Easy Jet Plc

Easy Jet PLC was founded in 1995 and is based at London Luton Airport. It is Europe’s
leading low-cost airline operating on over 800 routes across more than 30 countries with our
fleet of over 240 Airbus aircraft (easy jet, 2012). The company has a workforce of 10,000
employees consisting of 5, 000 cabin crew and more than 2,300 pilots. The airline flies more
than 70 million passengers annually (easy jet, 2012). The airline aims at providing customers
with safe, good value, point-to-point air services around Europe and North Africa.
External and Internal Environment
The external environment consists of factors or events that appear outside the airline and
are not within the control of the management. These factors are highly unpredictable and often
pose threats to the company’s operations. The external environment can be analyzed using
Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, Legal (PESTEL) analysis as a
strategic planning tool (Ho, 2014).
Political factors affect a company through government regulations such as changes in tax
policies and tariffs, terrorism activities and political instability. Political factors may have both
negative and positive impacts on the airline. For instance, an enlargement of Eastern Europe may
increase the carrier’s access to new markets. On the other hand, terrorist activities pose threats to
the operations of the company. For instance, the 2005 terror attack happened in London had a
direct impact on the profitability of the enterprise due to flights suspension and travel advisories
are given by other countries against visiting the country (Ho, 2014). Political instability may
force the airline to alter route plans thus causing logistical problems.
The economic, environmental factors pose adverse threats to the airline. The extended
economic recession, high inflation rates and fluctuations in oil prices have effects on the

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operations and profitability of Easy Jet. An increase in the price of air crafts also affects the
airline company. For instance, the company uses Airbus crafts and in 2013, the price of A320neo
planes rose by 6.1% and 3.9% for other air crafts (Airbus, 2012). Socio-cultural factors such as
lifestyle and demographics also impact on the airline’s business. For example, the company may
lose customers if they decide to hike prices to counter the inflation rates because their clientele is
accustomed to low prices. In 2012, the number of business travelers increased while that of
holiday travelers declined (Easy jet, 2012). The technological advancements brought about by
new engine technology require the company to roll over its fleet to realize increased fuel
efficiencies. The legal factors favor the airline in that; there are no limitations to fly beyond
Europe, and there is minimal resistance to airline merger approvals.
The internal environment consists of factors that occur within the airline and are controllable by
the management. These elements include competitors, suppliers, customers and the public. The
major suppliers for easy jet are Boeing and Airbus while the major competitor in Europe is The
British Airways. However, there are other low-cost airlines targeting the European market such
as Ryan Air and Air Berlin. The internal environment can be analyzed using Michael Porters
five-force model (Dobbs, 2014). The forces include;The power of buyers: the Easy jet airline has
buyers of the single flyers category since it does not allow for market intermediaries such as
travel agents. Buyer power plays a key role in a price sensitive market. The airline’s competitive
focus is low cost thus buyers have strong power in deciding with which airline they should fly.
Easy jet uses scheduling and low costs to attract its customers.
The threat of new entrants: The threat is very minimal in the airline industry since the capital
required to invest in it is very high. Easy jet can utilize its large capital base to retaliate against
new entrants.

EASY JET PLC
The threat of substitute services: The threat of substitutes in the airline industry is medium. The
airline can handle the threat due to the switching costs associated with alternatives.
Rivalry among existing players: Easy jet faces intense competition since the aviation sector is
sluggish and appears to be in the mature stage. The competition is stiff and competitors remain
the same due to the difficulties associated with exiting the market.
Bargaining power of suppliers: The providers in the airline industry are Boeing and Airbus and
both of them supply Easy jet with air crafts. The bargaining power of suppliers is of minimal
threat to the carrier because the company has long-term contracts with the providers and
switching costs are high.
POSITIONING
Easy jet positions itself as the low-cost airline thus gaining competitive advantage. The airline’s
image of low-budget and no frills services offers a simple but strong brand and price strategies.
The airline also uses its corporate color to distinguish from other competitors and advertises
mainly on the company website to minimize marketing costs. Unlike Ryan Air, Easy Jets makes
departures from major airports thus increasing the clientele range due to better accessibility and
infrastructure. The airline also uses new modern air crafts that require little maintenance and
conducts sales activities online. The airline uses a combination of low-cost fares along with high-
frequency service and a vast network of routes.
MARKETING OBJECTIVES
There are suitable marketing objectives that Easy Jet can use to accelerate growth in the UK such
as;

EASY JET PLC
Enter new markets: Easy Jet can continue the airline’s growth in the UK by increasing the
number of countries into which they fly. This objective helps to grow market share, sales
revenue and ultimately profitability.
Maintain competitive advantage: The airline can keep a competitive edge by efficient high asset
utilization, enhancing a cost advantage against other players and increasing the market share
significantly. For easy Jet to keep or gain larger market share, the airline should try to co-operate
with other Easy businesses such as Easy Car, to offer pacts for cab transport services to airports,
and Easy Finance, who can probably provide 0% interest loans for flights.
Building Brand Awareness: The airline can increase growth by creating and building brand
awareness in markets that generate minimum sales revenue. The airline can build alliances with
transatlantic operators, for example, to provide connections with Easy Jet flights. This would
help to foster a desirable relationship with more transatlantic operators, which could help Easy
Jet to build more awareness within potential customers and more routes.
The airline should operate actual offices, perhaps in airports, so as to attract the range of clients
who dislike using credit cards on the internet. This would improve the efficiency of operations
in some countries thus increasing the performance and profitability of the airline. The company
should look to move into newer mediums for advertising, primarily using television broadcasting
and also consider developing the levels of efficiency and motivation within their extensive
workforce network so as to influence the productivity and morale of employees positively.
MARKETING MIX
Product

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Product is the main aspect of the marketing mix elements and is anything tangible or
intangible provided in the exchange of an idea, service or good (Armstrong , 2014). Easy jet
offers a variety of service products tailored for different market segments. They include;
scheduled airline services, in-flight services, car hire, hotel rooms and online reservations. It
offers just the actual service product and does not use the augmentation strategy. The service
products offer dedication to customers electronically by being available online. The service
products provided by the carrier are of high quality and are available in high safety conditions.
Easy jet can improve their products by using the augmentation strategy. For instance, the airline
can augment the scheduled air services by offering a different class of seats such as business
class as opposed to the current mono class. The airline can provide last minute deals under the
single pricing strategy.
PLACE
Place also known as distribution refers to the approach in which the service products are
availed to the customers (Khan, 2014). Most of the services are offered online in that the flight
tickets and hotel reservations are purchased online thus, the target market is online clients who
value low-cost flights. Online selling allows the airline to attend to the needs of different
customers individually. Selling online also increases the air carrier’s audience and reach. The
company’s website has more than 1 million visits a day. The airline also has a mobile App that
avails boarding cards and generates 5% of the sales. Online selling allows customers to access
the services at any time of day.
PRICE

EASY JET PLC
Price refers to the monetary value of the services offered by the airline. The airline
utilizes a low pricing strategy, which allows for large profit margins due to high levels of repeat
business (Dombrowski et al, 2014). The prices are competitive and in line with the company’s
focus on cost differentiation. The major contributing factor to the price charged by the airline is
fuel cost. The company can offer services at low prices by minimizing operating costs and
cutting out market intermediaries. The airline does not provide free foods or drinks thus reducing
costs. The travelers boarding passes are accessible online, and this helps to eliminate printing
costs. The prices can be changed rapidly depending on different variables such as time and type
of travel. The use of yield management allows the company to charge at different price
sensitivities Armstrong, 2014). The airline uses a penetration and competitor based pricing
strategy and aims to be the cheapest airline. Penetration pricing allows the carrier to penetrate
easily into new markets.

PROMOTION
Promotion refers to the modes of communication used by the company to communicate
to the customers and market at large (Rachet, 2014). Easy jet carries out most promotional
activities on the company’s website thus reducing marketing costs incurred in media
advertisements. The company uses targeted campaigns to reach different market segments.
Business travelers are the key market segment for the airline. The airline also advertises through
internet banners, Facebook page, Twitter account and billboards. The strategy works out for the
airline since all customers have to access the website to purchase the service products. The

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airline also engages in publicity and sales promotion activities as a way of marketing the
company with the aim of generating more sales.
RECCOMENDATIONS
The airline’s strategy of having a faster turn-around time and moderate landing charges
with all airports, allowed easy Jet to gain a bigger market share when it comes to business
travelers. However, it is advisable that Easy Jet should focus on targeting the leisure travelers
segment since business travelers often demand recurrent flights to a wide range of destinations,
in which they seek quality service, frequent flyer programs and are willing to pay a premium for
these benefits. Easy Jets’ pricing strategy with the use of diverse fare prices has also helped the
organization gain competitive advantage, which also gave easy Jet a higher market share.
However, failure to operate physical offices in different countries while relying on customers to
make flight bookings online through the internet and mobile app resulted in Easy Jet’s loss of a
high number of clients who do not trust giving their credit card details.
EXTENDED MARKETING MIX ELEMENT
Physical evidence
Physical evidence refers to the place where the service product is offered (Yoo et al,
2000). In the case of easy jet, physical evidence relates to the airports and air crafts used to
deliver the services. The airline operates through major airports in London, Edinburgh, and
Bristol. Although Easy Jet transactions are mainly based online, booking activities are still
carried out in the airports. Easy Jet has in the previous few months been physically advertising in
Sainsbury’s stores through uniformed staff members promoting their new partnership. The
airline has online aspects such as “security icon” and policies in place which gives consumers a

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sense of security when booking online. The airline has one class of seating with minimal free
space per passenger so as to increase the plane capacity.