How Airlines Use Marketing and Advertising to Fly High

The aviation industry is one of the most lucrative and competitive sectors in the world. According to IATA, if the aviation industry was a country, it would rank among the top 20 economies in terms of GDP.

With such a huge potential market, airlines have to invest heavily in marketing and advertising campaigns to attract and retain customers, as well as to stand out from the crowd.

Over the years, airlines have used various strategies and tactics to promote their brands, products, and services. Some of these campaigns have been memorable, innovative, and successful, while others have been controversial, risky, or even disastrous.

In this article, we will look at some of the best examples of airline marketing and advertising campaigns that have captured the public’s attention and made an impact on the industry.

Air New Zealand – The Hobbit Safety Videos (2012, 2014)
Air New Zealand is known for its creative and humorous safety videos that often feature celebrities, pop culture references, and stunning scenery. One of its most popular series of safety videos was inspired by The Hobbit film trilogy, directed by Peter Jackson.

In 2012, the airline released a safety video titled “An Unexpected Briefing”, which featured actors, crew members, and fans of The Hobbit dressed as characters from Middle-earth. The video also included cameos by Peter Jackson himself and Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

The video was a huge hit, garnering over 13 million views on YouTube and generating positive media coverage and social media buzz. The video also coincided with the release of the first film of The Hobbit trilogy, “An Unexpected Journey”, which boosted tourism to New Zealand as the filming location.

In 2014, Air New Zealand released another Hobbit-themed safety video, titled “The Most Epic Safety Video Ever Made”. This time, the video featured more actors from The Hobbit films, such as Evangeline Lilly, Sylvester McCoy, Dean O’Gorman, and Richard Armitage. The video also showcased more locations from New Zealand that were used in the films.

The video was even more successful than the first one, racking up over 22 million views on YouTube and winning several awards for its creativity and production quality. The video also coincided with the release of the final film of The Hobbit trilogy, “The Battle of the Five Armies”, which further enhanced Air New Zealand’s brand image as the official airline of Middle-earth.

ANA – Star Wars Project (ongoing)
In 2015 Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) launched one of the most iconic marketing campaigns to hit the aviation sector.

In one of the most epic partnerships ANA and the Star Wars franchise forged a coming together of minds to help launch the movie, ‘The Force Awakens’.

The film was the first in a brand-new trilogy that was followed by ‘The Last Jedi’ (2017) and ‘The Rise of Skywalker’ (2019).

To mark the first movie one of ANA’s Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner’s was painted in the colors of the famous droid R2-D2, which appeared for the first time in the original film, ‘A New Hope’.

This was followed by another plane based around the character BB-8 and a Boeing 777 that took inspiration from the slightly irritating, but lovable droid C-3PO.

The marketing ploy has been so popular that both the C-3PO and R2-D2 jets still fly in their distinctive livery today.

British Airways – ‘Concorde’ (1996)
In 1996, years before the space adventures of Elon Musk and Jeff Bezoz, British Airways was the leading company heading to Mars. Well, that is at least what the carrier’s adverts led viewers to believe.

In a famous campaign from the 1990s, when the supersonic Concorde was in its element, BA released an advert with the iconic jet flying to space.

The special effects were a little dodgy by today’s standards, but the advert was incredible for its time.

With an astronaut floating through outer space and a weightless pen floating off from the seat table the whole advert fitted with the brand that the Concorde was something out of this world.

In the end the advert simply stated that Concorde had flown over 150million miles, which is about the same as flying to Mars and back.

However, the whole arraignment of the advert felt revolutionary, much like the Concorde itself.

British Airways – #Lookup (2013)
British Airways is one of the most iconic and prestigious airlines in the world. In 2013, the airline launched a groundbreaking outdoor advertising campaign that used digital billboards to interact with real planes flying overhead.

The campaign was called #Lookup and it featured a young boy pointing at planes that flew past in the sky. The billboards then displayed information about the planes’ flight numbers and destinations, as well as messages such as “Fly BA to Los Angeles” or “Fly BA to Hong Kong”.

The campaign used custom-built technology that tracked the flight data of planes in real time and triggered the billboards to display relevant content. The campaign also encouraged people to share their photos and videos of the billboards on social media using the hashtag #Lookup.

The campaign was a huge success, generating over 1 million impressions on Twitter and over 200 media articles. The campaign also won several awards for its innovation and effectiveness. The campaign showcased British Airways’ global network and inspired people to travel with the airline.

Lufthansa – Everyone’s Fanhansa (2016)
Humor has been successfully deployed in many marketing and advertising campaigns.

Airlines perhaps tend to lean on the more serious aspects of flying such as safety and competency.

However, well placed comedy can be used with brilliant effect and could help airlines tap into potential markets that may not usually fly with them.

This was never more apparent than in a Lufthansa advert in May 2016, just weeks before football’s European Championship was being held in France.

Germany and England are renowned for their footballing rivalry and airline Lufthansa decided to mock the opposing fans in an advert.

In the advert two English football fans are rebooked on a Lufthansa flight after theirs is canceled.

Unhappy that they will be flying with the Germans to a football tournament, the younger fan begins imagining the plane being filled with brass horns and passengers dressed in Lederhosen.

Turkish Airlines – ‘Widen your world’ (2017)
If you are looking for star quality in your aviation advert and someone who has a voice that holds huge gravitas, then the first phone call you need to make is to Morgan Freeman.

And that is exactly what Turkish Airways did in 2017 when the airline signed up Freeman for a globally advertising campaign called ‘Widen your world’.

Freeman had his first major Hollywood breakthrough in the late 1980s, despite his acting for many years.

Although an exceptional actor he was also famed for his rich, soothing voice, which gained particular acclaim when he appeared as the character Red in ‘Shawshank Redemption’.

So, when Turkish Airlines wanted to create an advert that tapped into viewer’s feelings about being freedom and adventures in the advert, there was only one person in mind.

The advert has almost filmlike, emotional qualities and Freeman’s narration no doubt left some viewers reaching for the tissue box.

Virgin Atlantic – Still Red Hot (2009)
Virgin Atlantic is one of the most flamboyant and rebellious airlines in the world. Founded by Sir Richard Branson in 1984, the airline has always challenged the status quo and offered a different flying experience to its customers.

In 2009, Virgin Atlantic celebrated its 25th anniversary with a bold and cheeky advertising campaign that highlighted its brand values and personality. The campaign was called “Still Red Hot” and it featured a group of glamorous Virgin Atlantic cabin crew walking through a dull and dreary airport in the 1980s.

As they walked past bored and unhappy passengers, they turned heads with their red uniforms, confident attitude, and sexy appeal. They also attracted the attention of celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Grace Jones, Boy George, Vivienne Westwood, and even Sir Richard Branson himself.

The campaign used the song “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood as its soundtrack and ended with the slogan “25 years later…still red hot”. The campaign aimed to show that Virgin Atlantic had not lost its edge or passion over time and still offered a superior flying experience to its customers.

The campaign was very successful, generating over £10 in revenue for every £1 spent on advertising. The campaign also increased brand awareness, preference, and loyalty among customers. The campaign reinforced Virgin Atlantic’s position as a leader in the airline industry and a challenger to its competitors.