• Brandweek, Thursday, July 6, 2006 12:30 PM

Southwest Airlines has a distinctive way of letting its customers know about special deals. The carrier sends them special e-mail alerts that arrive with the company's signature bell tone. The program, called DING, was rolled out in 2005, and now has more than 2 million subscribers. Now the company is taking the program a step further by offering a customized service for ten airports that enables consumers to receive information on fare specials. "Our customers love DING!, and have asked us to offer the ability to customize their airport offers sent through the tool," said Anne Murray, Southwest's senior director of online marketing. "We are now offering even better deals on specific flights only available through DING! And yes, this enhancement also will be available for Mac users." The one-to-one connection to a consumer's personal computer enables Southwest to provide fare information, and helps it move distressed inventory--seats that haven't sold through other sales channels such as call centers, travel agents, and southwest.com. Other airlines try to move their distressed inventory through third-party online agencies like Priceline.com or travel consolidators. "What you don't want to do is expose too much inventory to too many people for a long time, or else you will downgrade your own business," said Murray. We have the ability to put our inventory out there for just hours and move it without the risk of downgrading the rest of our inventory."

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