Air Charter Broker Business Questions

[J32/41]

I am in the process of starting an Air Charter Broker Company just wondered where is the best place to advertise?

Also is there anything in that Industry that people feel could be improved on etc.

Any tips would be very welcome.

Thanks
R.M.A

[TiroP]

Be prepared for some very stiff competition from the established players. And if you attempt to poach operators' existing clients you'll be out on your ear sooner than you can scratch it.

But there is always scope to foster and develop new business. That's the way to do it.

And remember, service is EVERYTHING. Your average punter is far less concerned with price than with quality. Stick with the larger established operators. They have reputations to maintain, better back-up capability, 24-hour ops support and, usually, a choice of aircraft which can offer a variety of range/payload options.

Good luck

TP

[Daifly]

Certainly be prepared for a good fight! The big(ger) boys out there are doing a mighty fine job of bringing the clients into the market and keeping them (bear in mind they have some scope to undercut you if they need to and as a startup outfit that can bring the end about very quickly).

Your best bet would be to build the business around a couple of decent clients to begin with (running in parallel with whatever you are currently doing if possible) and then once you are confident with what you're doing move it up a gear and go full time.

I can't count the number of new brokers that we see every year start up and close down on one hand, there are simply too many! It seems to be a brilliant idea for so many people but the reason the big boys are so good at it is that they know the market really really well and understand that it's not a get rich quick scheme (well, that is Aviation in general really!).

So, if you want to be a broker, do your research first, know your aircraft types, know what operators have what and generally know the industry. Us operators will generally be happy to help you with advice and support, but do learn from what we tell you - there is nothing worse, or more demoralising, for us than to have a "crap quote" keep coming in from a broker who doesn't really have a concept of what they're after and how stupid it makes them look.

The one that always springs to mind was a helicopter transfer from Heathrow to Staines - by the time you've dealt with Heathrow airside transfers it's just not worth it. After that well, asking us for prices on aircraft types we've not operated in 5 years, asking us for quotes on aircraft out of airports that PA28's struggle with, making us do the broker's work by saying things like "the nearest airport to 129 Acacia Avenue, Liverpool Airport Road, Liverpool". If you're a good broker you'll know what aircraft type you're pitching it at and therefore will have a good idea of what airports you can use. If you ask us to do your work every time I'd put money on us being stupid too and suggesting Manchester! Also, really get to know what your client wants and assess how much they want to pay; there is nothing more frustrating for us than being asked to quote, say, Manchester - Faro on every type in the fleet. Use the experience you gain in the beginning and then you can do the dead wood sorting at a very early stage before calling us for prices which you, and we, will know are wasting our collective times.

As operators I'd like to think that we're all a really good, helpful bunch and will be happy to offer you as much help and advice as you need, but we're not going to do your job for you if you don't seem to learn from the advice we provide!

Sorry if I've drivelled on for a bit there or if it's incoherent!

And, good luck!!

[trainer too 2]

Brokers are a dying breed. Companies like NetJets, LEA and Goldair omong others are making an effort to go direct and offer the same but usually better service as they know what they are talking about.

Customers are learning the tricks of the trade as well and use for instance charterX themselves to get the aircraft direct and it works. So no dream fees anymore just lower margins and less interest fromthe proper operators as they will try to go direct.....