August 21st, 2008
12:26 pm
The International Audit Organisation, BPA Worldwide, has announced the latest circulation figures for Emirates in-flight magazine Open Skies for the period of January to June 2008.
The highest figure, was for the June 2008 issue with 66,045 copies, and the average qualified circulation for the period was 63,901 copies. Further increases are expected in the coming months with the recent launch of the airline’s first Airbus A380, which , along with the rest of the fleet, carries Open Skies in all of its seat pockets.
Open Skies is produced for Emirates by Motivate Publishing, whose Managing Partner, Ian Fairservice commented: ‘The latest figures show an increase of 6% over the previous period and this growth is certainly set to continue with the increased demand of the new fleet of Airbus A380’s. Steps were taken earlier in the year to reduce the weight of the Open Skies magazine, by reducing the format and ordering a light stock of paper. As a result of these steps, Motivate have successfully cut 28% from the weight of each magazine. Similar steps have been taken with the airline’s monthly Portfolio business magazine resulting in weight savings of 37%.’
Tags: BPA Worldwide, Emirates, Ian Fairservice, Motivate Publishing, Open Skies, The International Audit Organisation
August 17th, 2008
11:40 am
Maktoob Research has revealed the findings of a comprehensive syndicated study on the travel industry in the UAE and KSA.
The online survey, titled ‘The TravelMonitor’, canvassed the opinions of 2,457 UAE and Saudi adult residents who travel at least once a year, and covered topics ranging from travel preferences and trends, brand awareness and usage, customer satisfaction levels and customer needs in both the airline and hospitality sectors.
Emirates was voted the region’s top airline, leading the table in terms of overall customer satisfaction; the Dubai-based airline also bagged the distinction of being the most widely used carrier among UAE travelers. Saudi Airlines, the national airline of KSA, emerged the most widely used carrier among Saudi travelers.
Similarly, in the hospitality sector, Hilton led all hotels in KSA in terms of usage and overall customer satisfaction. In the UAE, however, while Hilton remained atop the usage index, it dropped down the table when it came to overall customer satisfaction, the home-grown Jumeirah Hotels taking the top spot.
Commenting on ‘The TravelMonitor’, Tamara Deprez, Director of Maktoob Research, said: ‘In undertaking this study, we intend to provide a veritable portrait of consumer preferences and emerging trends within the region’s travel industry, which is evolving at a dramatic pace. The findings of the study would serve as a handy guide for the movers and shakers of the travel industry to understand how customers perceive them and how best to cater to their requirements, while identifying aspects of business that need further attention.’
Among the key findings of the study are:
- Emirates Airline scored highest in overall satisfaction among both Saudi and UAE travelers, tallying 8.5 and 8.3 respectively on a 10-point scale. However, while Emirates was comfortably ahead of rival airlines in Saudi, it faced stiffer competition on its home turf, with Qatar Airways and Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways following closely behind with a score of 7.8 each to tie for second.
- In terms of ‘brand awareness’ and ‘usage’, Emirates again led the way among UAE travelers with a score of 85% and 39% respectively, ahead of Etihad and Air Arabia. Among travelers from KSA, Saudi Airline turned out the overwhelming winner in both categories, notching 92% in ‘brand awareness’ and 81% in ‘usage’. However, the airline was also rated the most expensive by Saudi travelers.
- Although Emirates had an edge over its competitors in categories such as ‘Efficiency’, ‘Innovation’, ‘Luxury’, ‘Distinctive Style’ and ‘Reliability’, it was also rated the most expensive airline by travelers from the UAE. The survey also revealed a significant drop in the intention of Saudi travelers to use Emirates in the future, from 44% in 2007 to 28% this year.
- Etihad and Emirates received the highest votes from KSA travelers in the ‘Value-for-Money’ category. Interestingly, neither of the airlines could claim the top spot on their home turf, UAE travelers instead picking Qatar Airways as the most value-for-money airline.
- One of the most remarkable results of the survey is the phenomenal increase in usage of Sama Airlines among Saudi travelers, from a mere 1% in 2007 to a whopping 18% in 2008. In the process, the airline became the second most widely used carrier in KSA, taking the spot from Emirates.
- In the hospitality sector, while Hilton claimed top position when it came to brand awareness, usage and intended future use, it was also rated the most expensive hotel.
- Marriott was voted the most value-for-money hotel in KSA, while in the UAE, the distinction went to Radisson.
- Comparing the current use and intended future use of hotels, the Jumeirah, Shangri-La, Hyatt, and Marriott hotel brands in the UAE could expect a surge in guests.
The Maktoob Research TravelMonitor also examined a host of other travel-related trends and consumer attitudes. For airlines, it surveyed several aspects that determine passenger experience and influence customer perception such as safety and security, ticket fare, in-flight service quality, seating comfort, aircraft cleanliness, attitude and friendliness of cabin staff, adherence to schedule, availability of newspapers and magazines, efficiency of check-in and boarding, grooming and appearance of cabin staff, handling of delays and cancellations, and in-flight entertainment selection, in addition to overall satisfaction level, brand awareness and usage. A similar set of indexes were used to assess customer perception of major hotel brands.
With online information and e-booking playing a critical role in the modern travel industry, The TravelMonitor took special note of airline and hotel websites, asking travelers to rate individual websites for their customer service content, ease of navigation, online reservation facilities, and payment options, among other factors. The study also assessed customer satisfaction across various categories for business class, first class and frequent flyers.
As the regional travel market continues its impressive growth, the Maktoob Research TravelMonitor provides invaluable insights into what GCC travelers want from their airlines and hotels. The results indicate that the Arab traveler of today is sophisticated, savvy, and keenly aware of value-for-money and customer service expectations.
Tags: Air Arabia, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Hilton, Hyatt, Jumeirah, Maktoob Research, Marriott, Qatar Airways, Radisson, Sama Airlines, Saudi Airlines, Tamara Deprez, The TravelMonitor
