Assertive marketing pays off INTERNATIONAL AIRLINE Marketing (IAM), the Dublin-based cargo GSSA has successfully held overall airfreight traffic levels from Ireland, despite a 15% dip in Irish exports by air. Air exports from Ireland have been slowing for some time due to reductions in output of typical airfreight commodities such as hi-tech goods, and the shift of some manufacturing to countries with lower labour costs. The recent conflict in Iraq, and the Sars epidemic, have further depressed the market, says an IAM spokesman. Some of IAM’s client carriers have been directly affected by these problems, but the overall level of airfreight produced by IAM is on a par with last year due to well-above-average performances with other carriers. SAA is among them. “We have stepped up our sales activity here, and we have been fortunate that many of our client carriers have taken initiatives that have improved their potential in the Irish market,” says managing director, Ian McCool. “We have managed to double traffic for South African Airways in the year since we began representing them, just by more assertive marketing. “There is no escaping the serious underlying trend here in Ireland, and there is little the airfreight industry can do without a renewed drive to attract new industry. In this tough market, what is clear from our exceptional results is that those airlines with their own local presence or a well-established GSSA will be the ones who weather this storm best.”
