RMIT International University Vietnam

BP181 Bachelor of Commerce Program

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Course Code: ISYS2110
Course Name: Internet for Business
Location where you study: Viet Nam - South Ho Chi Minh
Title of Assignment: CASE STUDY 8.1
File(s) submitted: Document
Student name: Nguyen Hoang My Linh,
Nguyen Van Nam,
Nguyen Thi Ngoc ,
Tran Linh Vi
Student e-mail address: s3411857, s3394155, s3425504, s34262
Learning Facilitator in charge: Kevin Kuruvilla
Assignment due date: 24-August-2014
Date of submission: 24-August-2014
Number of pages including this one:5
Word Count: 1596


Course Name: Internet for Business
Group: 6
Teacher: Kevin Kuruvilla
Team: 1
Nguyen Hoang My Linh s3411857
Nguyen Van Nam s3394155
Nguyen Thi Ngoc s3425504
Tran Linh Vi s3426284

1. To what extent was the Internet revenue contribution of around 90 per cent achieved
more by luck than judgement?
Since easyJet started selling its airline tickets online via the Internet in April 1998, the company
has achieved significant growth in sales. It took them only a few years to reach the mark of 90% of
seats were sold online in 2003. With millions of online ticket sold every week, easyJet reinforced its
position as The Webs Favourite Airline. This dramatic growth may be partially achieved by luck,
but mostly by the companys low cost strategies and utilizations of the Internet.
To minimize the cost, easyJet overlooked the traditional airlines business practice (Enders, A &
Jelassi, T 2014). While the traditional competitors depend heavily on high-cost ticketing offices and
sales agencies such as call centers, easyJet sells most of their seats over the Internet, which saves
them a large amount of operating costs. Furthermore, customers only need a PIN number given
online as identification to receive their boarding pass at the airports check-in counter, so the
company can minimize the time and work spend on printed tickers. On boards, passengers pay for
each drink and snack, this saves servicing cost for easyJet. In addition, eayJets ticket fees are much
lower than the industry average and their capacity utilization increased, which allowed them to
control the cost and gained them competitive advantage to growth as a low-cost airline.
As Internet was the most cost-effective distribution channel for easyJet to offer low fares, they
pursued many incentives strategies to encourage passengers to book tickets online (Enders, A &
Jelassi, T 2014). They offers discount on tickets price only for customers who book seats online, and
only allow passengers to book seats more than two weeks in advance online. As the results, the
company reached one millions seat mark in October 1999, two millions seat mark in March 2000,
and three millions seat mark in June 2000, with 90% of seats sold online (Enders, A & Jelassi, T
2014).
The remarkable growth of easyJet was a result of their successful business plan and utilization of
the Internet. However, it was also supported by the internal and external factors. With the
companys old business model was already a 100% direct phone sales operation, it was quite easy
for easyJet to integrate their call centers and booking system into the web (Chaffey 2009). Moreover,
in the market that they were operating in, there were no risks of channel conflicts with
intermediaries. The web also well fitted with easyJets low-cost proposition of no tickets, no travel
agents, no net work tie ups and no in-flight meals (Chaffey 2009). This may not be the case for other
airline firms that have high service quality proposition. Therefore, with a bit of luck from the market
and timing, easyJet gained their large amount of online sales revenues.
2. Explain the proposition of using the Internet for the customer and define the
benefits for the company.
EasyJet was founded in 1995 as a low-cost airline carrier. From the first day of foundation,
easyJet slicked to their unique way selling tickets, which is conducting transactions through phone
calls? However, after realizing that building a new call center as the increase of bookings will cost a
large amount of money, easyJet launched their website, easyJet.com for selling tickets.
This new selling channel was implemented in April 1998. easyJet launched a trial site and a
web specific phone line in order to track the volume of online users. With the introduction of a new
system, easyJet allowed customers to make online booking with a cheaper price than booking the
ticket somewhere else and be aware of all offers they have. For customers who book their flight
tickets online, each of them is given a PIN number for each order. And those customers only need to
give the PIN number at the airport. In addition, through the website, all customers can get a clear
overview of their booking and conveniently contact easyJet through mailing if they need any further
information. And then, easyJet started using their website as a powerful PR tool as well. They
organized questionnaires and the lucky contestants would be received some free tickets.
By proposing customers to use the Internet booking service, easyJet has gained a lot of
benefits. Those are:
1. Through internet communication, easyJet is able to collect customer information and get database
about their clients. Thereby, it helped them to promote their services online such as email customers
holiday deals and give them information about it. Also, the company can gather customer feedback
and complains, then find the right way to improve their services.
2. The website will be available 24/7 while if easyJet has a travel agency, it will only available with
restrict opening hours. This helps easyJet reach a lot of customers in the world whenever customers
demand and wherever customers are.
3. Giving customers an opportunity to make booking online helps easyJet save costs. With the
technological advances on the Internet, it's cheaper than having their own travel agency, because
they will have less expense such as fewer employees and the intermediaries have been left, that will
save them more money.
4. Through the internet strategy, easyJet is able to improve their sales. The reason is whenever
customers make booking online; they will receive a discount of 2.5 British pounds for a single fare.
This will attract more customers and help easyJet earn more profit
3. Explain how easyJet uses the web site to vary the different elements of
the marketing mix and as a marketing communications tool.
Varying elements of the marketing mix:
Product
- Product is a type of good or service that a company is offering. This element of marketing mix is
very important in order to differ a company from other competitors in term of specialty of products.
-Core Product: EasyJet a British airline company is providing a online booking website, which is
designing to save many hours for customers to order flight ticket. The website from EasyJet was built for
purposes of attracting and increasing customers pleasure and online sale for its existing system. Also, it
brings benefits of saving time and cost saving of flight ticket to customers. Moreover, it is a revelation of
ordering ticket when it comes to efficiency and convenience. Instead of making phone call booking,
customers are now able to get tickets online.
- Extended services: easyEverything, easyRentacar are the two services that EasyJet put on its
website for customers use, which are specializing in coffee and car rental industry.
Price
Price is playing an important factor in term of defining a success marketing mix. It is also one way
of generating sale revenue of a company. The price of a particular good is determining an actual value of
sale good.
EasyJet website is providing a channel for reviewing price and ordering flight tickets. It is giving
more alternatives for seeking proper flight tickets for different places, which suitably fit to customers
budget. Moreover, the company actually gains more advantages when it comes to cost efficiency. To
demonstrate, when customers come to EasyJet for ordering tickets, the customers will receive great
online discount from EasyJet. For each of passenger, the customer can save from 1 to 2.5 pound per trip
depending on a current promotion campaign. For each of ticket, EasyJet can generate 1.50 pound for
profit.
Place
-Place is considering as good methods of storing and transporting a certain goods or services, which
is functionally assisting to make products available to consumers.
-EasyJet website provides a place, where customers can seek flight ticket information, price and
route and order it in the most convenient manner. The website is considering as EasyJet distribution,
which is mainly supporting the company to directly sell airplane ticket online to customers. Instead of
having a phone call booking, now users only few steps to book ticket through EasyJet Internet based
system. Indeed, when customer access to EasyJet website and order a ticket, instead of delivering a paper
ticket or electronic ticket to customers. The website is actually storing enormous amount of ticket codes.
For instance, the company provides customer a PIN number for each order, which represents to an
official flight ticket, and then customers just give the code number to inspector when they arrive the
airport gate.

Promotion
- Promotion is one of essential elements of marketing mix, which is relevant to communication with
customers and other stakeholders for informing them about products and the organization.
- EasyJet Company streamlines its online marketing by utilizing Internet promotions in newspapers.
The company firstly cooperated with newspapers The Times and The Sunday Times to run its Internet-
only promotion, which achieved quite impressive outcomes. And then, those newspapers came up with
news regarding to EasyJet offering cheap flights for all EasyJet destinations. As a consequence, EasyJet
gained 2 million pound with 100,000 sold seats. Moreover, EasyJet consecutively keeps newspapers
informing about new promotion campaigns. By communicating this way, EasyJet is enabling to gain
customers awareness and increase its customers relationship.

4. Use a news source such www.ft.com or review its investor relations site
(http://www.easyjet.com/EN/about/investorrelations.html) to find out
how easyJet has extended its Internet applications.

Since the internet began to apply from 1998, easyJet has adopted a variety of different
strategies to increase the number of customers and achieve great sales numbers today. Besides
increasing the number of customers, easyJet also focused on expanding the application relates:
easyEverything, easyRentacar, Hotel booking, etc. According to the Easy Jets official website ( 25
November 2010) The e-marketing strategy that easyJet has used including:
- Using their official website as a PR tool: After paying for other advertising companies and
earned a large number of customers, easyJet has decided to turn its website into a major PR
tool. They organized the event and giving away some free tickets, they announce this on
newspapers. The number of participants to more than 65,000 people and they also sold more
than 100,000 seats after the promotion campaign.
- Using appropriate navigation: user can move freely from the timetables, the booking area,
additional services, extensions, etc.
- Using social media: easyJet has become the first airline company to help user can book flight
and plan trips via Facebook app: Holiday Planner (Crowther 2010)

References:
Business Case Study,n.d, Marketing Mix: Price, Place, Promotion and Produts, viewed
21 August 2014,< http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/business-theory/marketing/marketing-
mix-price-place-promotion-product.html#axzz3BF8u1X43 >
Chaffey,D 2009, Case study 8.1- The e-volution of easyJets online revenue contribution,
pp431-433,
Crowther,J 2010, EasyJet to sell flights via its Facebook fan page, Metro Newspapers, 31 Mar 2010,
viewed 22 August 2014,<http://metro.co.uk/2010/03/31/easyjet-to-sell-flights-via-its-
facebook-fan-page-205005/>.

Easy Jets official website, Corporate Responsibilities, 25 November 2010, viewed 22
August 2014 < http://www.easyjet.com/EN/Environment/index.shtml>

Enders, A & Jelassi, T 2014, Strategies for e-Business: Creating values through Electronic
and Mobile Commerce, Concepts and Cases, Pearson Education, viewed 22 August 2014,
<http://ph.sbmu.ac.ir.servercms1.com/uploads/Strategies_for_E-
business%DA%A9%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8.pdf>.
Knol, n.d, Marketing Communication: Channels and Promotion Tools, Business and
Management University, viewed 21August 2014< http://museum-
madness.blogspot.com/2011/12/marketing-communication-channels-and.html >.