, as the low price does not act as a substitute for lack of product quality,

and are consistent with the other variables in the marketing mix. The type of promotions and

advertising used will affect the price, however in order to keep prices low, the product will not

be supported by extensive marketing campaigns such as T.V. adverts, which can cost up to

130,000 for a single advert in a prime time slot (4).

Pricing is influenced by the distribution channels used particularly in selling to corporate

customers. However, through negotiations the airline can achieve great results with its

corporate clients.

4.3.3. Promotion

Turkish Airlines promotional strategy will be carried out with the target customer in mind

preventing the waste of time and money on ineffective promotional activities such as TV ads.

Other methods of creating awareness of the airline product will include sales promotions and

presence at business trade shows, promoting the airlines directly to the target audiences, as

well as social websites like Facebook, Twitter, etc.

4.3.4. Place

A Multi-level marketing strategy will be employed to distribute the product. That is a

combination of direct sales and indirect sales through the internet, Business trade shows

and corporate travel agencies.

Business Trade Shows

Turkish Airlines will have a comprehensive premier presence at Business Travel Trade at

Excel, London. Prior to the event the trade show will provide significant media exposure that

will feature Turkish Airlines brand. The trade show will provide the airline with on site

marketing and promotional exposure.



Internet

In order to attract UK leisure and business travellers, Turkish Airlines will market and make

direct sales via its web site. This allows for cheap and efficient distribution costs and reaches

a wide consumer base. The website allows customers to make reservations for flights and

provides purchase and payment capabilities, as well as comprehensive information on

offers. Social websites like Facebook and Twitter could create brand awareness and can be

used as a marketing tool for promotions of the airline.

Direct Sales to Corporations

In order to attract large corporations and medium sized businesses, Turkish Airlines will

directly contact the travel departments of corporations and businesses in UK with links in

Turkey. To do this, the airline will manage a team who will build relations with corporations.

These direct sales will allow for a greater degree of product differentiation to be established

in the minds of corporations and allow Turkish Airlines to demonstrate and highlight the

benefits of its products compared to its competitors. Also direct sales and product

recommendation to corporations which currently fly with British Airways will increase the

airline share out of the total market share.

Direct Sales to Secretaries and PAs

Often PAs and secretaries are required to book flights for managers. Turkish Airlines must

target these secretaries with direct mail so that they are aware of the Turkish Airlines

product. The first class service will appeal to small to medium business managers who can

afford to fly with British Airways.

Corporate Travel Agents

This has the advantage of offering customers a distribution channel they may prefer in

making their reservation.

Business and Travel Magazines, Outdoor Adverts

Important part of Turkish Airlines marketing strategy will be focused on advertising with

leading corporate and travel magazines, as well as outdoor advertising, such as billboards,

bus and underground posters.

4.3.5. Customer Service

Building substantial customer relationship will be the primary objective of Turkish Airlines. That will be achieved through extensive communication with its current customers, special discounts and incentives for regular passengers, etc. Customer care prior and after travelling with Turkish Airlines will be another focus that will enable the airline to become very customer orientated and friendly.



5. Conclusion

Turkish Airlines market presence will be achieved by relying on the strategy of identifying and serving well both leisure and business market. Reservations will be centralised and cost effective, by popularising the official website of the airline. Marketing will be media generated to the business and corporate accounts with combined media and direct sales focused to the leisure market. The marketing programs section of this report highlights the set of co-ordinated actions that will be implemented to meet the airlines marketing objectives and to attract existing business class travellers from competitors. The advantage of a local and highly identifiable market is that media selections can be limited in scope. The most effective media is expected to be outdoor billboards and posters on buses and underground, as they have acted as a key generator of sales for other airlines. Presence in the popular social websites would be beneficial in order to increase brand awareness and can be used as powerful marketing tool for advertising promotions, etc. Based on all these actions, Turkish Airlines can meet its challenges and act in order to achieve its set goals and objectives, as well as to maintain its leadership position in the UK market. Word count: 4712 words



References: Textbooks:

Shaw S. (2004), Airline Marketing and Management, 5th edition, Ashgate Publishing Ltd.,

UK

Doganis R. (2006), The Airline Business, 2nd edition, Routledge Publishing, USA

Doganis R. (2009), Flying off course Airline economics and marketing, 4th edition,

HarperCollins Academic, USA

Web sites: Turkish Airlines: www.turkishairlines.com (Accessed on 12 Apr 2010) Pegasus Airlines: www.flypegasus.com (Accessed on 12 Apr 2010) EasyJet: www.easyjet.com (Accessed on 12 Apr 2010) Emirates Airline Strategies: www.emirates.com (Accessed on 13 Apr 2010)

(1) www.skytrax.com (Accessed on 12 Apr 2010)

(2) www.skyscanner.net (Accessed on 18 Apr 2010)

(3) www.ba.com (Accessed on 18 Apr 2010)

(4) www.chewonthis.org.uk (Accessed on 10 Apr 2010)

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKLDE63D176201004 (Accessed on 14 Apr 2010)

Istanbul Ataturk Airport: www.ataturkairport.com (Accessed on 12 Apr 2010)

Centre for Aviation: http://www.centreforaviation.com/ (Accessed on 21 Apr 2010)

Turkey Tourism Authority: www.tourismturkey.org (Accessed on 13 Apr 2010)

Turkey Visitors site: www.goturkey.com (Accessed on 13 Apr 2010)

European Culture Capital: www.en.istanbul2010.org (Accessed on 13 Apr 2010)

Turk Statistic Institute: www.turkstat.gov.tr (Accessed on 17 Apr 2010)

marketing plan of turkish airlines

Documents

marketing tutor

turkish airlines market

marketing programs

marketing promotions

marketing campaign

marketing programmes

comprehensive marketing

pegasus airlines