BWIA needs more aggressive sales techniques, says TAA president By GLEN MOHAMMED Express 06.25.03 WHILE there have been calls by the Government for employees of the cash-strapped BWIA to sacrifice salary cuts and other perks in a bid to save the airline and their jobs, some travel agents believe a major contributor to the company's financial problems has to do with a lack of aggressive sales. In fact, they claim that even before 9/11, when BWIA was declaring a profit, a number of flights were half full. The travel agents sell close to 75 per cent of BWIA's travel business. Deosaran Maharaj, president of the Travel Agent Association (TAA), told Express Business last week: "BWIA needs a more aggressive sales department. I will like to see options putting those seats that are available on the day of the flight at further sale rates...making it available to the travel agents out there. It is done in America. In this way the flight will leave full," Maharaj suggested. "We are not only propose maximising our seat sales. You will hear all seats sold and before they depart you will see the flight empty or they still selling tickets," Maharaj argued. While BWIA's communications manager Clint Williams said he would like to agree with Maharaj's proposal he says the financial troubles the airline finds itself in simply doesn't allow for such initiatives at this time. Maharaj said travel agents were suffering from cut in commissions but were still lucky that the cuts were not as drastic as those suffered by travel agents abroad. "The scenario is the major airlines have gone to zero per cent in North America and Europe. In the Caribbean area we have moved from nine to six per cent and in some instance to zero per cent for pre-paid ticket advice." But he said the future of travel agents was not at serious risk. "The fact is both locally and internationally we still sell 65-90 per cent of seats for airlines...regardless of the use of the Internet. The point is people prefer to go to a travel agent. At airline offices you do not have an option. They will sell you what they have available. Travel agents provide a service...reservations technology has given them options of airlines, fares when to buy tickets or not. We also provide other components...tours, car rentals. Before the nine percent was slashed we provided that service without a service charge. Now we have no option to charge a service charge," he said. He argued that reduced commissions would do little to save BWIA. "For various reasons their own lack of management...high overheads...9/11, the recent war or invasion of Iraq, SARS outbreak. "They are looking at all ways and means to cut costs one way or the other...by removing commission. Regardless it is not going to impact significantly...no matter what they do they continue to lose money." American Airline (AA) country manager Neisha Maharaj suggested that times were changing and travel agents needed to evolve with the times. *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Mas Site: www.tntisland.com/tntrecords/mas2003/ Site of the Week: http://www.carib-link.net/naparima/naps.html TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************