I want to run Egyptair!

How many of you have recently flown Egyptair? Probably a lot of my blog readers, I would assume. Other than the airplanes, I do not believe much has changed ever since I took my first flight 23 years ago! To sum it all up, it's still "do you want beef or chicken?" 

Now I am not a very frequent flyer, maybe a flight every 2 to 3 months on average, but given the nature of my destinations and my Gold Star Alliance card that I value more than my credit card, I would 99% consistently fly Egyptair / Star-alliance. 

 I do want to run Egyptair, FOR REAL. Not because I would love the job, but because the turnaround would be just HUGE if someone truly cared to make this one of the best airlines in the world. On my last trip a couple of weeks ago back to Cairo, I couldn't stop thinking on the flight of how so many little things within their entire customer experience would be changed it would drastically impact the business to a completely new level. Don't get me wrong, it's not a small task; after all, this is a huge national carrier with an abundance of bureaucracy, but I am pretty sure if someone was determined enough to make an impact of taking this airline to a new level, it would be done. 

Today I came across this article of the worst 20 airlines in 2019. Here is the link- https://moneyinc.com/worst-airlines-in-the-world/. Egyptair is ranked the number 8 worst airline in the world. I was not surprised. There are just so many issues that it's like a rabbit hole; you just don't know where it ends!

Before I dig down into this, let me just say upfront that the whole point of this blog is not to criticize but to have a constructive discussion on how this airline can simply improve. I understand it's very easy to point out what's wrong rather than fix it, but knowing what's wrong is the first step to formulating a solution. So what's wrong with the airline? How did it reach to being one of the most unfavorable airlines in the world? Well, it's not a thing or two or three! It's the entire operation model, the entire proposition, the entire strategy that really needs to be re-looked into completely from top to bottom.

To establish a common ground to build on and build a fundamental business case, we need to first define Egyptair. What is Egyptair from a marketing proposition? To me, Egyptair is simply an economical airline, or let me say that this is how it is supposed to be given the quality compared to other airlines. 

So that there are certain parameters that this brand should be addressing to be able to compete within those market dynamics.
To make a comprehensive understanding of the situation, I suggest we base it on the simple 4Ps of the brand.   

So let's start with the product, aka the consumer wants and needs.
Actually, this is one of Egyptair's strong points, recently there have been consistent upgrades to most of their major routes with brand new plane models either by Airbus or Boeing, and they seem to be really investing heavily in the flights. But for me as a consumer, the product is way more than just that. I probably wouldn't even notice the airline model type at all, except if it was something extremely impressive that I wanted to note, like the 777.

So what does the consumer really care about? What are the consumer needs and wants that would become part of the decision process when making that purchase decision?   

Number 1: Beverages served. Egyptair never sells alcohol, not on any flight. Now, if you are not a drinker, you wouldn't care less, but if you are someone like me who drinks, it does make a difference, especially on long flights. 

Number 2: The meal, now when it comes to Egyptair, they really truly disappoint. I mean, you can't even begin to describe how bad the food can be, even in the lounge. It has become part of my routine before a flight to pass by TBS to get a couple of sandwiches for the flight. Literally, across my entire flying history, there have been zero improvements in that area. 

Number 3: Flight time and delays, one of the strongest things about Egyptair, in my opinion, again in comparison to other airlines, is the take-off time for most Egyptian flights is at a very convenient time. Most of their flights run from 8 am to 11 am, which is pretty sweet if you ask me. Now in terms of delays, it depends on what airlines you compare it to. American airlines are a shit show. But if you compare it to Lufthansa or Emirates, they might not be as punctual, but overall I believe Egyptair is not really that bad in this aspect. Although Egyptair never seems to communicate that there will be a delay or how long it will last, which is again an easy and simple fix.  

Number 4: This really is the most important, and that is the comfort of the seat. That's an area that I would say Egyptair struggles in. They have the industry average legroom, and the seats are not usually that comfortable (I am basing this on economy seats). On other airlines such as Lufthansa or Emirates, the legroom is 2 to 4 inches more, and the back can easily flex backward more, making it a much more comfortable flying experience. 

I believe these 4 parameters are extremely important when basing the decisions on whether you will fly on a particular airline. Hence, there is a lot of improvement that Egyptair needs to make in those aspects. 


Let's take the second aspect, and that is the Price. Now, this is where Egyptair really blows my mind. To be honest, whatever destination you might look into, Egyptair will, in most cases, I am not saying all the time, be priced higher than every other airline. If you take the Dubai route, Emirates airlines would be cheaper. If we take Paris, Airfrance would be cheaper. If you take New York or Washington DC, United or Lufthansa would be cheaper. It's just not humanely rational to take a more expensive option without any added benefit. I end up booking through United or Lufthansa most of the time as they are cheaper and offer much much better services in comparison. 

Let's talk thirdly about the Place or the convenience of dealing with the airline in this industry. Now, if you need to change your ticket, refund, or change it, it's a total nightmare, ladies and gentlemen. It's like a process of organized chaos. It is the most inconvenient system you could encounter. Unlike other airlines, you can simply go online and just do whatever you want to do with a click of a button. 

Finally, the last aspect is the Promotions, the gives and takes. Here's a true story that will sum this piece up: in 23 years of flying with Egyptair, I have been a gold member of their mileage program (except for the first couple of years). Throughout this entire period, I have never ever been upgraded on any Egyptair flights. Like not a single time, while when I fly United, or Lufthansa or even Emirates, whom I am not even a member of their miles program, I often get upgraded to business. It just again blows my mind cause it's such a nice gesture, it costs the airline absolutely nothing extra as it's based on empty seats available, and the effect of it is amazing when it comes to consumer loyalty. Yet it's never even considered at Egyptair. This is actually funny; just 6 months ago, what they started doing is that they have a sheet of paper with the names of their gold members on it. The stewardess will approach you and tell you that they want to acknowledge that you're a gold member and that if there is anything they can help you with, please let them know!!! I mean, seriously? So you're not going to help the other people and just help me? That's it, you're just acknowledging that I am a Gold member? Thanks, I almost forgot! ..... Just upgrade me, people. Have it in your DNA; it will really make an impact on your customer satisfaction. 

Now, if you ask me, are the above fixable? Very much so. Is it easy to do so? Probably not as simple as it might sound, but simplicity doesn't make you win your consumer. I genuinely believe that this airline could drastically improve given the right amount of planning, commitment, accountability, and execution. The base is good; it just needs a lot of fine-tuning to make this really work. 

Let me know what you think. I would love to know your take about the airline and whether or not it's really fixable. You can either comment on the blog or write me at Shereba@brandmeup.com.

Starting next month, I will pick an industry/brand each month and analyze their current situation and marketing proposition strengths and weaknesses. If you have a suggestion, please shoot me an email. I would love to hear from you. 

Thanks for reading, and have a great day. 

Shereba