Digital bookings on the rise, but are sales stuck in analog?

Digitalization of the cargo sales and booking process was a popular discussion topic at this year’s Cargo Facts EMEA earlier this month in Frankfurt. While interfacing with online booking platforms like cargo.one and Freightos’ WebCargo is a practice gaining traction among carriers, human sales agents are still central to the process.

“We have a high degree of digitalization,” said Silke Niemann, vice president of global sales management at Lufthansa Cargo, during a roundtable discussion on the topic of innovation. Niemann estimates that some 80% of bookings for standard products run through the carrier’s own websites. Digital bookings should not, however, be confounded with sales automation. Despite offering capacities through digital platforms, Lufthansa Cargo’s sales representatives still handle 90% of the transactions by value, she added.

While shippers still prefer a balance of digital convenience and human sales support, the trend toward automation appears to be accelerating. In a recent survey of its customers, Lufthansa Cargo found that shippers increasingly demand the transparency that digital touch points can offer. In December, Lufthansa Cargo began offering dynamic spot pricing. Through its own booking channels, the carrier now offers real-time bookable rates that include routing and product choices. Dynamic pricing is currently available in twelve markets, but will gradually be expanded to include additional stations.

Read the full story here on our sister publication, Cargo Facts.

Digital bookings on the rise, but are sales stuck in analog?