BCD Travel consultancy group Advito has developed an airfare prediction tool to help clients negotiate with airlines and manage policy. Advito built Air Predictor with airline business intelligence firm Air Cube and has been testing it with pilot clients since early August. The tool collects and analyzes airfares six months into the future.
The data breaks the fares into four components—base fare, surcharges, taxes and booking class availability—to provide a comprehensive view of why overall costs go up or down, said Advito global air practice leader and senior director Olivier Benoit. "It's been an industry challenge to find a way to get this kind of intelligence," he said. "Today, you could go into a [global distribution system] or online booking tool and make hundreds of queries, but that's a very cumbersome process."
With that data, Advito can better analyze potential airline partners during negotiations, Benoit said. For example, one carrier might offer a more attractive discount than another, but if the tool shows that the better discount will be less available in the future, the carrier with the smaller discount might be the better choice.
Additionally, Advito can use the tool to fine-tune a client's travel policy, particularly advance purchase requirements, Benoit said. If a client requires travelers to book long-haul flights 21 days in advance and seven days ahead for short-haul flights, for instance, Advito can look at the data for those policies on key routes to determine whether Asia flights and Europe flights merit differing requirements.
The data also can help companies plan events, such as selecting a region or the timing that has the best fares, Benoit said. "They can decide whether they are going to make their convention in the U.S., Mexico or Europe or know whether they need to do it in May or June," he said.
For now, Advito has not designed Air Predictor to be a self-service dashboard, though it might eventually give clients direct access to the data, Benoit said. Rather, the tool is meant to help the firm's analysts and consultants serve clients. "Our goal is not to overload travel buyers, who are already pretty busy, with more data points," he said. "Consultants and analysts are gathering this data and know where they need to look to give actionable insights."
Advito is integrating the data with its Dynamic Performance Management and Traveler Engagement services. Applying the data for a client's top markets will be part of its standard service, according to Benoit. Clients who want more extensive data—analyzing 50 or 100 markets, for example—will pay a premium.