Introduction

By

Arinda Jayawardena

What is E-Commerce
Electronic commerce, commonly known as e-commerce, consists of the buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems such as the Internet and other computer networks.
Electronic commerce is generally considered to be the sales aspect of e-business. It also consists of the exchange of data to facilitate the financing and payment aspects of the business transactions. Electronic commerce that is mostly conducted between businesses and consumers, on the other hand, is referred to as business-to-consumer or B2C. This is the type of electronic commerce conducted by companies such as Virgin Atlantic

What is Business-to-Consumer or B2C

B2C describes activities of businesses serving end consumers with products and / or services.

Company

Virgin Group
Virgin, a leading branded venture capital organisation, is one of the world's most recognised and respected brands. Conceived in 1970 by Sir Richard Branson Virgin has created more than 200 branded companies worldwide Employing approximately 50,000 people, in 29 countries Revenues around the world in 2006 exceeded US$20 billion

Virgin Group

Virgin Atlantic

Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. (operating as Virgin Atlantic) is a British airline

Virgin Atlantic is a biggest subsidiary of Virgin Group

Virgin Atlantic Airways has become Britains second largest carrier serving the worlds major cities. Now based at Londons Gatwick and Heathrow airports and Manchester airport, it operates long haul services to thirty destinations world-wide as far apart as Las Vegas and Shanghai.

Company Profile
Founded Commenced operations Hubs London Gatwick Airport Focus cities Frequent flyer program Member lounge Fleet size Destinations Parent company Headquarters Key people Manchester Airport Flying Club Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse 38 30 Virgin Group Crawley, England, UK Richard Branson (President) Stephen Murphy (Chairman) Steve Ridgway (CEO ) 1984 22 June 1984 London Heathrow Airport

Company Profile

Owned by Richard Branson's Virgin Group (51%) and Singapore Airlines (49%)
Virgin Atlantic is 51% owned by the Virgin Group and 49% owned by Singapore Airlines. On 20 December 1999 Richard Branson signed an agreement to sell a 49% stake of Virgin Atlantic to Singapore Airlines to form a unique global partnership. The cost of the transaction to Singapore Airlines was 600.25 million, which included a capital injection of 49 million and valued Virgin Atlantic at a minimum of 1.225billion. The deal was finalised in early 2000.

Company Profile

Operates long-haul routes between the United Kingdom and North America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia
Virgin Atlantics thirty routes worldwide are broken down as follows: 10 routes to the US 6 Asia Pacific routes 4 African routes 1 Indian Ocean route 1 route to the Middle East 8 Caribbean destinations

Company Profile
Aircraft Orders and Fleet
Virgin Atlantic currently has a fleet of 38 aircraft :

Current Airbus A 340 A 300 Airbus A 340 600 6 19

Firm Orders

Airbus A 380
Boeing 747 400 Boeing 787 9 13

15

Company Profile
Recent Financial

Year
PAX NO (cal year) TURNOVER PROFIT

2004
4.3m 1272m 20.9m

2005
4.4m 1630m 20.1m

2006
4.6m 1912m 41.6m

2007
5.1m 2140m 46.8m

2008
5.7m 2336m 60.9m

Richard Branson

Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate He is the 245th richest person according to Forbes' 2008 list of billionaires as he has an estimated net worth of approximately $2.8 billion

Richard Branson

Mission Statement
Virgin Atlantic, mission statement is simple...

To grow a profitable airline...

Where people love to fly...

And where people love to work.

Corporate Management

Corporate Management

Corporate Management

Strengths
Differentiation based on value, service, and price

Universal appeal to wide variety of customers

Established and highly - recognizable brand image

Innovative features that distinguish the company name Talented management team (eg: Branson) Strong, well - designed organizational structure

Weaknesses

Some underdeveloped channels (eg: Premium Economy) Underdeveloped distribution system Marketing primarily focused on London market Ineffective utilization of alliances and partnerships

Customer Ratings

Flight Inside

E Commerce Strategies & Design of the Web Site

By

Kasun Nanayakkara

E Commerce Strategies
Steering On-line Traffic.
Negotiation of links with other sites. (Travel and holiday websites) Search engine placement. On-line branding web banners etc. On line promotions

E Commerce Strategies

E Commerce Strategies
Providing On line Product Information Flights Schedules Flight bookings (e-ticketing) On line check in What's on board (entertainment, food, etc) Fares Hotels Vacations Loyalty credit cards

E Commerce Strategies
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Targeted promotions. Preferred Seats, meals, entertainment. Loyalty program - Flying Club Customer feedback

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Flight Times Flight Status Flight Schedules

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Book flights

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Book Vacation Flight Hotel

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Book Hotels, Cars and Extras (Rail, and Sightseeing Tours)

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Manage Flights Seat selection Meal selection Frequent Flyer details Advance Passenger Information

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools Easy, Time saving check-in process - Online Check In (from home via www) - Kiosk Check In (At airports using credit card) - Twilight Check In (check in at Gatwick and save time) - Check In Chill Out (checking from Caribbean from the hotel) - Disney Check In (spend more time at Disney world) - Hong Kong Downtown Check In (check in from air port express trains)

E Commerce Strategies
E Commerce Tools On board purchasing via credit card - You can order fresh food when you want it, from the screen at your seat. - Red, our in-flight entertainment system, has over 25 payper-view Hollywood movies on demand. - On board calls, merchandise.

Design of the Web Site

Evaluation Criteria

Design, creativity and user friendliness

Information and Content up to date

Transaction Security / Data Privacy

Performance

Encourage Repeat purchase / Re - Visit

Design of the Web Site

Evaluation Criteria Design, creativity and user friendliness

Design of the Web Site

Evaluation Criteria Information and Content up to date Web site is informative on flight details and bookings. Detailed information available on entertainment options. Insufficient information on hotels, sight seeing etc. Fares are up to date and currency conversion tools, fare break down etc is available.

Design of the Web Site

Evaluation Criteria
Transaction Security / Data Privacy Secure server software (SSL) which is the industry standard and among the best software available today for secure commerce transactions. SSL encrypts all of your personal information, including credit card number, name, and address, so that it cannot be read as the information travels over the Internet. SSL is used at virgin Atlantic Customer data privacy - Privacy policy in place. Performance Speed of transactions. Payment gateway performance

Design of the Web Site

Evaluation Criteria
Encourage Repeat purchase / Re Visit On line discount coupons for redemption. E-mail alerts for registered users. Transaction history and targeted promotions.

Online Branding

By

Shashikala Jayasinghe

Key Dimensions of Brand Equity

Brand reputation Value and Personality of the brand Benefits delivered by the brand Brand Leadership

In his own words.

"At Virgin, we have a strategy of using the credibility of our brand to challenge the dominant players in a range of industries where we believe the consumer is not getting value for money.."

Strengths of the brand

Highly respected and globally recognized

Right product, quality and reliability Superior product performance vs. Competitors Possesses a distinctive, fun-loving and innovative brand

Web Perspective

Leader in Online Travel agency Providing information on every aspect to the customer Customer needs are understood

Brand Value

Virgin Atlantic was awarded the World Business Superbrands Award for the brand most perceived to keep its promises

More Awards

Strategies to build the brand

Brand strength intensified through customer loyalty

Provides the cheapest flights on the web without compromising on comfort Richard Bransons entrepreneurial attitude and his fearless reputation Relentless fight against monopoly

 $3bn to fight global warming, including all profits from his travel firms including airline Virgin Atlantic

The funds pledged will be invested in renewable energy development

Interesting Fact

Branson offered British Premier John Major a Virgin aircraft to get out hostages during the Gulf War

Thank you