Full Video: Expedia, JetBlue on Distribution and Loyalty at Skift Aviation Forum 2022
Skift Take
In a switch-up on the role travel products play in creating stickiness for brands, JetBlue and Expedia are both focused on boosting customer loyalty — and while it might seem like their programs are competing, customers ultimately score value across their ecosystem.
The dynamics of ancillary travel product distribution for airlines is continuously changing. Brand loyal customers are the order of the day. Yet in symbiotic ecosystems where airlines use online travel giants like Expedia to tailor their travel packages, competition for loyal customers is unavoidable.
Julie Kyse, vice president of global air partnerships for Expedia Group and Andres Barry, president of JetBlue products joined Seth Borko, senior research analyst at Skift, to discussed the push and pull of distribution within the sector at the 2022 Skift Aviation Forum in Dallas-Fort Worth.
JetBlue remains intent on bolstering its direct connection to customers and extending its supplier partnerships, instead of just relying on Expedia for non-air supply to packages to sell to its customers.
Kyse acknowledged that there are customers who have a natural affinity for the airline, and stated that Expedia is able to add value to help grow
