BA.com books in third-party banners

British Airways says it has had a positive early response to the first-ever third-party banner advertisement on ba.com. Luxury car manufacturer Jaguar is running a banner ad on the site.

A BA spokeswoman said the airline is testing customer reaction. “The Jaguar ad has been running for a week and the early figures are positive,” she said. The airline is on the verge of announcing a digital advertising agency to handle ads on BA.com.

“It is important the brands we allow on our site share the same values as BA and are of interest to customers,” said the spokeswoman. “We are not going for the highest-bidder approach. We will work closely with the agency we choose.”

The carrier is considering third-party advertising as part of a whole sale review of its business. “We have set up teams to look at reducing costs and generating revenues. It was felt third-party advertisements on the site was something we should look at,” she added.

BA.com receives 500,000 visitors a day, with a mix of traffic – from people managing bookings online to those looking at destination content and a growing number checking prices and the deals on offer.

The spokeswoman said: “We do want to increase our direct business, but there will always be a role for the trade and deals with tour operators. Customers are still buying their short-haul and long-haul flights in different ways.”