Digital bookings on the rise for cargo, but customers still want human sales support

Digitalisation of cargo sales was a hot topic at this year’s Cargo Facts EMEA event, which took place in Frankfurt earlier this month and focused on air freight.

At a roundtable discussion on innovation, Silke Niemann, vice president of global sales management at Lufthansa Cargo, estimated that around 80% of bookings for standard services are now made through carrier websites.

However, human sales reps still handle the vast majority of transactions, and customers are still looking for the right balance between the convenience of digital platforms and human sales support.

Credit: Marius Masalar

Niemann pointed out that digitalisation and automation should not be conflated for this reason, although a recent survey conducted by Lufthansa indicated that there may be a growing trend towards automation, including features such as dynamic, real-time spot pricing.

For now, carriers are focused on developing online booking platforms, in an industry that has been seen as slow to adopt new digital technologies—particularly in comparison to passenger airlines.

Source: Cargo Facts

--

Sometimes it’s better just to speak to a human. With Transglobal Express, you can book air freight, sea freight and parcel delivery services online, but our friendly team is always on hand to help, for bookings and beyond.

Get An Air Freight Quote