Dear Customer: You're not a good customer

Hi Mr. Customer! I just wanted to let you know we didn’t fulfill your expectations because we had more important customers we wanted to take care of before you.

Doesn’t sound familiar?

Well, of course not.

It probably wouldn’t go over very well if your private jet provider told you that’s why your flight was canceled.

All customers are important.

Rule number one is the customer is always right.

Rule number two is if the customer is wrong, refer to rule one.

That makes good fodder for CEO autobiographies, and I suppose it works well in some businesses, but it’s not how it works in private aviation.

That’s not to say that private aviation companies don’t value their customers.

It’s quite the opposite.

The cost of customer acquisition is steep.

UHNWs and companies that can both afford and want to spend the money to fly privately are like needles in a haystack.

The best source of new customers for most private flight providers is referrals from happy customers.

But here’s the rub.

Like many businesses – and possibly yours – some customers are more valuable than others.

You probably understand what I’m saying, but let me be more specific.

There’s nothing wrong with chasing cheap flights. But it’s also important to understand what you are buying.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve, by chance, talked with several subscribers whose buying strategies have been to use platforms that allow them to get quotes directly through operators.

It’s an excellent way to get competitive quotes to review.

You no longer get the standard three quotes from a broker, leaving you to wonder what you are missing and how much the markup was.

The platforms cut out the broker to save the broker’s markups. It’s a direct-to-consumer play.

At the same time, buying trip-by-trip means not having to give six figures for a jet card.

Jet cards or a good broker are not a panacea for delays, so it’s not like there is a perfect solution.

Regular private aviation users know the saying, “Every rose has its thorn,” rings true.

However, I continue to hear that subscribers who use direct-to-operator platforms have decidedly mixed experiences.

The operators that quote their requests are a subset of the potential operators, so they quickly find platforms are not a holistic solution.

In other words, they still feel the need to contact a couple of brokers to get additional quotes.

At the same time, operators can receive dozens, if not hundreds, of quote requests daily.

Like most businesses, operators concentrate their sales efforts where they get the highest return—mainly the brokers who book with them regularly and regular direct clients.

Operators tell me that the conversion rate from direct-to-consumer platform requests is woefully lower than other channels.

I guess it’s not surprising that from the small sample of subscribers I’ve spoken with who have been using these direct-to-operator platforms, the feedback is they experienced a high rate of cancelations and delays.

That’s likely because operators quoting platform requests are doing so, at least in some cases, to fill in their schedules and sell empty legs or must moves.

The consumers I’ve talked to say these operators often don’t have a replacement aircraft when the tail designated for their flight cannot perform the trip.

In some cases, it may be mechanical.

In other cases, it’s simply that a regular customer or a broker that books flights regularly with that operator had their trips prioritized.

One subscriber told me he did feel that he was saving money on flights, but having to change plans on short notice and the extra work and headache of changing everything from rental car returns to extending hotel reservations isn’t why he was paying multiple of what it costs to fly with the airlines.

None of this means platforms don’t have a place in the market. Without a doubt, you will see more of them in the future.

Just remember, if something goes wrong and there are only three airplanes and four customers, where do you rank in terms of importance for that operator?

In some cases, the operator or platform may find an alternative. If they do, you are responsible for additional costs.

If they can’t find another option or you don’t like their proposed option, the standard policy is that you get a refund.

But then you have to find your way wherever you are going.

The idea with the platforms is you will find operators that you then use regularly, becoming a more valuable customer.