Selling Broadway Tickets on Board.....

[jimntx]

The president of Guestlogix calls the airline passenger the "captive consumer" who is bored and will buy a gift for their wife or girlfriend. How insulting to our customers.

My late wife and I went to New York 3-4 times each year to see the shows on Broadway. And, there have been times I was so bored that I went shopping. But, buying Broadway show tickets at 35,000 feet because I'm bored? Not likely. Particularly with what tickets cost in this day and age, they do not fall into the category of possible impulse purchases.

And, as another poster pointed out, how do you handle inventory for shows that are commonly sold out? Ticket brokers either buy blocks of seats in advance and resell them with a service charge added, or they call the theater to block the seats before confirming the sale. The first doesn't work in this case because you don't transmit sales until the end of the flight. 5 seats, 10 sales is a problem. The other scenario is not possible at 35, 000 feet.

 

[FlyDeMetrius]

We currently sell, cigarettes, monte blanc ink pens, jewerly, pursues, grey goose vodka, make-up, perfume, cologne, wallets purses, international wall chargers, cokes, water, oj and food. If selling this junk can keep me employed I game. i tired of complaining about stuff that I have no control over. The only flight attendant the works the hardest on domestic anymore is the A

 

[LCC_#1]

Sorry, sonny. I expect the FAs on my crew to pay attention to what is going on around and within that "tube". They are the first line of defense and probable best early warning "detectors" of potential problems the airline has. Distracting them by hawking junk to passengers does not allow them to do their jobs, among which is to "protect" the cockpit.

and, you try "staying busy" for an eleven hour leg, scheduled. I bet you would be crying on your knees after five hours.

Hmm, where to start here. A TC inflight service currently takes about 20 minutes...short hauls about 3 minutes. So you are afraid we will be distracted from paying attention to the tube by selling 5 (if you are lucky) tickets? So I guess we should stop cash cow as NOTHING distracts our money thirsty f/a's like the 20-30 minutes whoring of themselves for visa.

While we are at it, if the cockpit is so concerned with us being the last line of defense, remember the pilots are the first line of defense. This means not opening the door at will or hanging around outside the cockpit for more than what it takes to go from the lav to the cockpit.

 

[N965VJ]

<SNIP> We currently sell, cigarettes, monte blanc ink pens, jewerly, pursues,

For how much commission on sales?

 

[Harry Callahan]

I think you should sell condoms and make the bathrooms bigger and market yourselves as the only airline that provides the opportunity to join the mile high club. hahaha....

 

[sharktooth]

We currently sell, cigarettes, monte blanc ink pens, jewerly, pursues, grey goose vodka, make-up, perfume, cologne, wallets purses, international wall chargers, cokes, water, oj and food. If selling this junk can keep me employed I game. i tired of complaining about stuff that I have no control over. The only flight attendant the works the hardest on domestic anymore is the A

Interesting. You conflate "duty-free" items with domestic operations.

Selling junk does not "keep you employed". It does "help" the perceived bottom line, slightly, with revenue, but more important, allows the company to move what used to be an expense, catering, to another column, which might tend to help Doug's arguments that he is "controlling" costs.

 

[sharktooth]

Hmm, where to start here. A TC inflight service currently takes about 20 minutes...short hauls about 3 minutes. So you are afraid we will be distracted from paying attention to the tube by selling 5 (if you are lucky) tickets? So I guess we should stop cash cow as NOTHING distracts our money thirsty f/a's like the 20-30 minutes whoring of themselves for visa.

As has been brought up, selling tickets has it's own special problems. It is not each item sold, but taken all together, it means that restrooms are not monitored, passenger complaints about a certain "noise" are not addressed and gives any group of "bad guys" the easy opportunity to congregate as the aisle is alternately busy then clear.

While we are at it, if the cockpit is so concerned with us being the last line of defense, remember the pilots are the first line of defense. This means not opening the door at will or hanging around outside the cockpit for more than what it takes to go from the lav to the cockpit.

You have it backwards. The FA's are the first line of defense. The pilots (FFDOs) the last, and final.

The only job, IMO, the FA must do, is to enhance the survival of every soul on board. Security is a subset of that enhancement. If you feel you must chastise pilots for operating outside norms and violating your personal comfort space, then that is hardly something you can address while hawking junk, considering that an immediate reaction may be necessary for continued safe flight.

I would much sooner have a FA sitting on a forward jumpseat reading pulp than someone hawking junk over a PA, as the PA person is hardly in a position or mind-set to respond to anomalies. They are concerned with projecting anomalies rather than being aware of such. It reminds me of the person who listens more than talks ...... Noticing things comes from being receptive to your environment. Hawking junk makes one receptive to the sale, only.

 

[missthe727]

This may actually go the way of the SkyMall announcements F/As are supposed to do. Half the time there are no Sky Mall magazines in the seat back pockets and the order forms are no where to be found. The president of Guestlogix was counting his chickens before they've hatched in that interview....how will the company enforce having the crews hawk their wares ??? have a ghost rider on every flight??? The only thing these hand held devices will do is make it easier to sell beverages on board.....it won't be a hassle to get change.

 

[Jetsetter2Ord]

It just is interesting that US will be willing to give Guestlogix a percentage of the ala carte beverage sales, and how will SkyChefs feel about giving a percentage of their food sales to Guestlogix? Does that mean they will actually provision sufficient quantities of food to offer for sale?

Will US then add a surcharge to each sale made through the Guestlogix device to compensate the percent they will be paying Guestlogix?

I am sure that the company does not plan to pay the FA workforce any additional pay to sell items on the aircraft?

And since the removal of IFEs are coming soon, I am sure all FAs will receive a new announcement booklet of assorted announcements to annoy the flying public?

Time will tell.

 

[sharktooth]

It just is interesting that US will be willing to give Guestlogix a percentage of the ala carte beverage sales, and how will SkyChefs feel about giving a percentage of their food sales to Guestlogix? Does that mean they will actually provision sufficient quantities of food to offer for sale?

Will US then add a surcharge to each sale made through the Guestlogix device to compensate the percent they will be paying Guestlogix?

I am sure that the company does not plan to pay the FA workforce any additional pay to sell items on the aircraft?

And since the removal of IFEs are coming soon, I am sure all FAs will receive a new announcement booklet of assorted announcements to annoy the flying public?

Time will tell.

Good points, all. Why the FA's allow themselves to denigrate themselves into such servitude without reasonable compensation is beyond me. Believe me, you are not "helping" the company.

 

[SolidCactus]

I'd say get ready for the most logical next step... Your pay gets cut again, BUT in return, you become compensated by a percentage of your sales. I can see the memo now...

US Airways Gives You the Opportunity to Earn up to 50% More Than Your Current Wage...

Beginning XX/XX/XX, your new hourly rate will be decreased by 25%, but you will now have the opportunity to earn a 20% commission on all of your onboard sales! Our customers have requested onboard shopping, and we are pleased to offer our new onboard program.

Imagine how much money you will be making! We will give you the advantage by offering some incredible products for sale, such as Aqua Net Brand Hairspray, Suave Shampoo's and Conditioners, assorted Kraft Products, Ramen Soups (which can be prepared onboard with hot potable water), Scott Tissue Toliet Paper, and twenty different Marcal Paper Products! With items like these, who wouldn't be excited about our new onboard program. You'll earn thousands of dollars in commissions!

To add to the excitement, shortly after roll out of our new program, eBay will be sponsoring our Bid in the Sky program. This will be a completely interactive hour of non stop auctions. Our head flight attendant will offer items donated by our sponsors. Bidding will start at $25 dollars. Customers will ring their call button to place a bid on the item for auction. This new interactive program will be much better than the in flight entertainment systems which we just currently removed. Imagine the fun!

 

[FlyUs]

There will be no more give backs! I'm thinking post 9/11 wages plus 20%.. The max out hourly wage in 1988 was $36.00 an hour.. It's 20 years later and we're not making too much more.. I'll strike over a nickel this time around and I don't care what the price of a barrel of oil is!

 

[aredeeyou22]

There will be no more give backs! I'm thinking post 9/11 wages plus 20%.. The max out hourly wage in 1988 was $36.00 an hour.. It's 20 years later and we're not making too much more.. I'll strike over a nickel this time around and I don't care what the price of a barrel of oil is!

Bingo. And the "trinket" cart and the "broadway ticket" cart can sit next to the empty "meal carts" and empty "oven slots" until we are properly compensated.

 

[nycbusdriver]

For how much commission on sales?

Exactly! That is how this should work. The cabin crew should get a commission on all onboard sales, including beverages. If the company wants to turn these professional safety experts into hucksters, then at least they should be compensated for that effort that is not in line with the real reason they are on board.

 

[aredeeyou22]

Outlaw Bikers have a saying,

A$$, Gas or Grass! Nobody Rides for Free!

If you want people to sell you have to incent them and "Be Glad You Have A Job" is NOT an incentive.

I've no earthly idea what tickets are being sold for what plays, however I'm thinking that by the time all of normal channels of distribution are filled that what is left for US Airways is probably NOT prime seating.

I'm just not seeing a value proposition frankly. I like Broadway plays and for me it's a relatively short drive. But let's say I'm flying a US mainline flight into one of the major airports near NYC and I'm going to be there for a few days. Right off I'm looking at a last minute purchase so if the play is worth watching what is the liklihood I'll be anyplace but in the nosebleed section second or third balcony???

For me being a former Sales Rep and now Trainer I'm loathe to buy ANYTHING on board if the F/A doesn't get a commission. Duty Free I buy everytime when I go to Europe once I found out they got compensated. I did the "Cash Cow" for my credit card on board so the F/A's could make a few bucks after the pay cuts.

I'm not seeing this as a good fit.

We'll just have to wait and see what they come up with for a commission/ compensation. I doubt they are silly enough to think we would hawk baubles sans compensation, while working under a contract that has been gutted three times since 9/11.

Right? :blink: