Prime Response flies with BA and Priceline

The Internet pricing system priceline.com and British Airways have both turned to Prime Response's Prime Vantage software to help them to manage customer communications, it was announced last week.

Priceline.com will use the software to tailor its services to individual customers. Its website allows consumers to name their own prices for a variety of goods and services, and then presents the prices to sellers who fill as much of the demand as they choose, at price points determined by buyers.

Ron Rose, chief information officer for Priceline.com, explained that the newly released [email protected] (latest version of Prime Vantage) "enables Priceline.com to enhance our customers' experience by personalising the Priceline.com service to meet their particular needs, regardless of what they're looking for." He gave the example of customers purchasing airline tickets for leisure purposes being informed as to the availability of 'name-your-price' hotel rooms in the city they are visiting.

BA will use the marketing automation software to manage all global customer communications through multiple channels such as mail, call centres, and the Internet, from information held on its new single global database of five million customers, called Ocean Wave. The company has invested several million pounds to date in Prime Vantage and the Ocean Wave database.

Rob Thorne, Senior Manager of Customer Databases at BA said: "Ocean Wave captures data at every step of a customer's journey -- when they fly, hire a car, book a hotel room, or arrange onward travel bookings. Prime Vantage leverages this data to enable British Airways to build personal relationships with these customers and to proactively offer products and services that match their individual profile."

The [email protected] software is a Web-based, multi-channel marketing automation solution which integrates e-mail and the Web with traditional marketing channels such as direct mail and call centres. To date, five million-plus BA customer records are in the operational customer database and available for Prime Vantage marketing campaigns.

"BA is leading the customer relationship marketing revolution in the travel industry, placing the customer at the core of its business." said Allan Swann, international senior vice-president of Prime Response. "Only through marketing automation can this be achieved and the eventual goal of one-to-one marketing realised."

Swann also expressed pleasure in  Priceline.com's decision to use its software, stating: "We are excited to have Priceline.com as an early adopter of our new marketing automation solution."