Why you should care about NDC – and what your TMC’s ‘NDC-readiness’ is costing your business

3-minute read

Why you should care about NDC – and what your TMC’s ‘readiness’ is costing your business

NDC is no longer a ‘new’ airline content distribution capability, despite ongoing discussions about NDC-readiness.

This recurring dialogue echoes the myth that airlines and travel management companies (TMCs) are not yet ready to embrace NDC – while the truth is quite different; Qantas’ NDC content is ready to book, and has been for some time.

At CT Connections, we’re already booking Qantas’ NDC content at double the average rate of other TMCs in Australia.

But why does that matter to your business? Because our clients are benefitting from 9% average savings on their Qantas flights when they book through CT Connections. That equates to thousands of dollars saved on Qantas air travel, while some TMCs are still telling their clients that ‘NDC isn’t ready’.

Why is CT Connections ‘NDC ready’ while other TMCs are not?

NDC is still a developing technology standard. The most common issue preventing wide-scale TMC adoption relates to the increased operational costs associated with servicing ticket changes and cancellations. When NDC fares need to be rebooked or cancelled, the TMC’s operational workload can spike – which can be both time-consuming and costly for the TMC. That’s why many TMCs are reluctant to embrace NDC bookings – not because they can’t or because the solution isn’t ‘ready’, but because they aren’t willing to absorb the extra operational costs of servicing NDC bookings.

At CT Connections, we don’t think our clients should foot the bill. Instead, we’ve made a commitment to embrace NDC bookings to drive additional cost savings back to our clients’ travel programs.

Our adoption rate of Qantas NDC content is currently over 80%. That means more than 80% of our clients’ Qantas bookings are already leveraging NDC savings, by removing traditional EDIFACT charges of $12 per sector and leveraging reduced NDC airfares. It’s a win-win for our clients.

And our NDC adoption rate is more than double the average TMC adoption rate in Australia, while many TMCs continue to fall short of the industry average.

That’s not a bragging point for our team; it’s a hard dollar saving to our clients’ bottom line. And we’re really proud of that achievement.

What is NDC complacency costing your business?

If you’re not already booking NDC airfares, you could be spending thousands of dollars more than you need to. It’s important to find out why.

If your TMC is still saying the industry isn’t ‘NDC-ready’, ask yourself these questions:

• Why is CT Connections already booking 80% of their clients’ Qantas flights on NDC and passing those savings on to their clients?
• Why isn’t my TMC NDC-ready? (Or are they simply not willing?)
• And what is it costing my business to wait?

And if your TMC says they’re embracing NDC, ask yourself these questions:

• Does my reporting tool identify my business’s Qantas NDC adoption rate?
• Is my NDC adoption rate above or below the market average?
• What’s holding it back from reaching 80%? And what’s it costing my travel budget?

In today’s climate of high airfares, inflation and unpredictable travel environments, can you afford to be working with a TMC that doesn’t actively embrace every savings opportunity for your business? Our answer is ‘no’.

Our clients are already saving thousands of dollars on their Qantas travel spend, and we’re ready to help you save too.

If you’re working with a TMC that’s putting their own cost savings before yours, we’d love to chat. Contact CT Connections today for a confidential review of your travel program and spend.