Four years ago, when we launched our directory service we noticed that some airports were way more appealing than others and that some salespeople fared better than others in developing air carrier interest in passenger laden areas.

Through perception or reality, some airports were just more popular. Most charter firms want top billing (and sponsorship) at their airport. But when we started these sponsorships (for an example, click here or here) the first problem we ran into was that your best airport to sponsor isn’t always obvious.

The optimal airport for the client in question, is frequently one they’ve don’t consider being a place to pull new clients from be they former fractional owners, aircraft owners or passengers. Salespeople instinctively follow what the client wants, but we emphasize with all new hires, from day one, that in a healthy sales environment … you are an advisor, not a salesperson.

“I REALIZE THAT, BUT I WANT THAT ONE”

Perception problems, while strong, are surmountable. The person paying the bill carries a lot of pull, but one thing we can look at confidently since inception is that the advisor that tells it how it is vs. a salesperson who tells the client what they want to hear … wins. And they win for the simplest reason: They are an authority, set expectations properly and provide healthy amounts of reciprocity.

LEVERAGING YOUR REAL ESTATE

If you are curious about general ways to find new clients, build incremental gain and generally make air carriers and aircraft owners happier, consider these three lessons learned from our salesforce’s development over the years:

• LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION Pick the right airport, level of service, website, direct marketing list, etc. Being successful with your dollars is about looking for your keys where they should be, not where the light is. When helping you sponsor the right airport our salespeople are instructed to advise, not sell. Advising a client to do something at the risk of jeopardizing the sale, is what the best sales people do. They know this because they simply can’t afford to have bad metrics to report monthly for the clients stated goals.

• NEW MARKETS & AIRPORTS - Tracking activity amongst some of the most qualified buyers of charter, jet card and fractional ownership services, we see shifts in not only airport trends, but in the relative popularity of aircraft types under new conditions. Airports, of all things, exhibit new and increased activity in some markets, when others might be seeing their first major drop in a long time.

• INCREMENTAL GAINS - While it is not imagined often, one new customer can make a world of difference. The ability for air charter firms to constantly have lines in the water, on modest marketing budgets, is vital. Exploiting free data, such as the relative strength of local airport passenger data, is key. Not just in your RSVPair subscriptions, but our salespeople are encouraged to show existing clients how to use RSVPair data and patterns for all their marketing endeavours.

TAKING THE PLUNGE

We all spend carefully on new stuff, but one thing that helps keep us sober with spending is having a relationship with the people who help aim that resource towards what is most important for you. When spending, remember the three lessons learned above and stay plugged in to constantly optimize what you have in the fire.

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