Group Case Study: Jetblue Airlines

In this essay, the author

• Explains that customer service is jetblue's opportunity as well as its strength. without a strategy, the initial success resulting from its commitment to exceeding customer expectations is in jeopardy.
• Opines that jetblue should continue to build customer trust while increasing brand recognition as a way to sustain and increase profits.
• Analyzes how jetblue focused on expansion during its initial success. profits realized at this time were used to acquire a larger fleet, expand routes, enlarge staff, and increase terminal space.

• Explains that customer service is jetblue's opportunity as well as its strength. without a strategy, the initial success resulting from its commitment to exceeding customer expectations is in jeopardy.
• Opines that jetblue should continue to build customer trust while increasing brand recognition as a way to sustain and increase profits.
• Analyzes how jetblue focused on expansion during its initial success. profits realized at this time were used to acquire a larger fleet, expand routes, enlarge staff, and increase terminal space.
• Proposes an alternate strategy for jetblue to return to profitability by expanding its services to latin america and the caribbean.
• Explains the advantages of expanding to the caribbean and latin american cities, including a low operating cost, high aircraft utilization, and low distribution costs.
• Opines that adding additional destinations to the caribbean and latin america will cause higher operating costs due to increased aircraft utilization.
• Opines that expanding to an underserved market where americans want to go to vacation can mean big profits for the company.
• Explains the threat of additional destinations is the price and availability of fuel in the caribbean and latin america. the increased costs of operating outside the country may reduce the company’s profit margin.
• Explains that jetblue was a small fish in the big pond when they launched. they set themselves apart from their larger competitors by advertising themselves as low cost carriers and value players.
• Explains that partnering with a larger airline would provide jetblue with several key strengths, such as flight destination options, and the option to upgrade to business or first-class style seating.
• Analyzes jetblue's potential weaknesses, such as having to pay commissions to whoever they were to merge with, and dissatisfied customers who were once loyal to the original model.
• Explains that jetblue can overcome these potential weaknesses in a couple ways. they can market themselves as the "underdog" and offer the same flights, but with the additional option of partnered flights.
• Explains that jetblue has experienced rapid expansion since they began business in 1999, but as obstacles came into play, their inefficiencies shined through.
• Opines that jetblue should partner with a major airline carrier to raise their profit.
• Explains that jetblue relies on their superior, high-quality customer service and their ability to offer lower fares. reduced operating costs through minimizing the need for large operating facilities and equipment, increasing efficiency, and low turnover rates contribute to a high level of employee satisfaction.
• Explains jetblue's decision to invest in luxurious aircraft, such as leather seats, uncommon legroom, and satellite tv at every seat. their belief in word-of-mouth advertising saves millions of dollars which other companies generally spend.
• Explains that jet blue's rapid expansion is its biggest internal weakness. the ice storm in 2007 made it clear that the communication and reservation system were seriously flawed.
• Describes jet blue's opportunities, such as coordinating flights with a major airline, reducing costs associated with advertising, and promoting low ticket prices.
• Explains that the instability of fuel costs is a constant threat to jet blue and the entire industry. independently owned lccs and new branches created by major airlines continue to enter into direct competition.
• Explains that jet blue airlines started offering products and services in 1999, with 24 channels of satellite television at every seat.
• Describes jet blue's partner airlines, including aer lingus, air china, asiana airlines, british airways, cape air, cathay pacific, china airlines and many more.
• Explains jet blue's true blue program, which is similar to delta sky miles and rewards customers for flying with the airline or its participating partners.
• Explains that jet blue offers free entertainment on board, complimentary beverages and snacks during flight services, and free checked baggage.
• Explains that jetblue's minimalist marketing strategy focused on providing an excellent service at a reasonable price rather than spending millions upon millions on large marketing budgets.
• Explains that jetblue, like most companies, didn't have an enormous budget to produce incredible marketing results. they needed to seek minimalist, creative ways of marketing themselves to a broader base of consumers.
• Explains how jetblue focused more on word-of-mouth advertising in the beginning. they believed that if they spent the money up-front on providing an exceptional flying experience, a ripple effect would begin.
• Explains that jetblue never went all-out with their marketing. they believed that by providing an excellent experience, they would not have to overspend on risky, potentially meaningless marketing campaigns.
• Explains that jetblue entered their market with the intent to be immediate innovators and set themselves apart from the other competition. after a few years, they shifted to defender strategy.
• Explains jetblue's success and financial turmoil after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. the airline acquired livetv, a company that maintains their in-flight satellite tv channels, and launched trueblue.
• Explains that jetblue's net income dropped from $19.54 million to $2.3 million, which contributed to the rise in fuel prices. the financial turmoil continued into 2006.
• Explains that jetblue airways hoped that higher revenues and lower costs would help it achieve savings of around $70 million by the end of 2007. they did not lay anyone off or furlough employees; they cut crew members’ hours and coo barger cut his base pay from $500,000 to $250,000 in 2008.
• Explains that jetblue is considered prospectors within miles and snow’s cellular organization model. they made their entrance utilizing market opportunities and have focused on product innovations such as interviewdirect to expedite the hiring process.
• Analyzes how jetblue offered flexible scheduling to increase employee satisfaction and eliminate excess space for call centers. the at-home reservation agents were effective in increasing customer service and satisfaction, but the overall database management system lacking cohesiveness.
• Explains that jetblue airways' administration saw changes as a result of its faltering operations. they hired chief operations officer russell chew and replaced former ceo david neeleman with david barger, also president.
• Concludes that jetblue shines above other lcc’s and major carriers because of their drive and focus on customer satisfaction.
• Explains that jetblue airlines was founded in 1999 by david neeleman and was considered a ‘value player’ due to its combination of value-added services and low fares. their strategy was to use new airplanes with leather seats, an uncommon amount of legroom, and free satellite tv at every seat.
• Explains how jetblue's success in the early years began to slip when their focus on expansion and future profits stretched the company’s operations so thin that cracks appeared, even before the ice storm led to the breakdown in 2007.
• Explains that jetblue's faltering operations led them to reorganize their management, which signified a change in strategy and rallied the shareholders.
• Analyzes the management of jetblue from its founding until the major breakdown of operations in 2007. neeleman ran the company as a ‘question mark’ with high upfront costs to bring in higher profits later on.
• Analyzes how jetblue delayed cancellations leaving hundreds of passengers stranded at the airports. the storm led to about 1,000 canceled flights in five days.
• Explains how jetblue moved from a ‘question mark’ approach to'star' approach, developing customer bill of rights while improving technology and operations.
• Explains that jetblue was one of the most profitable low-cost carriers operating in the u.s.
• Explains that jetblue operated minimal flights in the northeast, west coast, and florida, avoiding congested airports and direct flights, which kept customers happy and added to their profits.
• Explains jetblue's strategy to use new airplanes with leather seats, an uncommon amount of legroom, free satellite tv at every seat, leverage technology to reduce "paper" work and employee workforce, and offer top-notch personal service.
• Explains that jetblue is one of the leading airlines to use social media to interact with their customers.
• Explains that jet blue is blue ribbon service when traveling, american consumer news, retrieved april 22, 2014.
• Explains that jetblue's c.e.o. is 'mortified' after fliers are stranded.
• Explains jetblue sees an opportunity to mine fort lauderdale as spiritturns its attention elsewhere.
• Explains that jetblue's management meltdown has been cited by cio insight.
• Explains that jetblue knows how to communicate with customers in social, and when to shut.
• Cites gunther, m. (2009, september 3). nothing blue about jetblue. cnnmoney.
• Explains that jetblue airways annual report (2006) is available from http://investor.jetblue.com/phoenix.zhtml. jet blue airways: true blue (2014).
• Describes the jetblue investor relations press release, which was released on march 7, 2007.
• Analyzes how jetblue airways' vp marketing reveals her five budgetmarketing lessons.
• Cites true blue rocketmiles, retrieved on april 22, 2014. calling jetblue. fast company.