Originally Posted by
elgringito
Maybe you missed my earlier post? If JetBlue charged $10 MORE per seat than the legacy carriers or Southwest, do you honestly believe the average travelling passenger would book JetBlue? I don't.
Air travel is considered a commodity, a hotel room is not. If faced with a TravelLodge or a Hilton at $50 more, unless I knew the TravelLodge I will opt for the Hilton with no hesitation. I am going to spend the night there, but do not want an outside entrance or a hotel with suspect quality standards. An airline seat for a few hours, in a secure environment does not compare.
Perhaps the airlines are subject to a herd mentality, but Bethune at Continental scoffed at American's more room in coach, saving Continental millions in plane conversion and then reconversion. The CEO that tries this again would be a fool.
I disagree. There are lots of people who will happily pay $10 more for JetBlue, because they know that they'll get a decent seat with its own TV. JetBlue has made an effort to differentiate themselves in this way from most other airlines, many customers know that, and are willing to pay a little extra for it.
The problem other carriers have with this IMO is not that it's not possible. It's that they haven't really made a sustained commitment to differentiate themselves on service. It takes time: they have to do things better for long enough for people to notice.
But the idea that folks won't pay more for better service is wrong in general. How many infrequent fliers have you met who "won't fly XX airline" because of some bad experience, or who "like YY airline." for whatever reason?
Of course this isn't true for everyone, and different people value different things. I, for example, will never pay more for a better hotel room -- I'll book the cheapest place that has a bed and a shower. But it's true for many.