Airlines 2.0Usingtechnologyforinnova2vebrandingthroughtherecession
Avia%onOutlookMiddleEastAbuDhabi,March3‐5,2009
About the Speaker• Airline branding expert & consultant
• Founder & CEOSimpliFlying
• Global Lead- Brand Strategy, Airline Capital Associates, Inc
• ColumnistInterbrand’s BrandChannel.com
• Co-author of two books on branding
What you will learn...
What does a recession mean for airline brands?
How to tap on the latest technologies to get closer to the customers?
What have other airlines done to enhance their brands?
What are the risks involved in this approach?
Simply, how to build a stronger airline brand in 2009
Let’s start by reviewing 2008
Total estimated losses for airlines
$4,000,000,000
Average drop in airline stocks
30%
Expected price of oil in mid-2009
$25Highest pric
e of a barre
l of o
il
$165
Expected number of airline bankruptcies in 2009
50
Cost of s
econd bag ch
eck-in
$50
Cost of c
hoosing a sp
ecific s
eat
$50
Average fu
el surc
harge
$200
CustomersFrustratedEmployeesManagement
In other words...
Loss of Brand Equity
Airlines need to get closer to the customer again.
But how?
By interacting with the customers on their terms
By getting inside the fickle mind of the customer
By sharing the ownership of the brand
By revealing the personality behind the brand
By tapping on the latest technologies to do this
Bring in the social web...Community || Collaboration || Content || Co-Creation
Interaction without interruption
A community for common interests
A community for a specific target group
A community for frequent fliers
A community for potential customers
A community in another community
Customer often knows best
Sometimes, competitions do the trick
And other times, a customer-spokesperson is needed
Airlines need a Personal!ty
But first...
Airline food, anyone?
Em
bracin
g the
accid
en
tal spo
ke
spe
rson
Em
plo
yee
s blo
gging
Keep it Simple. Make it Easy.
Keep it Simple. Make it Easy.
A Holistic Strategy?Interaction without interruption
Co-creation
Having a personality
Ease of experience
JetBlue Airwaysblogging...
JetBlue Airwayson Twitter...
JetBlue Airwayson eBay...
Need not be just about money
To capture a specific market...
Go where the customer is.
It can be about engaging the employees
The key is to have a quantifiable measure of success beforehand
Risks? What Risks?
How to tackle risks?
Recognize - What can go wrong?
Prepare - To involve the community
Be Resilient - Bounce!
Airlines need to restore the trust in their brands...
Using the latest technology tools to build trust allows...
Interaction without interruption
Co-creation
Building of a personality
Ease of experience
It’s not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the
one that is most adaptable to change.
Charles Darwin
Get in touch
Shashank [email protected]