Virgin Trains' New £8m Campaign

[Class377/5]

I wonder if passengers would be happier they spent that £8m marketing spend on lowering ticketing prices (drop in the ocean I know) rather than making the Virgin brand look good.

 

[Howardh]

Just clicked on the ad.

Blimey, I hope I don't have to sit next to a geezer in a vest hock:. Time for trains to have a dress code?

The whole thing has put me off Virgin for starters. Any chance of Northern running pacers down to London for me instead? Think I'd rather have four hours of bottom massage and earache from screeching than that...

 

[WatcherZero]

I wonder if passengers would be happier they spent that £8m marketing spend on lowering ticketing prices (drop in the ocean I know) rather than making the Virgin brand look good.

Its hardly exceptional though, theyve spent similar amounts in the past. East Coast has a £7m advertising spend.

 

[GatwickDepress]

Kitchen refurbishment is part of the franchise extension.

Sadly, I have my doubt a kitchen refurbishment would improve the quality of stock (insert joke about Pendos/Voyages here) used.

 

[Howardh]

If Manchester-London's just over 2 hours one wonders why a kitchen's necessary at all? If you're peckish won't the shop sell you a bacon butty? And First Class can have one for free? Many a short-haul flight is 2 - 3 hours and you're lucky if you see a bag of peanuts!!

 

[bussnapperwm]

Ohh good lord what did I just watch?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nak8cpFJsY

They learnt there mistake from last time they dare not show the inside of the Pendolino in this advert ahaha

That advert - cringeworthy!

 

[Class377/5]

Its hardly exceptional though, theyve spent similar amounts in the past. East Coast has a £7m advertising spend.

Didn't say it was, but more my point is what those paying for that advertising through their tickets costs would actually prefer that money to be used for.

 

[martynbristow]

Well when I used to live down south I always chose to use SWT&VT instead of XC*.

And me and a work friend are doing an impromptu trip to London next month of cheap tickets.

The Virgin branding does work at attracting passengers from other forms of transport or people that wouldn't normally travel

And 8m in advertising, that probably came from the back of a sofa.
8m doesn't buy you a lot in the railways game

 

[bb21]

Didn't say it was, but more my point is what those paying for that advertising through their tickets costs would actually prefer that money to be used for.

Customers do not dictate to a company what their income is used for. They pay a fare and get the advertised service.

Shareholders do.

 

[martynbristow]

Customers do not dictate to a company what their income is used for. They pay a fare and get the advertised service.

Shareholders do.

It also depends on the customers your considering. Virgin trains has very high and very low fares

 

[Class377/5]

Customers do not dictate to a company what their income is used for. They pay a fare and get the advertised service.

Shareholders do.

Did I say they did? I simply wondering what those paying for it would make of it. Simple Curiosity.

 

[Merseysider]

Looks like I'm the only one here who enjoys travelling with Virgin?

Yes, their flows are very overpriced but I've never had a problem with their staff (even on a ticket to Stansted Airport ). Their trains are clean, I've never had to stand and they're the only toc I've found capable of dealing with complex transactions... but then again I don't commute with them which might be a completely different kettle of fish.

 

[martynbristow]

Looks like I'm the only one here who enjoys travelling with Virgin?

Yes, their flows are very overpriced but I've never had a problem with their staff (even on a ticket to Stansted Airport ). Their trains are clean, I've never had to stand and they're the only toc I've found capable of dealing with complex transactions... but then again I don't commute with them which might be a completely different kettle of fish.

NO your not the only one, I travelling virgin its what train travel should be.
Its not overpriced, £85 return to London from the North is fine and the Anytimes are because the services are dominated with business folk.

It all comes down to the expectations

 

[gordonthemoron]

Virgin are infinitely better than LM for commuting between MK & Euston (apart from big gaps between trains in the peak)

 

[bb21]

Looks like I'm the only one here who enjoys travelling with Virgin?

Yes, their flows are very overpriced but I've never had a problem with their staff (even on a ticket to Stansted Airport ). Their trains are clean, I've never had to stand and they're the only toc I've found capable of dealing with complex transactions... but then again I don't commute with them which might be a completely different kettle of fish.

You are not.

I am no fan of Virgin, but they are nowhere near as bad as some people make out in this thread imo.

The amount of bitching in this thread is quite an eye-opener.

Did I say they did? I simply wondering what those paying for it would make of it. Simple Curiosity.

Who cares? Leisure travellers will vote with their feet if Virgin offered a poor product.

People working at Virgin are not daft. If the passengers are voting with their feet because their service is poor, they would shift their focus towards that.

 

[Geezertronic]

I enjoy travelling by train regardless of the TOC but as VT are on the doorstep I've travelled with them more often than not. Sometimes I think that people moan for the sake of moaning. A 390 (or 221) will never be as popular as some stock but they get me from A to B quickly & safely and that is all the average rail traveller can ask for. I'd rather be delayed on a 390 than on the M25/M1/M6

Anyway I think their advertising has worked if their announcement can generate a 3 page (or more?) discussion thread on a popular railway forum

 

[thenorthern]

i was at Manchester Piccadilly today and I have noticed that some 390s already have Arrive Awesome written on them. Did some of them previously have Fly Virgin Trains written on them?

 

[gordonthemoron]

one thing I would complain about with Virgin (I think I emailed them once) is the lack of cheap advance tickets on services with very few passengers, e.g. services to Manchester on Saturday morning and services to Liverpool most of the time

 

[Merseysider]

one thing I would complain about with Virgin (I think I emailed them once) is the lack of cheap advance tickets on services with very few passengers, e.g. services to Manchester on Saturday morning and services to Liverpool most of the time

In my experience, I must say I've found the opposite to be true. I've found advances for £20 Manc - London the afternoon before travel and 90% of my travel with them has been on weekend mornings - never failed to get a bottom tier advance.

 

[harz99]

And 8m in advertising, that probably came from the back of a sofa.
8m doesn't buy you a lot in the railways game

No but it would pay for an awful lot of re-stuffed seat cushions or de-ponged toilet systems!

 

[Howardh]

I like travelling with Virgin - off peak, and prefer them to TPE any day. However, being inside a Pendolino coach is a rather claustrophobic experience, the windows are a lot smaller than they ought to be (is there a reason?) and the bulky seat heads prevent you from even looking down the carriage!

But I've had many a happy hour tucking into a bottle of red with my earphones on, oblivious to the world around me. But at some point I have to find a toilet that isn't occupied! Now that IS one thing that was better in BR days....bogs at each end of the coach and usually two of them!!

 

[MidnightFlyer]

the windows are a lot smaller than they ought to be (is there a reason?)

Crashworthiness I believe - I've never read any reports on the matter but I believe they were crucial in stopping there being more fatalities at Grayrigg.

 

[SeanG]

No point complaining about the size of 390 windows, don't think £8M is going to fix that...

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Crashworthiness I believe - I've never read any reports on the matter but I believe they were crucial in stopping there being more fatalities at Grayrigg.

It's a design feature of all the Alstom (formerly Fiat) Pendolino body shells.
Mainly because they were designed for much higher speeds (250kph+) than they can achieve in Britain.
It's also much the same in any of the TGV family (including Eurostar).
The Siemens ICE family has rather larger windows, but they are still smaller than their non-high-speed trains.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

Please remove the awful female security on board announcement....

 

[martynbristow]

I enjoy travelling by train regardless of the TOC but as VT are on the doorstep I've travelled with them more often than not. Sometimes I think that people moan for the sake of moaning. A 390 (or 221) will never be as popular as some stock but they get me from A to B quickly & safely and that is all the average rail traveller can ask for. I'd rather be delayed on a 390 than on the M25/M1/M6

Anyway I think their advertising has worked if their announcement can generate a 3 page (or more?) discussion thread on a popular railway forum

Exactly well said
The journey has lots its *magic* but also its length
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I like travelling with Virgin - off peak, and prefer them to TPE any day. However, being inside a Pendolino coach is a rather claustrophobic experience, the windows are a lot smaller than they ought to be (is there a reason?) and the bulky seat heads prevent you from even looking down the carriage!

But I've had many a happy hour tucking into a bottle of red with my earphones on, oblivious to the world around me. But at some point I have to find a toilet that isn't occupied! Now that IS one thing that was better in BR days....bogs at each end of the coach and usually two of them!!

Well yeah that was nice but BR toilets wouldn't cut it these days.
You can't dump it down anymore and toilets need to be accessible.
The experience is different and not that unpleasant (when you've had a bottle)

 

[jon0844]

When is the winner of the ICEC franchise announced?

The cynic in me says Virgin is about to start a big campaign to remind people how great they are, and if Virgin doesn't win it from DOR/EC then it will have the same public support as when it didn't get the WCML franchise. Cue Richard Branson then calling for an inquiry, and the public setting up petitions etc.

 

[Merseysider]

When is the winner of the ICEC franchise announced?

The cynic in me says Virgin is about to start a big campaign to remind people how great they are, and if Virgin doesn't win it from DOR/EC then it will have the same public support as when it didn't get the WCML franchise. Cue Richard Branson then calling for an inquiry, and the public setting up petitions etc.

From gov.uk: next month.

It all comes down to peoples' personal experiences - if they've had just one bad memory with a certain company, they'll remember that. Whereas you don't tend to remember all the times things have gone right. It's up to Virgin to convince people they're the right ones to operate it.

 

[bb21]

When is the winner of the ICEC franchise announced?

The cynic in me says Virgin is about to start a big campaign to remind people how great they are, and if Virgin doesn't win it from DOR/EC then it will have the same public support as when it didn't get the WCML franchise. Cue Richard Branson then calling for an inquiry, and the public setting up petitions etc.

Only if there is a "like" button. It certainly looks like that could be a reason to the cynic in me.

Virgin are just another intercity operator, no better and no worse than the others in many respects. I doubt they would do a better job than East Coast.

 

[jon0844]

Well, if we see any media reports/blogs saying 'Well if DOR can't keep the franchise, then I'd sooner have a company like Virgin run it' then I'll be proven correct!

Virgin is bound to cause a fuss if it doesn't win, if it thinks it can get public opinion on its side. Or indeed use marketing and PR to influence the result of the bidding (not that of course that can possibly ever happen!).