Trick to improve train journeys and increase profits - marketing genius explains

Rory Sutherland explains how train companies can improve customer journeys and experience, whilst improving capacity and revenue.

Sutherland is a marketing and advertising expert and regarded as such.

#business #marketing #finance #advertising

[frankupton]

Oh Rory, Rory don't expect a rail operator to behave intelligently.

[Roof_Pizza]

one airline did this for me once tho I think there was no upcharge. It makes perfect sense and that is why it's rarely done.

[CraigJSY]

Who is this guy? Every day I log on here he's yapping pure sense at me!

[tito_music]

This blows my mind. Over here you buy a ticket in advance for the journey between two stations. It doesn't matter what time you arrive you have a valid ticket for the journey between those two stations.

[John-zhud]

Rory, trust me, they know how to handle captive people to boost revenues.

[ForburyLion]

GWR staff are really customer focused, they've allowed me to catch earlier trains or even later trains at no extra charge when there was capacity. This generates goodwill with the customer that's probably worth more than the admin fee they could have asked for to make the change official.

[yahyad]

Just to explain. He is talking a particular type of ticket called 'Advance' in the UK. These are the cheapest tickets you can buy because they're for a specific time. There are many other types of tickets available which allow for flexibility of travelling at different times.

[ConorDrew]

Been to Oslo and recent Prague, and their transport is 2nd to none.
Prague you buy a ticket which is time based I.e 24 hours, it is only activated when you scan it on a bus / tram, and then it’s valid for 24 hours. You just get on / off any tram, bus, train where ever you want and it just works.

[stuartjohnston]

Sometimes, common sense does prevail. I was traveling London to Carlisle, with a change at Birmingham. An earlier incident had created 2+ hour delays from Birmingham northward. Our train was 2hrs 30mins away, but the earlier train was still at the platform. They were over 2 hours late also but departing in 10 mins. Had a chat with the conductor, showed him our tickets, no problem he said, sit in unreserved seats, on you go.

[jimbyles]

I live in Slovakia and this is pretty much how the trains work you pay for your ticket and then you pay an extra euro for a seat and if you want to change the time you pay an extra euro

[Piercy]

A rare ongratulations to ferry companies that do this. On several occasions I've gone on an early ferry, because I was early. No fees no fuss. They're just making capacity in the later ferries... Win win .

[steve]

The problem is the earlier train was a peak train and the ticket cost twice as much, people start buying cheaper later tickets but turning up early and only paying £5 to go earlier, or they avoid paying for a flexible ticket because that is way more and just pay the £5 when they get there... The logic makes sense as long as you don't have all the information.

[Pengochan]

The thing is: They want to upcharge you for the convenience of flexibility. That's the "it costs a million pounds" part.
They already have the convenient solution, but they want customers to pay extra for that.

[pippagrey]

Back in the '80s I was flying from Europe to the US and had a connecting flight to catch in Boston. We got in early and when I got to the connecting airline terminal, they were perfectly happy to put me on the earlier flight which had an open seat with no extra charges, and even try to get my luggage on the earlier flight (otherwise it would go on the scheduled one). As it was, my luggage got off the plane at my final destination before I did, and I got in two hours earlier than initially planned, which with the jet lag involved was a Good Thing. I've always appreciated those folks at Bar Harbor Airlines.

[GTK-]

Finally a video where he speaks sense. This was a good one!

[effdiffeyeno]

Britain here. We need to nationalise our travel, power and civil infrastructure. I suggest we get Rory to help.

In Tank Tolman's words: Send an invite to the longship!

[jollyjohnston]

That doesn’t work in an open rail network, where you can show up with an open ticket and board. Yes it would, but only if we had compulsory reservations on all services.

[edeledeledel]

Years ago (1969) I used to regularly travel from London Euston to Nuneaton, on the first cheap train, about 5:30 pm. Everybody used to arrive early, because it was always crowded, and occasionally, when the queue for the gate was threatening to block the whole of the Euston Station concourse, they used make an announcement people could also travel on the (more expensive) earlier train; the start of the London marathon has nothing on the ensuing scuffle to get to the different gate to catch the earlier train.

[JR-bjuf]

It will never work because I am guessing that the bureaucracy will have no idea what you are talking about.

[josephradley]

Had something like this work for me when I lived in Sydney.
I had planned to fly to Melbourne after work on a Friday. I got to knock off from work several hours earlier than planned. When I got home I called the airline I was on and asked what my chances were of an earlier flight. The quite helpful lady at the call centre asked if I could be at the airport by a certain time, a quick check of train timetables showed that I could, so she booked me onto an earlier flight that was cheaper by exactly the same cost as the fee to change my booking.