Assess the consequences to a business, such as Spirit Airlines, of only selling its tickets online.

One consequence of Spirit Airlines of only selling tickets online is the restricted customer reach. This is because not all potential customers are comfortable or able to use the internet for booking, some for example may prefer to go to a travel agents such as elderly which are a growing demographic for demanding overseas holidays due to their high amounts of savings. This could lead to a potential loss of revenue for Spirit Airlines as well as loss of market share to competitors such as Emirates. This in turn will also lead to a fall in profits. However, by operating online only, this leads to much cheaper operating costs for Spirit Airlines, this is essential for their break-even point as Spirit is a budget airline and therefore would be more successful in turning over a profit or breaking even if they have lower operating costs such as operating online only rather than having stores whereby they have to pay rent and wages to employees on shop floor.

Another advantage of selling exclusively online for Spirit Airlines is that they are readily available at anytime for potential customers. By operating online, this allows customers to book easily, quickly and at anytime they wish. This therefore leads to flexibility for the consumer for when they may need to buy tickets, this is also what their competitors such as Ryanair are likely to be doing as well and therefore would make sense to adapt their business model in order to maximise sales in a time frame. This therefore may increase the volume sold of tickets for Spirit Airlines as well as raise their sales revenue. This ease may also bring in new customers to Spirit Airlines for people which may prefer the ease of booking online than buying from a travel agents and thus may increase the market share for Spirit Airlines in a competitive environment such as the airline industry. However by operating online, some may feel a lack of customer service and a less personal experience. As all the tasks such as booking and entering details must be done by the customer, this may reduce their satisfaction of the airline overall and cause them to substitute to better airlines which offer a more personalised approach to their customer service.