COMMERCIAL
Our Commercial Department works to make sure our diverse organisation works as effectively and profitably as possible. We’re involved in everything from planning our train service, specifying our products, marketing our products and reviewing the effectiveness of the business through to undertaking customer research.
We build strong partnerships with a variety of organisations (such as local councils and big businesses) to learn more about what our customers want and need - and we find innovative ways to offer what they want. Through sales development, we work to ensure that our tickets are sold through the most effective, customer friendly channels as possible, utilising traditional and modern technologies. We also work closely with third party providers like travel agents, thetrainline.com and FirstInfo (First Group’s dedicated contact centre business).
Working with our franchise development team, we make sure we comply with the Department of Transport’s rules and regulations. We analyse the way in which seats are reserved, set fares, and are involved in the long term planning of timetables – sometimes up to four years in advance. We analyse our revenue and the capacity of our trains too.
Not least, we’re responsible for developing FGW’s products, such as our sleeper and first class services. In everything we do, we understand that customer satisfaction comes first and is key.