Airline Marketing Monthly - January 2020

Airline Marketing Monthly

Issue

January

84 2020

Japan Airlines - Win a trip with JAL A guide to influencer marketing with Tagger

About us

SimpliFlying Pte Ltd, 231 Mountbatten Road, Block D #01-07, Mountbatten Centre, Singapore 397999 SimpliVisible Ltd, 27 Old Gloucester Street, London, UK WC1N 3AX

Visit the SimpliFlying website www.simpliflying.com

2.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Published by SimpliVisible, the content arm of SimpliFlying, Airline Marketing Monthly is the only trade magazine worldwide devoted to aviation marketing

Content Introduction

4-5

Campaign of the month - 6-8 Win a trip with JAL Sustainability news

9-18

JetBlue goes carbon

11-12

neutral 13

14

The 6x Model, a guest

69-76

post by Marc Bang Airline marketing

77-86

British Airways - Clever

78

Royal Brunei Airlines -

79

It’s the little things that 15

shame or flight shaming?

IATA’s boss and climate

with Tagger

You

neutral Words matter - Flight

marketing in partnership

campaigns

CHOOOSE Delta makes CES carbon

25-68

matter Virgin Atlantic and Grey

16

change comments

80

Goose Qatar Airways - Blink and 81

Stobart Air - ATR Visuals

17

Etihad - Carbon neutral

18

by 2050 Safety Video round-up

19-24

Korean Air - SuperM

20-21

Score Rossiya Airlines - Masha

82

and the Bear Cathay Pacific - This

83

Chinese New Year, it’s all about family

Safety Video Starlux - Star Wonders

22

Qatar Airways team talk

23

Nepal Airlines Safety

24

Video

3.

Emirates - Americas Cup

84

Edelweiss - Catch a flight

85

Delta - Parallel Reality

86

Brands in this issue

87

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Norwegian partners with

Best practice influencer

Introduction Welcome to the first issue of 2020. To mark the new decade, we’ve got a few changes for how AMM works.

First of all, last month we published a special edition completed devoted to so-called ‘flight shaming.’ We were really pleased with the amount of positive feedback that we got from it, and that many in the industry found it useful.

We’ll also be launching a series of products and services to help aviation brands meet some of the challenges they are facing from environmental activists, the media as well as wider consumer audiences concerned about climate change.

We’ll be announcing more details of these in the next issue, but if you have an immediate requirement, please get in touch dirk@simpliflying.com We’ll also be moving our archive, which encompasses 1500 articles about aviation marketing going back five years, behind a paywall, accessible to anyone who pays a small one off cost, or who takes part in a course at the SimpliFlying Global Institute.

The most recent issues however will always be freely available. In fact, we’re looking at giving our email subscribers wider access than anyone who just comes to our website, so if you are not already on the email subscription list you can sign up here.

4.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

As a result, we’re now running a regular sustainability news section within AMM.

Influencer Marketing with Tagger Just about every airport or airline uses, or has in the past used, influencers. Those influencers are used for everything f rom promoting new destinations, to

But if you are currently running influencer marketing campaigns, are they as effective as they could be?

That’s why we’ve published an industry guide into influencers. Produced in partnership with Tagger, it looks at everything f rom fake followers, to why Instagram hiding likes is a good thing, to a suggestion on the metrics you should be looking at beyond just how many followers does someone have.

Tagger is an award-winning, intuitive, all-in-one Influencer Marketing platform that allows brands, agencies, and media companies to maximize their Influencer marketing strategies and campaign ROI throughout every phase of planning, discovery, activation, and reporting.

You can find out more about them, and also schedule a demo here.

Finally, is your aviation brand running any marketing campaigns that you think we should know about?

Get in touch by emailing me - dirk@simpliflying.com

5.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

showcasing new lounge or cabin products.

6.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Japan Airlines Win a trip with JAL

Japan Airlines Win a trip with JAL

Meanwhile the flights will be from either

pan will again be in the spotlight in 2020,

Tokyo Haneda or Osaka, to one of four

when Tokyo hosts the world’s biggest

destinations chosen by the airline. Trav-

sporting event, the Summer Olympics.

el needs to take place over the Summer

Coinciding with the occasion and to encourage visitors to go and see other areas of the country outside Tokyo, JAL

course when most Olympic visitors will be in the country.

announced that it would be giving away

As the airline explains in its press release,

a huge amount of free return flights -

the idea is to “facilitate regional revitaliza-

50,000 to be exact - to foreign visitors.

tion by bringing tourist traffic to regions

The criteria for qualifying for one of these free flights is as follows. It’s open to non Japanese residents only.

To qualify, visitors then need to join the JAL Mileage Bank Programme.

7.

months (July to September), which is of

across Japan, in coordination with the Japan Tourism Agency, JNTO and other related government agencies.”

Applications for the free tickets open online from the end of February.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Following the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Ja-

Why this campaign works This is a great campaign, and it works for us on a number of different levels.

1.

It’s bold: Most joint airline / tourism board campaigns see maybe a pair of tickets, or at most several pairs, being given away in some kind of online competition. Here, JAL is giving away 100,000 (50k return) flights, a staggering number.

2.

That in turn has netted the airline media coverage worldwide. Literally hundreds of media outlets have covered the promotion, such as Fox News, CNN, Time Magazine, the Daily Mirror (UK), The Sun (UK), The Times of India and The

3.

The official partner of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics is actually JAL’s main competitor, ANA. However many people will now imagine Japan Airlines has that role (needless to say, JAL has been careful not to say the word ‘Olympics’ in any official material).

4.

By having visitors join its frequent flyer programme, JAL potentially gets details and data on tens of thousands of people who will almost certainly be in a higher income demographic. After all, to qualify for one of the tickets, you need to be able to afford to fly to Japan in the first place.

5.

There’s an element of surprise and gamification to the whole promotion. When you apply, JAL will show you four possible destinations. You then find out which you’ll be going to within three days of your application.

Clearly, this allows JAL to distribute the seats by route and capacity, but it also adds an element of chance and excitement to it. As JAL says, “embark on a thrilling journey like no other and see what discoveries await at your mystery destination!”

The airline is collaborating on the campaign with the Japan Tourism Agency, the Japan National Tourism Organization and

8.

Nomura Research Institute Ltd.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Australian.

Sustainability News

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

9.

Sustainability News

change (or ‘flight shaming’) movement and aviation.

At SimpliFlying, we believe that this is the issue airlines will have to deal with over the next decade, for the simple reason that any movement that seeks to stop people flying, obviously takes direct aim at what airlines actually do.

As a result, we’ll be running a regular feature in every issue of AMM looking at developments in this sector.

We’ll also be launching a number of training, consultancy and intelligence products in 2020 to do with sustainability. We’ll announce details of these over the next few issues.

10.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

In December, we published a special edition devoted to the climate

JetBlue “prepares its business for a new climate reality�

airline worldwide to introduce automatic carbon offsetting for all its flights.

This followed British Airways saying that it would introduce carbon offsetting on domestic flights f rom this year.

In January, JetBlue followed suit, becoming the first US airline to offset the majority of its flights - for now offsetting is happening on domestic routes, with the airline exploring how to extend it internationally.

JetBlue says that it will carry on working with its official partner, CarbonFund.org. As a result of this, the airline says that its offsetting efforts will result in the annual equivalent of removing more than 1.5 million passenger vehicles from the road every year.

11.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

In November, easyJet announced that it would be the first major

easyJet for example is working with

Neste, the world’s largest producer of

both Airbus and Wright Electric on the

renewable diesel and a pioneer in re-

development of electric aircraft.

newable jet fuel,

Similarly, JetBlue calls carbon offset-

Neste MY Renewable Jet Fuel™ is pro-

ting “a bridge to other industry-wide

duced 100 percent f rom waste and res-

environmental improvements like fuel

idue raw materials. Over the lifecycle,

with lower emissions.”

it has up to 80 percent smaller carbon

As a result, while easyJet is looking into the electric aircraft, a medium to

Meanwhile, JetBlue talked about the

long term endeavour, JetBlue has done

fact that it will be introducing newer

something much more immediate in

more efficient aircraft, in particular the

announcing that it will be flying with

A220 and the A321neo. Of course, this

sustainable aviation fuel on flights

is something other airlines are doing as

f rom San Francisco from this year.

well, and would have happened any-

The company has agreed to purchase sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from

12.

footprint compared to fossil jet fuel.

way, but it is an example of where sustainability and commercial goals align.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

When we talked about carbon offsetting in our special issue, we advised any airline to follow easyJet’s lead in making clear that carbon offsetting isn’t a silver bullet, but is something that can be done now while wider decarbonisation happens.

Norwegian partners with CHOOOSE easyJet and JetBlue are the rule. Though over a third of airlines use carbon offsets, most offer it on a voluntary basis for passen-gers to buy.

The latest to do so was Norwegian. In December, the airline announced that it would be partnering with Oslo based CHOOSE, which invests in carbon offset schemes worldwide.

For now, Norwegian’s scheme is voluntary. And so far, voluntary offset schemes have had limited success, for example Ryanair claims the 2% of its passengers which pay for carbon offsetting is actually higher than the industry average.

That’s because this is

13.

presented as a cost, when

groups criticise as they

airlines are already trying

(arguably not without jus-

to squeeze extra money

tification) say that it takes

out of passengers from

a long time for the bene-

seat selection to order-

fits from tree planting to

ing special meals to extra

be realised.

baggage allowance.

Instead of planting trees,

However, two things

Norwegian’s partner

stand out about what Nor-

CHOOOSE is investing in

wegian is doing.

projects that have both a short and a long term im-

First of all, the airline says

pact. This includes the Bac

it is the first airline to

Lieu Wind Project, a clean

sign the United Nations

energy development on

Framework Convention

the southwestern coast of

on Climate Change (UNF-

Vietnam.

CCC) pledge, committing to become climate neutral

The project harnesses

by 2050. That means it’s

wind power to generate

already doing better than

clean energy, supplying

the accepted industry

electricity directly to the

standard of ‘50 by 50’ (50%

local grid and displacing

reduction by 2050).

carbon-intensive fossil-fuels - meaning it works

Secondly, carbon offset-

right now, and not several

ting is most often associ-

decades down the line.

ated with planting trees, something many green

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

the exception rather than

Delta makes CES travel carbon neutral

Delta boss Ed Bastian deliver one of the keynotes. In tandem with that, the airline announced that it would be making CES 2020 travel carbon neutral for its customers.

In concrete terms, what this meant was that the airline offset its flights to and from Las Vegas in the week of January 6th - significant, but obviously modest compared to JetBlue’s announcement, which happened at the same time.

Delta is one of the mass of airlines committed to ‘50 by 50’ (50% reduction by 2050). However Delta also claims to be the only US airline committed to voluntarily cap emissions at 2012 levels.

14.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas saw

Words matter - Flight Shame or Flight Shaming?

Language matters and how something is framed in turn drives the wider consumer and media narrative.

Many aviation industry insiders are annoyed by the phrase ‘flight shaming’, as they feel it unfairly targets the industry boss Carsten Spohr calling it ‘fake news.’

However, many climate change activists think ‘flight shaming’ doesn’t actually go far enough. They’d like the literal translation of the Swedish ‘flygksam’ - or flight shame.

Why? Because the thinking goes that ‘shaming’ allows frequent flyers and victims to present themselves as the victims, when (according to some climate change activists) there should in fact be shame associated with having a huge carbon footprint.

Meanwhile on the aviation side of the fence, we noticed some industry insiders trying to use the phrase ‘flight pride’ as a way of pushing back against ‘flight shame.’

This came from a speech given by Boeing’s Commercial Airplanes vice president of marketing Randy Tinseth, where he said that in many parts of the developing world there is ‘flight pride’ among the middle classes.

This is not a phrase we’d advise airlines or airports (or indeed aircraft manufacturers) to ever use, given the wider context and debate. Also, we’d question whether for most consumers it’s about flight shame (yet) or flight pride - rather flights are a means to an end (to go on holiday, visit family etc).

15.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

- the best example of that is Lufthansa

IATA boss rows back on climate change comments Meanwhile an industry misstep came from an interview that IATA chief executive Alexandre de Juniac gave to the New Scientist.

In the interview, he made a number of points that we would caution against from a communications and positioning point of view.

Criticising Greta Thunberg, he said “we are not the only polluter on the planet.” would stay in his own small village, behind his walls” The wider optics of a white middle aged aviation industry CEO attacking a Swedish teenager (and Time’s person of the year) are not great. The whole tone also sounds defensive, and obscures much of his later comments on how the industry is trying to make a difference.

Our advice to any airline CEO would be to avoid criticising Thunberg directly.

Here is what we’d recommend instead: Acknowledge her wider concerns about climate change and her commitment to making the world a better place. Talk about how aviation has made the world smaller. Say that the industry wants Thunberg’s generation to benefit from the magic of flight in a sustainable way. And then give examples of how this is happening.

However, perhaps worst of all, the New Scientist claimed that de Juniac said “I’ve never been totally scientifically convinced that it was the CO2 that was the key element for the climate change.”

IATA then had to quickly correct this in a statement given to Adam Vaughan, the journalist who carried out the interview, with de Juniac now saying “CO2 is the top contributor to climate change.”

16.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

He then claimed that her activism would lead to a world where “everybody

Stobart Air - ATR visuals

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

We saw these images posted on LinkedIn by a Stobart Air (which is an Aer Lingus and Flybe partner) employee. This is a great example of how an airline is bringing the environmental credentials of its aircraft to life in a user f riendly way, and leaving it in seat back pockets.

Creating visuals like this was one of the recommendations we made in our December report. The report includes very similar visuals which were mocked up by ATAG to show what an airline could do.

17.

Etihad - Carbon neutral by 2050

loudest in Western Europe. But that doesn’t mean that consumers elsewhere in the world aren’t concerned about the environment.

Indeed, in our special report we talked about a study that was done among the under 25s in a range of countries, including emerging markets, and the environment ranked highly as a concern everywhere.

Hence airlines worldwide need to be paying attention to this trend, something Etihad has recognised with its commitment to zero net carbon emissions by 2050.

This puts Etihad in the same bracket as IAG and Norwegian, who have the same target. It also means Etihad is far ahead of the mass of airlines who have signed up to ‘50 by 50’ (50% reduction by 2050).

At the end of last year, Etihad announced that it would be working with Boeing on an ‘Greenliner’ that would be used to test environmental initiatives.

Etihad is also a member of Abu Dhabi’s Sustainable Bioenergy Research Consortium (SBRC). The SBRC is working to develop commercial quantities of biofuel f rom saltwater-tolerant plants

18.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

When it comes to pressuring airlines, climate change activists are

19.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Airline Safety Video Round-up

Airline Safety Video Round-up Over the past few months, a number of airlines have come out with safety videos.

Here we’ve profiled ones from Korean Air, new Taiwanese airline Starlux, Qatar Airways and Nepal Airlines.

Korean Air’s latest safe-

ment company, the video

who appears as a flight at-

ty video has so far been

features the Korean K-Pop

tendant during the safety

viewed a whopping 13+

Group, Super M.

demonstration.

According to the Bangkok

Meanwhile, the song fea-

Post, the video incorpo-

tured in the video, ‘Let’s go

rates five music genres:

everywhere’, went on com-

hip-hop, R&B, electronic,

mercial release when the

deep house and synth pop.

safety video went live, with

million times on YouTube.

The reason is that Korean Air has tapped into one of the most readily identifiable symbols of Korean culture - namely, K-Pop. Produced in partnership with SM Entertainment,

20.

Korea’s largest entertain-

As well as Super M, the video features ‘Boa’, the so-called ‘Queen of K-Pop’

the profits from the sales being donated to Global Poverty Project’s Global Citizen campaign.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Korean Air - SuperM Safety Video

slick music video style safety demo was obviously a major, budget-heavy endeavour from the airline. As a result, it’s good to see that Korean Air thought about how to extend its reach and get fans involved.

A follow-up video by the airline invites people to get involved in a ‘Let’s go everywhere cover dance challenge’, for the chance to win return flights to South Korea.

21.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Teaming up with a major K-Pop band and singer and creating a

Starlux Airlines - Star Wonders

the airline has already produced a safety video that’s got exposure far outside Taiwan.

According to the Taiwan News, Starlux invested a significant amount of money NT$30 million (approximately US$1 million) in creating ‘Star Wonders.’

The video has a space-age theme, featuring a group of animated characters (some having one large eye, reminiscent of the Futurama character Leela.)

Other characters in the video include a walking carry on bag, and an egg shaped robot.

Chinese and English, Chinese and Japanese, and the sign language versions of the video have been produced. The current version is designed for the airline’s A321 aircraft, while a slightly different version will be shown when Starlux’s A350s are introduced in 2050.

22.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Even though Taiwan based airline Starlux only starts flying at the end of January,

Qatar Airways - Team talk

vested heavily in sports, specifically in football / soccer sponsorship.

This includes sponsoring AS Roma, Boca Juniors and FC Bayern Munich. Qatar Airways is of course heavily involved in the upcoming 2022 World Cup in Qatar as the official tournament airline.

The latest Qatar Airways safety video ties into this football theme while also leveraging some of the biggest stars in the teams QR sponsors.

A six minute video stars Brazilian footballer Neymar Jr., FC Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski and AS Roma legend Cafu, who are led through the in-flight safety routine by a double act of coach and kitman played by British television regular Jason Thorpe and comedy actor Ross Hatt.

The video takes place in a team locker room, where Lewandowski demonstrates how to use a life jacket, where Cafu helps a younger version of himself attach an oxygen mask and where Paris Saint-Germain star Neymar Jr. makes a special appearance to guide Qsuite passengers.

23.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Similar to its UAE based competitors, Etihad and Emirates, Qatar Airways has in-

Nepal Airlines Safety Video

which is showing on its A330 aircraft.

Compared to the other three videos we’ve featured here, the Nepal Airlines video has a pleasingly retro old-school feel, in that it concentrates squarely on a safety demonstration given by flight attendants, without any marketing gimmicks.

The only extra element is the presence of a Nepalese man who is the only passenger on the aircraft and has been given slightly comedic moments to act out, for example he lights up a cigarette before it’s snatched off him.

24.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

We were also alerted to this safety video produced by Nepal Airlines,

A best practice guide to influencer marketing Produced in partnership with Tagger www.taggermedia.com

25.

Introduction No, we’ve not reached ‘peak influencer’ Over the past year, a number of media pieces have appeared, all of which have a similar title: Have we reached ‘peak influencer’?

Times ran a piece with that headline, saying that ‘Brands are beginning to question the returns that influencers actually generate, especially as the get-rich-quick appeal of digital celebrity is now attracting fraudsters who pay for fake followings.’

Meanwhile a Digital Doughnut piece from July also used the same peak influencer headline, saying that ‘it’s time to turn to your customers’ (shouldn’t you be doing this anyway?).

Back in April, Image magazine talked about ‘peak influencer’ and also ‘peak exposure.’ Meanwhile, Meabh Quoirin, CEO of trends consultancy The Foresight Factory, published a post asking, ‘have we reached peak influencer marketing?’

26.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

On December 31st, the Financial

No, we have not reached so-called ‘peak influencer.’ Instead, the sector is maturing and is undergoing a much needed correction. One that should benefit any aviation marketer working with influencers and content creators, as well as the influencers themselves

For starters there is now much more awareness of the whole ecosystem of fake followers and engagement, as well as the tools to spot it happening, and policies to prevent it in the first place.

partnership with Tagger.

Tagger is an award-winning, intuitive, allin-one Influencer Marketing SaaS platform and social listening tool that allows brands, agencies, and media companies to maximize their Influencer Marketing

look at more meaningful metrics beyond

strategies and campaign ROI throughout

just ‘how many followers do you have?’

every phase of planning, discovery, acti-

This then leads to a focus on more long

vation, and reporting.

term collaborations, as well as working

In this guide we look at a number of dif-

with content creators who might not al-

ferent areas, including how the fake fol-

ways boast the big number of hundreds

lower industry works and why influencer

of thousands of followers, but who reach

fraud could be costing you up to 15% of

into more targeted and sometimes niche

your budget. We have a piece on why

audiences.

Instagram hiding likes from public view is

For an airline or airport, content creators

a good thing.

continue to be invaluable partners in ev-

A piece from Tagger CEO Dave Dick-

erything from bringing a new destination

man suggests five meaningful metrics

to life, to showcasing a new product such

to include in your influencer campaigns.

as a lounge or cabin class - or even in ar-

We’ve looked at some good examples

eas such as (e.g.) highlighting a business

of influencer campaigns in this space,

or first class menu.

before ending with eight golden rules to

The key to a successful collaboration

follow.

however is to structure it in the right way,

If after reading this guide you want more

work with the right people and have the

information, get in touch with Tagger,

right KPIs.

who can set you up with a demo of their

That sets the scene for our first industry guide of 2020, which we’ve produced in

27.

influencer platform and social listening tool.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

That in turn is leading many marketers to

Busting the six most common myths of influencer marketing

of business development and partnerships EMEA, Tagger In the introduction we said that we haven’t reached ‘peak influencer.’ However, that phrase is doing the rounds thanks to a number of myths about the influencer marketing industry. Here, Tagger’s Ana Thorsdottir busts six common ones.

28.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

By Ana Thorsdottir, head

Myth “Bots and fraud cannot be avoided, and influencers cannot be trusted.”

1

As more industry consultants and experts emerge, influencer marketing becomes less misunderstood. Unfortunately, this myth still seems to exist, with a few fraudulent individuals casting doubt on creators who work hard to build their content performance, their business, and genuine ROI on brand collaborations.

detect-ed and avoided. Whether you use the fraud analysis tool as a guide-line, check the creator’s account behaviour, or simply their demo-graphics info, it now only takes a few minutes to see a red flag.

It’s never been easier to detect suspicious behaviour, and with the creator giving users access to their profiles’ backend for measurement, there is no need to rely on screen grabs either.

Myth

2

“Influencers just pose for selfies and are a non-legitimate marketing method.”

Some marketers are still not considering influencer marketing as part of their spend for a lot of reasons – lack of understanding, fear of losing money, or lack of knowledge about how best to spend in the space.

Content creators are sometimes written off and mocked as ‘Instagram models’ or ‘selfie-obsessed posers’, but a brand could be missing out on one of the best ROI in advertising.

Relevance is vital and being well prepared is paramount. If an influ-encer’s audience is not aligned with your brand’s message, your budget will definitely be wasted.

29.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The truth here is that by using tools like Tagger, fraud is easily

This is entirely avoidable with a good strategy and research. Choose your influencer collaborations wisely and reap the benefits so many brands already undeniably have.

Myth “Unsexy brands and B2B brands cannot benefit from Influencer Marketing.”

3

Some readers of this guide will work for b2b companies such as sup-

The fact of the matter is, everyone can benefit from influencer marketing just like they can from word-of-mouth.

Influencer marketing is not confined to Instagram, YouTube or Twitter. It’s everywhere else, too – on your local street, on Pinterest, LinkedIn, in closed Facebook groups, and at in-person events that may never be marketed on social media.

The key operative word here is ‘influence’; who is doing the influencing, where, and how. Some of the most effective and clever campaigns can come out of simple, small-scale B2B ideas.

Influencer marketing lets brands tell their stories in a human way. All brands can benefit from influencers as long as they collaborate with the right ones to help them create content that connects with the right audiences.

Myth “Influencer Marketing is too expensive.”

4

Some people think content creators ‘charge too much’. Let’s not forget these individuals are the copywriters, stylists, photographers, creatives, strategists, models, and editors all in one, giving you not only great content but results with ‘no extra charge’.

30.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

pliers to the aviation industry or engine manufacturers.

If you look at it that way and compare it to traditional advertising techniques, influencers are actually the cheapest content creators in the world.

Dependent on the influencers you choose and the size of your campaign, it can cost as little as £100 to start your first campaign!

Yes, it’s true it can be a challenge as there is no set pricing for any individual, their talent, persona, or what they create, but there are ways to know if you are negotiating well.

Data is your power, and both brands and talent agents can utilise the information they see on software like Tagger to their advantage in risk proof.

Myth “Influencer Marketing and influencer advertising are the same.”

5

There is no ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to influencer marketing.

One burning topic this year was “micro” vs “macro”, which in turn placed an argument on the differences between influencer marketing and influencer advertising. The two are very different and should be used in different ways.

‘Influencer advertising’ tends to be effective for events, new product launches or quick and effective message promotion in the form of what we call ‘one hit wonders’ that get you lots of attention.

Whereas influencer marketing will typically encompass a 360 integrated marketing approach, longer partnership, multiple posts on different channels, and a more complex and involved collaboration with exclusivity clauses or even a new product. Influencer marketing will go as far as a billboard and TV screens, whereas influencer advertising is an effective tool in a moment in time.

31.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

the negotiation process. It then becomes very transparent, clear and

Myth “Influencer Marketing is so time-consuming.”

6

If we’re talking about man hours and how time-consuming it is, then yes, it is.

It’s a no brainer that tech like Tagger will help you improve your team’s profitability and productivity, even double it.

tent performance, running campaigns and letting tech do ALL the reporting work for you is really the bees’ knees.

Why would you spend hours trawling through Instagram, when it only takes minutes to discover influencers all over the world with ultra-relevant content? And think twice before sending your clients the same list of influencers over and over again, because there is just no ‘one size fits all’ for individuals either.

With an 83% YoY growth in Influencer Marketing spend, and with 82% of the next generation skipping ads, it’s evident that predictions of the demise of this medium are premature.

The majority of marketers are still running campaigns, measuring ROI more effectively than ever before, and planning to increase their spend into 2020. The more fun question now is…who’s going to take it up a notch? *For more really useful Influencer Marketing statistics, check this Influence Weekly article out.

32.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Discovering influencers from around the globe, analysing their con-

How does the fake engagement industry work?

It’s now well known that some brands, individuals and in certain cases even politicians, have been topping up their accounts with fake followers and fake engagement. But how does the industry work?

A good starting point is this 2015 New Republic article.

It looks at the daily routine of a 17 year old woman in the Philippines, who works alongside others to create made to order accounts (the most popular request being ‘Facebook profiles of beautiful American women between the ages of 20 and 30’).

She does so by first of all creating a fake name and email account, then matching it with a photo scraped from online dating sites, inserting a sim card into a phone, which is used to verify the account, after which it’s live. The whole process takes her three minutes.

33.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

And why does it exist?

The Matryoshka Model of the fake follower industry However, the accounts that she creates aren’t normally sold onto the end consumer the individual or brand wanting more followers.

Instead, the whole fake follower industry follows a kind of Matryoshka, or Russian doll model, where there are a number of layers from end supplier to end consumer.

A bot farm or workshop such as the one featured in the New Republic will create the fake accounts. These will then be sold onto other businesses, who then sell them

One example is the German company Social Media Daily, which calls itself ‘’the fast lane to more likes and followers.’’

Social Media Daily sells items such as 100 Instagram followers at $4.90. Those followers don’t actually come from the Berlin based company, rather they are sold on at a huge mark-up from Russian bot farms.

Citing research from Sebastian Bay, a senior expert at the Riga-based Nato Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence, an article in EU Observer claims that Social Media Daily made a profit of €600,000 in 2018 by using Russia based sub-contractors.

Sebastian Bay identified 70 such outfits in the EU, which in turn use mainly Russian and sometimes Romanian 34.

suppliers to fulfil their customers’ orders, ‘some of which provide 24hour customer support and even issue receipts.’

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

onto consumers.

A few of those companies then go one step further and create another layer by running reseller and affiliate programmes.

liker, which offers a franchise model starting at $1000.

and even a reseller programme.

The people who run them will see themselves as business people and tech entre-

For that, you get a ready to go market-

preneurs meeting a demand, not as char-

place using your own brand and domain.

acters engaged in some shady enterprise.

You operate the front end - customer ser-

It’s also highly profitable.

vices and online advertising. And Kickliker does the back end of delivering likes and followers.

We mentioned Berlin based Social Media Daily making â‚Ź600,000 in profit by using Russian sub-contractors, but if anything

What does all this show? It shows scale

that’s quite modest. Last year Facebook

and it shows industry maturity. It shows

went after a New Zealand company which

the normalisation of buying fake followers

had made US $9.4 million by running the

and engagement.

websites SocialEnvy.co, IGFamous.net, and

Businesses like Kickliker and Social Me-

Likesocial.co (all now closed).

dia Daily operate like many other online

These sites gave Instagram users a sub-

businesses in having a user friendly web-

scription model, where X number of

site, a customer services team, a secure

followers would be delivered to customer

payment mechanism, a blog giving hints

accounts every month (the idea being

and tips on growth hacking, positive user

that growth would then look natural and

feedback (which may or may not be real),

organic).

35.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

One example is the Czech company Kick-

The obsession with the big number

An article from February last year in ‘The

In the March 2019 issue of AMM we

Stage’ talked about the growing trend for

looked at Southwest’s ‘Storytellers’ cam-

theatre / TV / film casting opportunities

paign. “Influencers” were given the op-

to be dependant on the number of Insta-

portunity to compete for the grand prize

gram followers an actor or actress has.

of up to 12 round trips by posting a photo

The piece cites one example of a Twitter job advert saying that applicants needed to have an Instagram following of 5000+.

The article also talks about actors and actresses who had attended castings for ad shoots for everything from fast food restaurants to furniture stores, where they were asked for their social media handles and followings.

The thinking of course is that casting someone with X number of followers increases the amount of additional free publicity you can get.

And airlines are not immune to the focus on the vanity metric of the big follower number.

36.

related story and tagging Southwest.

The catch? It was only open to people with at least 2500 followers.

That’s an easy hurdle to jump over. A quick Google search for ‘buy Instagram followers’ shows that 2500 followers will cost you US $29.99 from ‘Buzzoid’ (or spend $10 more and get 5000).

If the initial criteria for getting a casting opportunity, a book deal, a record contract, a spot in a theatre production or TV commercial, or indeed the chance to win a year’s worth of free flights is your follower total, then you can understand why the temptation exists for many people to simply go and buy fake followers.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

These companies exist and in many cases make a considerable amount of money, because of one simple fact: The obsession with the big number. At the most basic level this translates into, ‘how many followers do you have?’

And if followers can be bought so easily, that in turn makes focusing solely on this metric largely worthless. So what’s the solution?

of anyone you work with. Tagger does this, and their rule of thumb that at the very least 70%+ of followers need to be real (as almost everyone has some bots or inactive accounts following them), is a good one.

Secondly

Though reach clearly matters (with the caveat that it has to be genuine), reach that is outside your target demographic is largely worthless. Again, the Tagger dashboard provides a breakdown of this including age and location of followers. Indeed, strange audience location and suspicious account behaviour is an indication of fraud, and Tagger provides this analysis.

Finally

Don’t just look at follower numbers, but adopt a smarter range of metrics. Later in this industry guide, we’ve included an article by Tagger CEO Dave Dickman on the five you should be looking at.

37.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

First of all

Use external software to check the % of fake followers

The Cost of Influencer Fraud: Are you losing 15% of your budget? be losing a significant

Until now, brands have

tor of Content Strategy at

amount of your budget

been blindly spending

Tagger

to influencer fraud.

their marketing dollars

In our previous article we

It’s no secret that influ-

looked at how the fake

encers with profiles big

follower industry works,

and small are guilty of in-

and the reasons why it

flating their followers and

exists. Here Tagger’s di-

engagement numbers in

rector of content strate-

order to secure coveted

gy, Kelsey Formost, talks

brand partnerships.

about how you could

without knowing how much of their efforts were being shown to fake and inactive accounts. So how much is influencer fraud really costing marketers per year, and more importantly, what can we do to reverse the trend?

A new study by Professor Roberto Cavazos of the Merrik School of Business reports that brands will lose about $1.3 billion this year to influencer fraud. In an industry that’s projected to spend $8.5 billion this year globally, a $1.3 billion lossor just over 15% of the market- is incredibly significant.

But the situation isn’t as

tem, and investing in new

The platform on which

dire as you may think:

technology that allows us-

campaigns are running,

brands can protect them-

ers to measure authenticity

the size of an influencer’s

selves from fraud and work

as well as engagement.

following, and the ability to

to reverse the industry trend by learning more about how influencers have been scamming the sys-

38.

There are a few overall factors that affect brands’ monetary loss per contract:

use technology to measure both the authenticity and the activity level of an influencer’s followers.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

By Kelsey Formost, Direc-

Fake followers and click farms: By the numbers It’s no shock that paying for likes and followers is a common theme in influencer fraud. But what may surprise you is that it matters which platform you’re using.

fluencer to buy fake engagement on YouTube than it does on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, with Twitter being the least expensive to boost.

Paquet-Coulson found that click farm clients pay an average of $49 for every 1000 YouTube followers, $34 for 1000 Facebook followers, $16 for Instagram, and finally $15 for Twitter. Therefore, with it being more difficult and more expensive to buy followers and engagement on YouTube and Facebook, you’re less likely to see fraud there than on Instagram or Twitter.

39.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

It costs more for an in-

Though most of these click farms are located overseas, technology now exists that can flag large influxes of activity in countries outside the influencer’s country of origin.

The ability to measure engagement and follower activity behind the scenes is going to be one of the most crucial investments brands can make in the coming year.

inactivity is considered. According to a study covered by Business Insider, about 30% of social media accounts are claimed to be inactive, meaning, the account exists and belongs to a real person, but that person is no longer using or interacting with their social media profile.

In a study done for Traackr on the future of social media influence, Digital analyst Brian Solis says, ‘‘Many influencers have no access to 90% of their audience simply because it no longer uses the social network where they were followed. This doesn’t stop them from touting millions of followers, who will, of course, never see your content.’’

Fewer followers = Less fraud

It’s important to note that a brand’s projected loss to fraud goes down the fewer followers an influencer has.

If a profile has over 1M followers, the cost of fraud may actually be higher than the cost of the paid post. But when it comes to influencers with 100K followers or less, the likelihood of fraud decreases. If brands are looking to protect themselves from fraud and get more bang for their proverbial buck, they should focus on building ongoing relationships with influencers who have smaller audience sizes.

Similarly, using an influencer marketing platform that allows brands to hone in on incredibly specific affinities sharply increases the odds of a viewer authentically connecting to content, branded or otherwise. Smaller audience numbers can mean a more specific (and therefore, more valuable) pool of data.

40.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Inactive profiles are just as bad as fake ones

Even real followers can cause trouble when audience

Protect yourself from fraud: Invest in the right technology

With the explosive rate of growth of the influencer

The bottom line:

Every industry must combat fraud. In fact, this year

marketing industry in the last year alone, it’s imperative that brands and marketers alike invest in the most effective, up-to-date technology. Special attention should be paid to a platform’s ability to measure an influencer’s authenticity; both the authenticity of their followers and their engagement metrics.

almost 4.5x as much as losses from influencer marketing fraud.

What really matters is how brands and marketers use available technology to guard against fraud, and invest in ongoing relationships that cultivate trust.

41.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

the projected losses from ad fraud will cost marketers

The Bob Golan experiment 18 months on

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Over the past few years we’ve carried out a number of experiments on social media, with the aim of moving aviation marketers away from the ‘big number’ (e.g. ‘how many followers does this person have?’) and onto more meaningful metrics.

One of those involved going to a website that’s usually used for buying and selling gaming accounts and levels, and purchasing a fully formed Instagram account, with the name of Bob Golan. The idea was to see if we could have a ready made influencer up and running, and present ‘him’ to the 35 airline marketers attending our 2018 Miami Airline Marketing Lab. There’s a longer post about the lab and how this worked here, but here are a few lessons we’ve learned from creating and running ‘Bob’:

42.

1 - Use tools such as Tagger, and manual research When the Russian intermediary who sold us Bob delivered him to us, we received a feed of several dozen high quality but brochure like travel images - random beaches, mountains, seaside towns - that kind of thing.

There was nothing to connect these images, and no explanatory captions. Why was Bob on a beach that looks to be somewhere in Asia on Feb 28th 2018 and then in Dubrovnik on March 13th?

other websites. A search on the reverse image search engine TinEye shows that his Dubrovnik post exists in 72 other locations around the web, such as this French news site talking about destinations for students.

The original as far as we can tell is here, a 2014 Flickr image, that does actually have a creative commons license - albeit one where the original photographer (Trish Hartmann) should be credited.

All too often we take what we see at face value. Instead, take a bit of time to look through someone’s account. And if something looks suspicious, dig deeper.

2 - No account has either 100% real or 100% fake followers When we bought Bob he had around 13k followers. He now has 10,562. We assume many of those 1500 were lost through the regular account culls Facebook / Instagram carries out. But the fact is, most of his followers are still there.

Clearly much of the engagement on Bob’s account is artificial. For example, this random wildlife shot generated close to 1000 likes. But some of it is real. Even though the later posts we put up to fill up Bob’s account got less than half the previous engagement, it was all real engagement from real people.

43.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The reality is of course, the photos were not only random, but also all scraped off

In fact, you will hardly ever find an account totally made up of fake followers. Likewise no account will have 100% real followers, as bots and fake accounts often automatically follow based on certain hashtags.

As Kelsey Formost’s article in this guide points out, larger accounts in particular will automatically attract some bots.

Instead, it’s important to look at the proportion of fake vs real and here Tagger provides a useful guide: - An account with 85% or greater authentic followers is higher than most accounts.

This creator most likely has not engaged in any fraudulent activity.

may have some fake followers but they are not actively participating in fraudulent schemes.

- Less than 70% authenticity: This is lower than most accounts. These accounts are heavily followed by suspicious accounts which indicate they are participating in fraudulent activity.

3 - Use audience analysis tools to dig into the audience So we’ve established that while the content on Bob’s site was lifted from other places, many of his followers are real (we suspect they were added by something called the follow / unfollow method, where a bot mass follows accounts for you).

Even so, for most airline brands, Bob’s real followers would be of limited value.

That’s because Tagger tells us that the biggest number of followers are aged between 13-17, with almost half being under 20.

Similarly, the top city for Bob’s followers is Sao Paulo, Brazil - Brazil is one of the top places where you can buy followers of dubious value. Some are fake, but some are also real people who are paid pennies to follow other accounts (and then don’t engage with them).

As a result, it’s worth using a platform such as Tagger to dig into follower data in a little bit more detail.

44.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

- 70% to 85% authenticity: This is on average with most Instagram accounts. They

By Kelsey Formost, Director of Content Strategy at Tagger Depending on where you live, chances are you’re still seeing Instagram likes. However that will soon change, with Instagram having announced at the end of last year that its trials to hide likes will now be rolled out globally.

Whether the reasons behind it are to (as Instagram says) reduce social pressure, or whether (as this piece in Petapixel claims) the objective is actually to get users to post more, we believe that it’s a positive development. Here Tagger’s Kelsey Formost explains why that’s so.

45.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Goodbye ‘Likes’, Hello Authenticity!

Why Instagram hiding likes is great news for brands

Goodbye vanity metrics, hello authentic connection!

We’re excited to see how Instagram hiding likes from the public will increase the accuracy and value of user data, and minimize influencer fraud.

see what’s next, we also know that many influencers, brands, and agencies alike are nervous about the change.

Here’s everything you need to know about what this update means for the future of influencer marketing.

There are a lot of questions buzzing around the social media marketing world regarding hiding likes from the public on Instagram.

Will this affect engagement rates? How will brands set new marketing KPIs? Will user behavior be greatly impacted? Will we still be able to accurately measure campaign success? Is influencer marketing as we know it over?

We’re going to address all those questions and more, but our overall reaction to this news is overwhelmingly positive. Here’s why we believe hiding likes is GREAT news for influencer marketing!

46.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

And while we’re excited to

First thing’s first: Are ‘likes’ completely gone?

No. Once this move is introduced worldwide, they will just be no longer visible to the public.

The act of liking a post will still be available to users (don’t worryyou can still double-tap to your heart’s content!), they simply won’t liked a post.

It’s important to note that while a post’s like count will no longer be seen by the public, influencers, platforms, and brands with API access will still be able to track how many people are liking and interacting with their content behind the scenes.

The hope is that by removing the public nature of a post’s like count, influencers will feel less inclined to delete posts that under-perform or inflate a “vanity metric” by purchasing fake likes.

47.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

see the numerical value of how many other people have previously

Will likes still affect the algorithm?

Yes. Just because likes won’t be visible to the public, they will still have an effect on the overall algorithm.

Because likes still exist (albeit behind the scenes), they continue to affect an influencer’s engagement rate, as well as how likely their posts are to be seen in users’ feeds.

In short, the way that likes influence the algorithm will not change. user feeds.

API access is more crucial than ever “Influencer marketing platforms with API access will still be able to see an influencer’s likes and other “behind the scenes” data,” explains Tagger Founder and COO Peter Kennedy.

“While likes won’t be publicly visible as a user scrolls through content, brands and agencies who use a platform with API approval will still be able to see, filter, and analyze an influencer’s engagement rate.”

This issue of ethical data gathering will now be absolutely paramount to brands’ influencer marketing success. If a brand has been using a platform that “scrapes” data, they will no longer have access to any information pertaining to likes. That means everything will be thrown off; likes, engagement rate, and more.

Making sure the influencer marketing platform you use has API approval is the only way to know for sure you’re creating a campaign strategy based on accurate data.

48.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The more likes a post gets, the more likely it is to be seen in more

Higher quality data & potential (positive!) changes in user behavior Based on the information that’s been gathered while this feature of hiding likes was tested overseas, we believe this update is great news for brands!

Why? Users feel freer to authentically engage with posts they genuinely like.

Users who may not have liked a post in the past- perhaps because they thousands of likes, or even not wanting to give up a ‘like’ on a low-performing post- may now base their decision to interact with content on whether they actually like it!

This update supports a move back towards the original intention of the ‘liking’ feature, which is to curate a user’s experience based on their true affinities, rather than social pressures. In theory, brands will now be able to target their true ideal audience based more on user behavior, not just an influencer’s metrics.

With this one change, brands will get a MUCH clearer picture of what kind of content is truly resonating with audiences.

Where should marketers go from here?

While we wait and see what overall effect hiding likes has on user behavior, it’s a good idea to shift your campaign KPIs away from “vanity metrics” like ‘likes’, and instead focus more on social listening, impressions, reach, click throughs and brand awareness.

In addition to adjusting campaign KPIs, marketers should increase efforts on using data to find an influencer who is truly a perfect fit for your brand.

When you’re able to tap into an influencer’s audience that already connects with what you’re sharing, you’re able to develop a more successful ongoing relationship with both the influencer and their audience.

49.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

felt their ‘heart’ was insignificant, getting lost in a sea of hundreds of

5 KPIs Every Influencer Marketing Campaign Should Track

By Dave Dickman, CEO, Tagger

been praised as the marketing channel with the highest ROI (11x higher than traditional marketing, to be exact). As the market continues to shift away from traditional retail and more towards direct-to-consumer and e-commerce models, ROI is about so much more than just sales.

Using today’s advanced consumer data tracking technology, brands and agencies are able to accurately and specifically measure important KPIs that give a much more granular picture of campaign success.

One way to think of social campaign success is to remember that influencers affect the overall customer experience, and especially the consideration stage.

Technology now allows us to look at the whole customer journey, not just traditional “last-click” metrics. We can now more fully understand the specific value an influencer is delivering, especially regarding where and how a business or brand is represented.

Here are the 5 most valuable KPIs every online marketer should be looking at when running an influencer marketing campaign.

50.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Influencer marketing has long

1 - CONVERSIONS While influencer marketing provides brands with a wide range of benefits, as with all marketing, the main goal is to drive conversions and sales.

One myth surrounding the influencer marketing industry is that conversions are harder to track, but that’s simply not the case.

With affiliate links, landing pages, unique promo codes, UTM parameters, and influencer marketing platforms that can help you specifically analyze conversions, it’s easy to take the guesswork out of determining a campaign’s conversion rate.

of a campaign completes a desired action, that also counts as a conversion.

That could mean subscribing to an email list, following an account, downloading an e-book, clicking a link, or any other pre-determined desired action. When planning your influencer marketing campaigns, it’s imperative to define ahead of time what a conversion will mean to you and your team.

2 - REFERRAL TRAFFIC Conversions don’t always show the whole picture of whether a campaign was successful.

Even if a viewer doesn’t click through to the final stage, referral traffic shows that at some point along the journey they were interested in your offer. For this reason, tracking referral traffic is particularly valuable because it allows a brand to re-target ads to those viewers at a later date.

You can build a thoughtful and effective conversion site, but it won’t matter if a campaign isn’t effective at bringing visitors to your page.

Referral traffic can be an excellent indicator of a particular influencer or campaign’s success. You can use a myriad of tools to monitor campaign-driven traffic and pay attention to key indicators like referral source, new visitors, time spent on site, and pages viewed.

51.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

It’s important to keep in mind that conversions go beyond sales. Any time a viewer

3 - AUDIENCE & LIST GROWTH Research has proven that a consumer needs to be exposed to something an average of seven times before they consider investing in that product or service. That means that one of the most valuable outcomes you can possibly receive from an influencer marketing campaign is a way to reach and re-target viewers.

Audience growth can be new followers on social channels, but also new ways to reach people via their inbox. Influencer marketing that encourages people to follow a brand on social, or drives viewers towards registration- whether it’s for a newsletter, free e-book, discount code, or event- allows companies to measure audience

Having a goal of increasing your audience allows you to reap the benefits of a campaign long after the posting is over.

4 - REACH & BRAND AWARENESS Speaking of audiences, one of the main reasons influencer marketing is so valuable is because of the immediate access to their engaged viewers.

The most effective campaigns are those where the brand being promoted perfectly aligns with an audience’s interest. Platforms like Tagger allow you to easily and quickly apply filters to find influencers with the perfect fit of a target audience that is already primed to respond to your product.

Increasing the visibility of your brand among a dialed-in audience is an invaluable tool in boosting awareness and building ongoing relationships.

When a brand has the opportunity to expose their product to a highly-engaged pool of new viewers, increased impressions, reach, and brand awareness becomes a highly valuable KPI.

52.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

and email list growth as a key KPI.

5 - ENGAGEMENT While engagement is no longer the most important KPI for brands and agencies to measure, it is still an important indicator of a campaign’s success. Previously, marketiers were trained to focus on the granular vanity metrics of likes, comments, shares, etc.

But in today’s age where so many other valuable KPI’s are measurable, we should shift the way we think about engagement as it relates to campaign success.

Engagement should now be considered an overall indicator of how many people

Engagement rates are incredibly easy to track and break down with influencer marketing platforms, giving brands a clear picture of how their content is being received by an audience. If users are liking, mentioning, commenting, voting, following, and generally taking action on posts, then that campaign could absolutely be considered successful.

But again, while engagement is a valuable KPI, it’s not the ONLY one that matters anymore. In fact, 2019 saw an overall decline in engagement rates due in large part to major platform changes like Instagram and Facebook hiding likes.

That’s why it’s important to remember that yes, engagement rate is an extremely valuable metric to track, but it is only part of the overall picture of campaign success.

THE BOTTOM LINE The #1 thing brands should do when tracking campaign success is clearly defining goals and KPIs ahead of time. The more specific those goals, the better you’ll be able to communicate with an influencer who can then create content specifically designed to drive their audience towards the most valuable action for your brand.

Want to know more about the 4 Key principles of influencer marketing success?

Download Tagger’s free e-book here!

53.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

who were exposed to the ad felt compelled to take action.

Influencer marketing and aviation brands, some examples

54.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Looking for inspiration for your own influencer marketing campaign? Here are some industry examples from the past 1-2 years. All of these provide useful llessons and insights.

Alaska Airlines - Weekend Wanderer

2 - Secondly, Alaska Airlines reused the

paign called Weekend Wanderer. The idea

Weekend trips to populate its own blog

was quite simple, as the name suggests

posts. All too often we see influencer

Instagramers and bloggers were sent to

campaigns just working in isolation, here it

Alaska Airlines destinations over a week-

actually provided extra value across Alaska

end to document their journey and show-

Airlines’ digital channels.

case each destination.

3 - Finally, Alaska Airlines clearly gave some

Examples included San Francisco to Mexi-

thought as to who they would work with.

co City, Portland to Minneapolis, and even a

Rather than automatically gravitate to-

trip to Singapore to celebrate a new code-

wards the ‘biggest’ or ‘most famous’ they

share arrangement with Singapore Airlines.

often worked with smaller Instagramers

This is a great campaign for three reasons.

1 - As well as having the Instagramers post on their own feeds, Alaska Airlines had them take over the company account via an Instagram take-over.

Clearly take-overs like this have to be moderated (or at the very least guidelines need to be provided), but running them mixes up your content and account and adds a different flavour and perspective.

55.

where there was a fit in terms of style and quality of content and profile.

Though Karen Grubb, who did the Singapore trip, has (at present) 114k followers, Amberly Alene, who is a Havana based filmmaker and who showed off her home city for the airline, has a much more modest 9850 followers. However her local knowledge and the kind of authentic Havana-based content she posts, made her the best fit for that particular trip.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

From 2017-2018, Alaska Airlines ran a cam-

Flybmi - Hidden Treasure (Disclosure, this is a campaign AMM editor Dirk Singer ran for Flybmi)

Hidden Treasures, which was run by the late British / European regional airline Flybmi had a lot in common with the Alaska Airlines campaign.

routes in and out of Munich, and so Flybmi recruited 16 content creators from the UK, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Poland, the Czech Republic and Sweden to take part.

The campaign had three

appealing to different

the right kind of influencer

elements:

demographics and interest

who’d produce content

groups.

that would add value.

either sent to Munich, or

3 - Flybmi’s Instagram

Flybmi’s posts had a

from Munich to another

fans were themselves

reach of 800k, while

destination. They then

encouraged to take part

the influencer content

took over the Flybmi

and show off hidden

produced an additional

Instagram account over a

treasures in their own city

reach of 860k. The

weekend as well as posting

or area, for the chance

campaign social media

on their account.

to win flights. Over 700

posts generated 20.6k likes.

1 - Content creators were

2 - The tours were broadly themed, e.g. around art and culture, history, food,

photos ended up being posted under the hashtag (#flybmihiddentreasures)

This campaign shows that smaller airlines, with more modest budgets, can also

nature. The idea was to

As with Alaska Airlines, the

run successful influencer

showcase a range of topics,

focus was on working with

programmes.

56.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The idea was to promote

Alaska Airlines - Strawless Skies

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

We’ve included a second

To help promote the

Members of the public

case study from Alaska

new initiative, the airline

were invited to join in and

Airlines, as it’s a good

worked with 18 Instagram

upload their own posts

example of how an airline

influencers with audiences

under the #StrawlessSkies

worked with influencers to

interested in travel,

hashtag.

highlight a sustainability

nature, photography, and

message.

wanderlust, and living in

Like a number of other

the West Coast.

The campaign netted 2.3 million impressions, 179k likes, and an average

airlines, Alaska Airlines is

Each Instagramer ran

engagement rate on

reducing single use plastic

stories and posts showing

Instagram of 4% (4x higher

on its flights, including

how they were trying to

than the 1% average).

eliminating plastic straws.

live more sustainably.

57.

Etihad - Plastic Free Flight

a sustainability campaign was Etihad, which last year flew a 14 hour plastic free (e..g no single use plastics) flight from Abu Dhabi to Brisbane, Australia, to mark Earth Day. To promote the flight, Etihad invited UAE Instagramer (and MBC TV Presenter) Haifa Beseisso on board to produce a short film for her 500k+ Instagram followers and 800k+ YouTube subscribers.

58.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Another airline which included influencer marketing in

Virgin Atlantic - LAxMAN

furniture, and a projected imagery of the

Manchester, UK route, Virgin Atlantic ran an

landscape on the wall with sound.

LAxMAN influencer event in Los Angeles, featuring an appearance by the airline’s founder, Sir Richard Branson.

They could discover their travel personalities at trip itinerary stations and make a stop at a DIY patch station to give their travel

The airline invited influencers in art, music

gear some Virgin Atlantic flair and have a

and food to the event which included

monogrammed luggage tag made.

specially created cocktails.

All event attendees received a chance to

The event also included a Northern England

win two round-trip tickets and three nights’

themed ‘sensorial lounge’ complete with

accommodations in Manchester with Virgin

faux grass on all surfaces, including lounge

Atlantic.

59.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

To launch its new Los Angeles to

Qatar Airways A350 delivery flight

course fly largely empty from Boeing or Airbus to the airline’s home airport.

Why not use them to give influencers a first look at the aircraft, and also find out a bit more about what you are up to as an airline?

A few airlines now do exactly that, targeting the very active AV Geek community of Vloggers and Instagrammers. One example is Qatar Airways, which invited a select group of AV Geek influencers on board the delivery flight of its first A350-1000 from Toulouse to Doha.

Aviation YouTubers and bloggers love delivery flights. In a post The Points Guy listed five reasons why they are ‘amazing’, ranging from insider access, to the chance to meet Airline CEOs on board to a VIP welcome beforehand and on board.

If you haven’t already factored something like this into your own delivery flights, it’s a tactic you should definitely consider.

60.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Delivery flights can be something of missed opportunities for airlines. They of

Qantas - Project Sunrise

trip getting additional exposure on his

Qantas to introduce non stop flights

Instagram and Facebook channels, as

between Sydney and London / New

well as his blog.

York. In November, Qantas ran a test flight from London to Sydney with an 787-9, painted in special Qantas 2020 centenary livery.

On board were senior management (including CEO Alan Joyce) and other employees, who were monitored for sleep patterns and food and drink intake.

However, the airline also invited along Sam Chui, probably the best known out of the AV Geek vlogger community, who has 1.8 million subscribers. Sam’s video, where among other things he described the double sunrise he saw on route, has had over 2.2 million views, with his

61.

Meanwhile the fact that Sam is a big name in the aviation community, actually resulted in Qantas getting extra media coverage, thanks to his presence on the flight.

For example, both Business Insider and The National (in the UAE) referenced both the flight and Sam Chui’s participation.

Due to practical considerations, Qantas wasn’t able to take multiple vloggers on the Project Sunrise flight. As a result the solution of working with one really big name worked really well for them.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Project Sunrise is the current trial by

Xiamen Airlines - #flyxiamenair

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

At the end of 2018, and to mark the launch of a new route between Fuzhou and Paris, Xiamen Airlines ran its first European influencer campaign - #flyxiamenair.

Travel influencers from France, Spain and Germany were recruited for the campaign and to promote the new route.

French agency Makers Creators, which developed the campaign, created special bags and merchandise for the influencers to use, which would again make the campaign more recognisable.

With the most basic objective being to introduce European air travellers to a brand few will have heard of, Makers Creators claims a reach of one million+ through the influencer posts.

62.

Embraer - Incredible Journeys

manufacturer Embraer, which in 2018 recruited former UK Royal Marine and Sports presenter Arthur Williams to front its ‘Incredible Journeys’ online video series.

The idea behind the series is to promote Embraer’s E-190-E2 ‘profit hunter’ aircraft.

As a result, Williams travels to different countries where airlines fly the E-190-E2, such as Vietnam, Kazakhstan and Norway.

Each episode is around 6-10 minutes long and is part travelogue and part AV Geek video review. It’s well produced, just the right length in terms of being interesting and imparting key Embraer information.

The high production values aside, we like this collaboration for a number of reasons.

It has longevity, there have been five of these so far.

The partnership works as Williams is an aviation fanatic, and clearly has an interest in the subject. And the brand messaging doesn’t seem to be forced, each story is allowed to speak for itself.

63.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

One of our favourite pieces of aviation video storytelling comes from aircraft

Eight Golden Rules of Influencer Marketing

your aviation brand? Here are eight golden rules from Ana Thorsdottir, head of business development and partnerships EMEA at Tagger.

1 - Pick the right influencers 2 - Treat them like partners, not media channels 3 - Empower the content, don’t disturb it 4 - Disclose with pride and adhere to the law 5 - Connect the dots 6 - Measure everything 7 - Prioritise engagement 8 - Have faith and patience To go through each in turn:

64.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Ready to take the next step, and develop an influencer marketing campaign for

1 - Pick the right influencers

As we’ve demonstrated in our earlier articles, the danger of focusing on only the big number (how many followers does person X have?) means you can often end up with influencers who aren’t actually a good fit in terms of content or demographics.

Instead use data such as that provided by Tagger to objectively find the right fit for your brand. Relevance to the brief and their average engagements are two important criteria that take priority alongside reach.

The right audience, with the right influencers, for the impact on other KPIs. Influencer marketing is a two-way stream, so getting this right is crucial.

2 - Treat them like partners, not media channels

Influencers are like modern media companies. They are

3 - Empower the content, don’t disturb it

One of the biggest mistakes brands make when working

creatives, videographers, photographers, stylists, editors, social media experts and they should be treated that way.

Much of the value you get from working from them comes from the creative treatment that they apply to your brand and to your campaign. Seeing influencers as a simple ad buy means that you lose that value.

with influencers is to provide an overly long shopping list of phrases, keywords, hashtags and messages along with a fairly restrictive brief.

Clearly, you have commercial and brand objectives that need to be met. But those objectives will be met much more effectively if the influencer creates content that looks natural and fits in with the tone and style of everything else on his / her channels.

65.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

right brand creates exceptionally high engagement and

Tying into the previous point, giving the influencer a certain amount of creative freedom, allows her / him to look at your brand in a new way and with a fresh perspective.

As a result, work collaboratively with them to see how content can be created that is authentic and that works for their audience.

A study in the UAE found that the vast majority of influencers there - 84% - aren’t completely transparent about any commercial, paid for collaborations.

Though the problem is particularly acute in the UAE, it’s also still quite common in other regions.

The simple fact of the matter is, if you pay an influencer for any type of content, this has to be disclosed in the proper way.

It doesn’t matter whether you pay with cash, freebies, discounts or other incentives.

As a result, make sure you follow the disclosure rules set out by the ASA (in the UK) and FTC (in the US) to avoid being penalised or damaging your relationships with influencers.

5 - Connect the dots

Many aviation influencer campaigns seem to work in a vacuum. They exist on that content creator’s Instagram (or other social network) channel, but nowhere else.

In fact, Influencer marketing is a medium, not a platform.

Think Systems not Silos – influencers should be a part of your planning and marketing mix, and not just a ‘nice to have’.

A good example of that is the two Alaska Airlines campaigns talked about earlier in that guide. Both, the Weekend Wanderer and Strawless Skies campaigns tied into wider activity that the airline was doing (e.g. reducing single use plastic in ‘strawless skies’), and had

66.

an existence on the airline’s own content channels.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

4 - Disclose with pride and adhere to the law

6 - Measure everything

Influencer marketing can deliver KPI’s beyond ‘number of views’. For a suggestion on five KPIs you can start using, take a look at Tagger CEO Dave Dickman’s piece earlier in this guide.

In fact, rather than looking at ‘ROI’, we’re believers in measuring ‘business impact.’

ROI is a short term business measure, while influencer marketing work is longer term and more complex.

You’ve reached X number of people with your influencer

8 - Have faith and patience

Influencers deliver what other media channels often

campaign. Wonderful. But do they care? Did they do anything other than look at the photo or video for a second or two before continuing to scroll down on their phones?

As a result, regardless of platform, you should always be looking at engagement and sentiment. It’s a testament to relevance, attention, impact and is easily benchmarked across campaigns.

can’t: authenticity, credibility, real engagement and connections with people, niche audience reach amongst others.

But you need to give the campaign and any collaboration time to work. That’s also why you should look to creating longer term partnerships.

A good example of that is the ‘Incredible Journeys’ campaign by Embraer, where the brand has used Arthur Williams for a whole series of short online videos.

Over time, he’s grown into the role and is increasingly synonymous with the brand.

67.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

7 - Prioritise engagement (but measure everything)

About Tagger

Tagger is an award-winning, end-to-end influencer marketing platform and social listening tool (that’s actually easy to use).

Tagger’s intuitive platform lets you plan, search, connect, analyze, report and succeed with ease.

1 - Plan campaigns and track the competitive landscape with exclusive access to over 9 billion units of valuable data. No more guesswork.

2 - Leverage multiple search filters to find the perfect influencers for your campaign and strategy. No more scrolling or outdated spreadsheets.

3 - Connect - message and hire influencers directly on Tagger’s secure platform. No more flooded inboxes or communication breakdown.

4 - Report - Easily track campaign success and generate full modular campaign reports. No more time-wasting manual wrap reports.

Want to know more, or would you like a demo? Get in touch with Tagger here.

68.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Our industry partner in producing this guide has been Tagger.

69.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Guest post on the 6x model

An introduction to the 6x model

by Marc Weber BĂĽng, CEO, SimpliFlying Global Institute

in a meaningful way. This

line and how to go about

branding is unique and

sets airline brands apart.

executing a meaningful

different from other industries. Because with an airline, brand engagement can last anywhere from 2 hours up to more than 24 hours, both before, during and after the flight. The reason is not just a matter of how long any flight might be, but airlines also have an incredible number of touchpoints both before and after the actual flight, which provide many different opportunities to inter-

70.

act with their customers

As such, traditional mar-

brand strategy.

keting methods are not

The 6X Model also forms

enough when it comes to

the basis of much of Sim-

marketing an airline effec-

plifying’s work over the

tively and making a truly

past 10 years, and it is

remarkable brand. This is

likewise at the heart of

exactly why the 6X Airline

Shashank’s book, SOAR, in

Brand Model (6X Model)

which he analysed 8 re-

was created by CEO of

markable airlines from all

SimpliFlying, Shashank

over the World, by flying

Nigam, - to help airlines

to their headquarters and

be aware of and better

conducting interviews

understand what these

with their front-facing

differences mean when it

staff as well as their c-suite

comes to branding an air-

leadership.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Airline marketing and

During 2020, we will feature at least one airline analysis based on the 6X Model in every issue, unless it is a special report, like our December 2019 Flight Shaming Special issue of Airline Marketing Monthly (AMM). By the way, if you have any good ideas for topics that we can cover in AMM, do not hesitate to send an email to dirk@simpliflying.com.

The 6X Model is also something we cover extensively in our Airline Marketing Fundamentals course, which is delivered by Shashank, and we even provide you the opportunity to do your own 6X analysis of an airline of choice, which we here at the SimpliFlying Global Institute will then provide you feedback on.

Since this is the first analysis using the 6X model in AMM, we will first provide an overview of how it works and what it looks like:

all contributing to the brand of the airline in one way or another. It is very difficult to excel in all of the 6 areas, hence most airlines try to focus on a few, in which they can excel. Here are the definitions of the 6X’s, which we will use in a subsequent analysis of JetBlue.

1. Brand eXpectation: how accurately and successfully an airline lets customers know what it has to offer 2. Brand eXperience: what it feels like to interact with the airline during travel, across all touch-points, at the airport and in-flight.

3. Brand eXpression: how well the airline communicates with customers and staff 4: Brand eXternalities: anything that affects customers that is not in the control of the airline (weather, oil prices, regulations etc.)

5. Brand eXecution: how an airline delivers on its promises 6. Brand X-Factor: the special sauce possessed exclusively by the airline in question that is hard to duplicate for competition.

71.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The model consists of 6 distinct factors,

6X analysis of the month: jetBlue What comes to mind when you think of jetBlue? other airlines. However, jetBlue consistently communicates the same messages over and over, which helps set the right expectations in the minds of customers, and allows them to focus on that, instead of being clouded by a myriad of different offers. Here is what jetBlue consistently communicate: - Free inflight entertainment, both Live TV, movies and high-speed internet - Free brand name snacks and drinks (the most popular being their blue chips by Terra) and full-size soda cans ( I always get the Ginger Ale).

- Most legroom in economy class in the US - Award winning-customer service.

And they work! If someone were to stop me in the street and ask about what I know about jetBlue, these are the things that would come to mind!

72.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

jetBlue’s social media marketing efforts do not much traction compared to many

Service minded – both on and off-duty Although I have only flown on jetBlue a dozen times, I have flown with the major 4 US full-service carriers domestically more than 50 times, and my experiences with them have for the most part not been very memorable. However, my jetBlue flights I tend to remember, as there usually always some positive element to them.

In 2014, I was flying from New York to Barbados, and even before I stepped into the I JetBlue terminal at JFK, I was impressed.

Newark International Airport, and as it was quite late, the train service from EWR to Penn Station in Manhattan, were not that frequent, leaving me pushed for time to make my connecting train.

Lucky for me, there was a couple that were extremely helpful in guiding me where to go and what tickets to buy and showed me how, and as it turns out, this couple worked for jetBlue. The husband as a Pilot and his wife as a Flight Attendant. I will never forget their kindness, and we have since been in contact with each other. This exemplar way of being when they were off-duty, gave me a good idea of what kind of people jetBlue they hire.

But let us go back to the flight to Barbados. Before pushing back from the gate, the captain came out into the cabin with a big smile, and in a very enthusiastic and genuine way, announced over the PA system that in only 5 hours, we would all be in the paradise of Barbados and started describing a few things at the destination, which of course got everyone excited for their holiday.

Sometimes people clap when the plane lands smoothly, but in this case, he received a sitting ovation (safety firstđ&#x;˜‰) even before we had left the gate. This experience and many others I have had with jetBlue, whether it be at the check-in counter, the gate, or in the air, the staff of jetBlue express a willingness to help and serve. No wonder they have won awards for their customer service.

73.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

The day before I had arrived from Copenhagen with SAS – Scandinavian Airlines, at

When things don’t go as planned During the summer of 2019, I was flying with my sisters and her 3 little kids, ranging from 2-7 years old. We were flying f rom Newark to Boston, and due to the weather, we were delayed by several hours.

This was bad news as we had a connecting flight in Boston going to Salt Lake City. We finally boarded and was seated on the very last row. It was a very warm and humid day, and as we taxied to the runway, the air condition did not work very well, especially not at the back.

tarmac before we could take-off.

I turned to the flight attendant on the jump seat behind me, Michaela King Knight, and explained our situation. She instantly relaxed our minds, by continuously supplying new information and giving tips about how to quickly switch gates in Boston, and just overall very nice, sincere and chatty in general.

She, along with her fellow crew, also did the quickest drinks and snack service I have ever seen (38 min flight only, with only 20 min to serve). As we landed and had to get off quickly, but as we sat in the very last row and the flight was full, Michaela told everyone to stay seated so that we could disembark the aircraft first and be on our way. This experience was just one of many that I have had were jetBlue staff went above and beyond to help and take ownership of a situation, despite it being out of their control.

Keeping your promises Based on the ratings of TripAdvisor, jetBlue does very well when it comes to delivering on its promises. They score a consistent 4 out of 5 in every category, and more than 50% of their reviews are rated as “Excellent”, and about 25% as “Very Good”. Personally, I have never been disappointed by jetBlue, on the contrary I have been upgraded several times, allowed more luggage and always been treated with respect.

74.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

This would have been alright, had we not had to wait an additional hour on the

The special sauce It is hard to pinpoint the X-factor of jetBlue, because it cannot be boiled down to something obvious, like Sir Richard Branson for Virgin Atlantic, Michael O’leary for Ryanair, or the Singapore Girl for Singapore Airlines.

But if we were to give it our best shot, it would probably be their ability to do things differently, especially in implementing new ideas quickly, a lot of which stems from their underlying culture of innovation and technology. And although this is not entirely unique ie. Delta is also very much at foref ront here, jetBlue has some impressive accomplishments behind them, and some interesting

- JetBlue has offered Live seatback TV with up to 24 channels for free since 2000, not through a third party, but by buying the satellite tv provider for $41 million.

This was before many airlines even had inflight entertainment screens. Especially airlines only operating narrow body aircraft.

- They were first to introduce high-speed internet service, Fly-Fi, after having developed it with Thales and ViaSat, simply because nothing good enough existed now. The service was free for all passengers too!

- They have the best US domestic business class seat on the market, Mint, which is the first and only fully lie-flat seat within the United States domestic market.

They were rated as the best regional business class in North America by being awarded the 2019 Travelers Choice Award by trip advisor.

- As the first US airline, they have made planes to start flying across the North Atlantic to Europe from the US east coast, using their narrow-bodied Airbus A321 XLR aircraft.

- JetBlue truly is at the forefront of technological development within the airline industry.

- A big part of this is due to their venture capital arm in Silicon Valley, JetBlue Technology Ventures, which is invests in start-ups that bring f resh ideas to air travel. Since 2016, they have scanned approximately 3000 companies and invested in 28 of them.

75.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

plans going forward. Here is a brief overview:

Conclusions jetBlue excel in many areas, but where they truly shine and stand apart from their competition are in two areas: eXperience and X-factor. These two go hand in hand, as everything that jetBlue does to innovate, comes right back into the customer experience, and I believe it is this exact ability that makes jetBlue one of the most popular airlines in the United States.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

76.

77.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Airline Marketing Campaigns

British Airways - Clever You

(resorts, hotels) product that plays on competitiveness, especially in terms of people showing off Instagram holiday photo likes.

Two couples are shown in a coffee shop, the male partner of one couple drones on about their recent holiday, showing off photos on his phone of a luxury resort ‘where all the celebs go.’ The second couple are then asked where they are going on holiday. When it turns out that they are going to St Lucia with BA holidays, the first couple appear annoyed. The ad ends showing the two of them enjoying their caribbean break.

78.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

British Airways has launched a campaign to support its holidays

Royal Brunei Airlines - It’s the little things that matter

line’s flights to Brunei and onwards to London. The focus is on RB’s staff, with 25 employees featured in the campaign that has the title, “It’s the Little Things we do to make our service special.“ As the title says the focus is very much on detail orientated customer service f rom RB staff.

Quoted in Australian marketing trade website Mumbrella, Australasian regional director, Victor Sharan says: “The campaign highlights that in addition to one of the most modern fleets in the world, what really sets Royal Brunei apart, is the warm Bruneian hospitality experienced by our guests throughout their journey.“

79.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Royal Brunei has launched an Australia focused ad campaign, promoting the air-

Virgin Atlantic and Grey Goose

brand Grey Goose.

A Grey Goose festive lounge was built within the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at Heathrow.

There, Virgin’s premium passengers could try complimentary cocktails, as well as personalising them through a ‘drinks ripple machine.’

The collaboration between Virgin Atlantic and Grey Goose goes back a number of years. In 2011, the airline worked with the vodka brand in creating what it called ‘the world’s best airport bar’, The Grey Goose Loft, which was likewise at the Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse.

80.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Over New Year, Virgin Atlantic teamed up with Bacardi owned vodka

Qatar Airways - Blink and Score

Qatar Airways safety video, within our safety video round-up.

However, this isn’t the only piece of recent football / soccer activity from the airline. Qatar Airways has also released an Augmented Reality (AR) game, which works via Facebook, where fans must ‘blink and score’ (see video demonstration above).

Qatar Airways says it’s the first regional carrier to leverage the new Facebook AR ads format, enabling consumers to play the AR game directly from Facebook’s newsfeed, without having to install additional applications.

A creative campaign featuring footballer Xavi playing the AR game was used to launch it.

81.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Earlier in the magazine, we talked about the new football themed

Rossiya Airlines - Masha and the Bear

on YouTube. One episode, ‘Recipe for Disaster’ has the distinction of being the fifth most watched YouTube video of all time.

Masha and the Bear will now be used to promote Russia’s Rossiya Airlines under a licensing deal signed between the airline and the show’s copyright owner, Aminacord.

According to the Russian Aviation blog, this will include a Masha and the Bear themed safety video, to be produced in 2020.

The airline has also acquired the right to sell co-branded products on board, as well as to stream shows via its IFE system.

82.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Masha and the Bear is a Russian animated TV series, which is extremely popular

Cathay Pacific - This Chinese New Year, it’s all about family

the ‘year of the rat.’

To mark the occasion, Cathay Pacific has created an ad of a Hong Kong family laughing and squabbling in different destinations that the airline flies to.

Quoted in Branding in Asia, Leo Burnett’s Carol Lam said that the thinking behind the campaign was that ‘home is where the family is.’

Meanwhile a page on the Cathay Pacific website gives tips on six places to spend Chinese New Year, from London to Vancouver.

83.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Chinese New Year starts at the end of this month, which will usher in

Emirates - Americas Cup

ticipation in the world’s best known yacht race, the Americas Cup. As part of this, the airline announced that it will be the ‘Official Airline’ partner, which includes the America’s Cup World Series (ACWS), sponsoring all preliminary regattas leading up to the main event in 2021.

At the same time, Emirates is the name sponsor of the New Zealand team - Emirates New Zealand.

While Emirates is the New Zealand team sponsor and official event airline partner, Airbus is sponsoring the US team, American Magic.

84.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Included within Emirates’ vast sports sponsorship programme is par-

Edelweiss - Catch a flight to Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires. Winning involves downloading a special Edelweiss app from the iOS or Google play store, and pointing it at the sky.

The idea is to ‘catch’ an Edelweiss flight leaving for Argentina, for a chance to then be on one of those planes yourself.

Edelweiss is wholly owned by Swiss International, which is of course in turn part of the Lufthansa Group. Edelweiss flies to a range of leisure destinations from its Zurich base.

This includes Argentina, with twice weekly Buenos Aires flights having started in November 2018.

Edelweiss isn’t the first airline to produce an app that you have to point at the sky.

In 2012, Air France released a ‘music in the sky’ app that pointed up in order to ‘capture’ songs.

85.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Swiss Airline Edelweiss is giving people the chance to win flights from Zurich to

Delta - Parallel Reality

Developed in partner-

they walk past the digital

of this year, Delta passen-

ship with tech company

screen. These messages

gers departing from De-

Misapplied Sciences (in

may include personal-

troit will be taking part in

which Delta is an in-

ized wayfinding, flight

the airline’s first ‘Parallel

vestor), the technology

information or updates,

Reality’ experience.

works as follows:

boarding time, the near-

In an innovation that

After security in Detroit,

sounds like something

travellers will see a Par-

that was predicted in

allel Reality display. Par-

the science fiction film,

ticipating customers (the

Geekwire has a good

‘Minority Report’, mul-

technology is opt in) can

write up of the launch

tiple customers will see

scan their boarding pass

announcement, which

personalized content

and select their preferred

happened at CES in Las

tailored to their unique

language.

Vegas. The website calls

journey on a single digital screen – at the exact same time and in their preferred language.

86.

Every customer will then see personalized, in-language messages – tailored just to them – as

est Delta Sky Club or even upgrade/standby status.

the technology ‘mind bending’ and says ‘it might sound like science fiction.’

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Starting from the middle

Brands featured in this issue Alaska Airlines British Airways Cathay Pacific Emirates Etihad Embraer Edelweiss Flybmi Japan Airlies JetBlue Korean Air Nepal Airlines Norwegian Qantas Qatar Airways Rossiya Airlines Starlux Stobart Air Royal Brunei Airlines Tagger Virgin Atlantic Xiamen Airlines

87.

Airline Marketing Monthly | January 2020

Delta