Celebrating the GLBT Community at 30,000 Feet

Pink Presenters

• Roger Poulton, Vice President, Air New Zealand – The Americas

• Sarah Miller-Reeves, PR Manager, Air New Zealand – The Americas

• Susannah George, Senior Account Executive, CRT/tanaka Los Angeles

A Pink Preview…•Air New Zealand’s Pink

Past•North American Pink Flight

– Objectives & Strategy – Employee Engagement– Marketing Plan– Celebrity Involvement – Event at 30,000 Feet

•Pink Flight Results•Lessons Learned •2009 Initiatives•Questions

ANZ’s Pink Past – How the Idea Took Flight• Inaugural Pink Flight in 2007• Great employee idea, didn’t

originate in marketing• Themed flight from AKL to

SYD to take passengers to world-famous Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

• Party led by well-known drag queen, Buckwheat and crew on ground and in air

ANZ’s Pink Past – Purpose• Differentiate Air New Zealand

from other airlines• 2007 Pink Flight objectives:

– Publicity and awareness– Sell seats– Encourage New Zealand and

Australian GLBT travelers to choose Air New Zealand

• Supported with advertising, online, PR, OOH, direct marketing

Success…Now What?

• Flight sold out

• Well received by the GLBT community in Australia and New Zealand

• Support and excitement for the initiative from Air New Zealand employees

• Let’s continue the initiative – which market next?

North American Pink Flight • Air New Zealand in North

America– Household name in NZ but low

awareness in US– Do you know where New

Zealand is?!– Flying from US for more than

44 years (LAX and SFO)– Competition for long-haul travel

high • Qantas, United larger

budgets and visibility

• GLBT market is a focus for Air New Zealand, The Americas for good reason– 70% own passport– Spent $40 billion on travel in

2007– Air New Zealand markets (LA

and San Francisco) are home to thriving GLBT communities

North American Pink Flight

• Objectives– Raise brand awareness amongst

GLBT communities in US and Canada

– Differentiate brand in cluttered airline space

– Engage employees worldwide in a manner that represents company values

– Sell seats

North American Pink Flight

• Strategies– Bring Pink Flight to North

America and build upon success from NZ flight in 2007

– Create a marketing campaign that resonated with both GLBT and general market consumers

– Employee engagement program

North American Pink Flight

• Employee Engagement– Idea originated from employee– Crew selection process– Employee promotions

(sweepstakes to win seats on flight)

– Crew performances– Internal promotion of flight, staff

and crew – Employee “Pink Flight”

Ambassadors

North American Pink Flight

• Considerations– GLBT support– Potential backlash from non-

GLBT customers– SFO support for planning– In-air focus on safety– $200k budget with expectation

that event pays for itself with seat and cargo sales

North American Pink Flight

North American Pink Flight • Pink Flight Marketing

– Announcement– Street teams at community

events in the Castro District and West Hollywood

– Online promotions– GLBT travel trade

communication

• Pink Flight Marketing– Drag queens and party

amenities, such as Pink Themed Food, gate party, games in air, themed entertainment

– Celebrity host

North American Pink Flight

• Leveraging the Right Celebrity– Kathy Griffin

• Resonates with the GLBT and general market audiences

• Sealed the deal via “My Life on the D List” production company and Bravo

• Self-promotion = Pink Flight Promotion

• Announcement as host made big news – entertainment, travel & GLBT media

North American Pink Flight

• Let the Party Begin… oh wait– SFO gate party coordination

and security considerations• Party guests and media

access (not ticketed) to gate• Drag queens through security

– Privacy concerns– In-air party safety concerns– Filming constraints at airport

and in air

North American Pink Flight

• Pink Carpet Event at Gate– DJ, drag queens, crew and

Kathy performances– Plane decorated with giant pink

boa and eye lashes– “Pink” cocktails and food, goody

bags– “Pinkparazzi” – 220 Passengers, 75 community

guests and media

North American Pink Flight

• Pink Flight of Fabulosity– Kathy’s stand-up routines

throughout the flight – Hot body contest– Drag queens– Filming for Bravo’s “My Life on

the D-List”– Media interviewing passengers,

queens and Kathy throughout flight

North American Pink Flight

• Media Outreach Plan– Pre-Publicity

• Announcement press releases• Leveraged Kathy’s properties

– Event Publicity• Media at the gate and on the plane • MNR with plane and party photos

uploaded to wire upon departure• Photos and video of in-flight action

pitched immediately upon landing

– Post-Publicity• Bravo segment promotion and later

airing, repeats• Marketing case study

North American Pink Flight

Pink Flight Results • Kathy Griffin – the gift that keeps on

giving…– Focus of “Kathy Griffin: My Life on

the D-List” episode– Pre-season, the segment was

promoted on Kathy’s Web properties and blog

– Bravo televised the Pink Flight episode promotion for three months prior to the season premiere

– Consistent reruns of episode – Pink Flight continues to be included

in her promotion of 2009 episodes– STILL references her involvement

in her stand up act

Pink Flight Results

• Brand Awareness and Sales– Ticket and cargo sales offset

cost of marketing and flight.– Brand awareness generated was

among the largest contributors to the airline’s Y-O-Y 24 % increase in ticket sales in North American market

– GLBT market enthusiastically received Pink Flight (based on tone and volume of the blogging community as well as media coverage)

Pink Flight Results

• Global Awareness of Event– $13 million in publicity value– 352,104,840 total impressions– CBS News on Logo, Jay Leno,

MSNBC Live, Early Today, Star Magazine, San Francisco Chronicle, American Way Magazine, LA Times, MetroSource, Advocate, Out Traveler

Pink Flight Lessons Learned• Airport and In-flight

Considerations• The Right Celebrity Matters• There are always critics, and

sometimes they’re right• Moving forward with the

GLBT community

GLBT 2009 Initiatives

• Events– Los Angeles Pride

Festival– San Francisco Pride

Festival– Castro Street Fair (San

Francisco)– Palm Springs Pride

Festival– LA Gay & Lesbian

Center Auction– Outfest Legacy Awards

Sponsor (Hollywood)– Vancouver Pride

Festival– Vancouver Winter Pride

• Advertising & Collateral– LGBT targeted magazines

(Instinct, Curve, Out Traveler, Jane & Jane)

– Annual Gay & Lesbian Travel Directory

– Frontiers Yellow Pages (LGBT Yellow Pages & partner iPhone app for Southern California)

– San Francisco Gay & Lesbian Community Center Annual Report

GLBT 2009 Initiatives

• Online

GLBT 2009 Initiatives

QUESTIONS?