Since recently returning from the American Association of Airport Executive’s (Great Lakes Region) National Air Service Conference, my mind is buzzing about innovative ways that social media can be used to enhance an airport’s air service development efforts.

At the conference I moderated a panel that was focused on the importance of communicating to the generations and how social media has infiltrated into the air service spectrum of the industry. It is now more important than ever for airports to understand that the ways in which our passengers are communicating and understand that that has evolved to include social media. It is no longer enough to simply market a new route through traditional mediums;  social media needs to be at the forefront of the minds of airports as they are working to enhance air service.

Social Promotions and Route Launches

During the conference session, Justin Meyer, Manager of Air Service Development for the Kansas City International Airport shared how social media is not only changing the way the airport is communicating to passengers of all generations, but also about their recent efforts to launch new service on Alaska Airlines from MCI to Seattle, WA.  The airport had a pre-existing relationship with the carrier, which led to a member of  the staff being invited to fly out on the inaugural flight and tweet about the new service and cool promotion they were running.

Partnering with your airlines to help market a new route is not a new concept for airports, but using social media to enhance the reach is an area on which airports are beginning to place more of a focus.

So what are a few simple ways that an airport can use social media to leverage new or existing routes and possible help to develop new air service for their local communities?

Three ways to revolutionize airport marketing

1. Awareness through a Game – Leverage local community partners to spread the word of destinations through Facebook checki-ns.

   Click here to view the embedded video.

Take a look at what Air China recently embarked on to increase awareness in the Sweden of all the cool Asian destinations they serve.

In order to increase awareness in the Sweeden of the airline’s multiple Asian destinations, they partnered with local Sweeden businesses. While scope and location are always a factor before jumping into a strategy, we feel that airports can learn from this example and could benefit from a similar program.

2. The use of social media to push seat sales for both new and existing markets.
   Your airline partners are already doing it, so why not partner up with them to share the news with your local social followers and fans?  A quick email off to the marketing departments of each airline that serves your market, letting them know that you want to push specials, news, and deals through your social mediums can get an airport started on the right track to social success. 

   The Melbourne Airport created a special Twitter handle just for pushing seat sales. While the account is not very “interactive” with its followers, @MelbFlightDeals has given the airport a channel to share relevant information and deals with followers who are looking for deal specific information.
   

3. The use of social media to run social-based surveys aimed at route development.
   JetBlue recently showcased a fine example of communicating with travelers on how route decisions are made.  The social savvy team posted a simply survey, asking followers to vote of favorite destinations and paired it with an informative blog post about how the airline chooses cities. 

   Air service surveys are tricky, as the airport can not be certain if the info will be taken to heart by the airline they are hoping to woo, however, community engagement and participation are not to be taken lightly. Airports are often found in the position where they must work to convince an airline of the viability of a certain new market and community engagement is key in air service development.  By engaging the community through the survey and using it as a channel to also inform them of the importance of their support, this just could be a winning way for an airport to use social media in a fun new way.

   Step 1: Create a simple survey aimed at gathering information from your local passengers on travel preferences and needs.
   Step 2: Write a post to the community sharing with them how the process works and the importance of supporting the airport.

   These are just a few ways that airports can begin to use social media as a route development tool. What do you think?

   For more ideas your airport can use social media to engage your passengers, be sure to revisit our 4 Fun Ways Airports Can Drive Engagement Though Foursquare and Top 10 airports on social media or drop us a line at airports@simpliflying.com to learn more about how your airport can use social media to drive engagement and revenue.

• Simplinnovative Air Service Development Marketing by Penticton Airport to get Westjet service
• How BmiBaby Used Instagram to Visually Engage Travelers and Locals
• Thirty questions airline brands and airports must answer to build a strong social media strategy
• How BMI SimpliEngaged Customers with a Pinterest Visual Lottery
• Introducing the newly expanded SimpliFlying team, with special focus on community engagement and airport marketing

In our view there are two key elements in this problem.  The first one is the need to be where the audience is and the second one is to find something that, while being relevant to the audience, is also able to inspire audience to part with cash and travel somewhere.

An Emerging social network

Just a few days ago we wrote about the high growth rates and airline marketing potential presented by Pinterest, the new image-based social bookmarking site. In particular we stressed how this new site had the potential to inspire travelers, and now we are seeing an early attempt by an airline to exploit this potential with the launch of the BMI Pinterest lottery.

Using Images Instead of Numbers for Lucky Draw

The UK-based airline created several different image boards featuring pictures from some of its destinations. Each board contains nine pins (images) that come associated with a number. To participate users have to re-pin (share) up to six images and by doing so they will select the numbers associated with those images. Each week a lucky number is announced and one of the users who re-pinned that image wins a return ticket to the destination that is portrayed.  The image below is an example of a pin for the town of Marrakech in Morocco.

Incentivise users

By giving its users an incentive to share these images the airline, as well as achieving brand recognition and engagement, was also able to raise awareness of its destinations and was able to reach its target market on an aspirational level, when the decision to travel has not been made yet and the awareness of an attractive destination could easily inspire a user to travel.

Positive results, what’s next?

This campaign was also clearly aimed at  growing the airline’s followers base on Pinterest by asking users to re-pin (share) the content created by the airline. It will be interesting however to see how the airline will deal with the increase in engagement and following that this campaign will undoubtedly drive.

At the time of writing BMI’s Pinterest profile had accumulated over 350 followers but most importantly almost all its destination-centered boards had in excess of 800 followers and several images had been shared over 100 times.  Considering the novelty of the social network and the fact that most images are automatically re-shared on the users’ twitter and facebook profiles, the level of engagement represented by these numbers is considerable, especially for a niche carrier like BMI.

If you wish to learn more about how SimpliFlying can help your airline or airport harness the powers of the social web (or even only Pinterest) and engage travelers profitably , we offer Strategy Consulting andMasterClasses that can be customized to your needs. You can get in touch with us directly at clients[at]simpliflying.com

Follow SimpliFlying on Pinterest here.

• How airlines and airports can use Pinterest to create brand associations through visual cues
• How BmiBaby Used Instagram to Visually Engage Travelers and Locals
• How COPA Airlines drove 50X return on investment from a Facebook app
• Three ways airports can use social media for air service marketing and route development
• [Infographic] How airlines around the world are using Instagram and what should you be doing

Now, the airline has decided to further enhance its efforts to engage with people based on their location, by launching an Instagram campaign that allows communities of users to meet in person on trips sponsored by BmiBaby.

Instagram community meetings

Instagram is a free photo sharing application on iOS that allows users to take a photo, apply a digital filter, then share it on a variety of social networking services including Instagram’s own. BmiBaby was able to exploit a particular trend within the Instagram image sharing network: having “Instameets”.  Instameets are user-organized events where Instagramers take part in a “photo walk” and take pictures of a particular location or town, that are then shared on Instagram under a dedicated hashtag.

BmiBaby launched a campaign to celebrate the 4^th World Instameet Day by providing free travel to members of different Instagram communities, allowing them to meet each other. On 11^th March, members of the London Instagram community were flown into Amesterdam to meet with local Instagramers. The event was tweeted and blogged live using the #myamsterdam tag.

Increasing local engagement and destination awareness

Besides the obvious increase in positive buzz about the airline, the most interesting (and potentially rewarding) aspect of this initiative is the brand association that the airline creates with the place portrayed in the Instagram pictures. Furthermore, BmiBaby also benefits by creating a direct line of communication, and engagement with members of the local Instagram communities who become more aware of the presence of the airline at their local airport and of the other destinations they could visit by flying with the airline.

Overall, we’d say this was one of the most visually-appealing initiatives leading to community building and engagement to be carried out by an airline in recent times. SimpliFantastic, Team BmiBaby!

Curious about how new social technologies such as Instagram and Pinterest can help your airline or airport engage customers more profitably? Drop us a line here.

• [Infographic] How airlines around the world are using Instagram and what should you be doing
• Vote for the SimpliFlying Hero of April 2012: bmibaby vs JetBlue vs Virgin Atlantic
• Three ways airports can use social media for air service marketing and route development
• How BMI SimpliEngaged Customers with a Pinterest Visual Lottery
• KLM reaffirms its social media leadership with its innovative Stewardess Yourself app

“I’ve heard of it too but I’m not really sure of what it is and, please, don’t tell me that we need yet another social network!”

We’re pretty sure that something similar must have gone through the minds of many airline and airport marketers over the past few weeks. According to some sources, Pinterest, the newest kid on the social block, is driving more traffic to company pages than “big” social networks like Linkedin or Google+ and people are spending more time on this addictive social network than just about any other platform except Facebook and Twitter.

But, what does it all mean ?

It could have simply been just another social network, or just another link sharing site that happened to be good at generating traffic while being visually appealing.  But luckily for us, it isn’t just that!

From a technical point of view Pinterest is a social-bookmarking website or, in other words, a website that allows people to highlight and share content that they find interesting. However, unlike other similar websites, it does so by asking users to share content through images while organizing it in themed groups known as Pinboards. Each Pinboard can have multiple pins all related to the theme of that Pinboard.

What is it actually like?

Each individual image represents a link that, if clicked, will lead the to the page where it was pinned from, thus generating traffic, but most importantly each image carries emotional content and a visual appeal that distinguishes this website from its competitors. What’s interesting iss that even though the image shows a certain number of users following SimpliFlying’s profile on Pinterest, users can choose to follow specific Pinboards as well; this has led to an interesting anomaly where many of our boards have got about 50+ followers in the first 7 days since we launched our profile.

Images are effective

Unlike text, images are processed very quickly by the brain and often carry an emotional component that is immediately transmitted to the viewer. When we add this to the fact that content on Pinterest is shared and organized according to each user’s personal interests, we get a social network that is heavily focussed on sharing emotions, desires, interests (and links) through images. Or, in other words, a marketer’s dream.

If used correctly Pinterest has an enormous potential to allow brands to get closer to their target markets, by allowing them to create content aggregates (Pinboards) that appeal to different types of users who are willing to share them because they feel an emotional attachment to them.

On Pinterest users mostly share the future, not the past

Furthermore, unlike other social networks, the nature of Pinterest means that users do not always share things that happened to them in the past but often things that they like and would want to have (or do) in their future, thus adding a great potential for Pinterest to be used as a destination and aspirational marketing tool.

For airlines and airports this could mean adding a whole new emotional dimension to their marketing efforts, by allowing them to connect their brands to the experience of travel, the beauty of the destination or just about any other concept they wish, or are able to, represent with images.

A growing trend

Although there are still only a handful of airlines and airports on Pinterest, there seems to be a growing trend towards the adoption of this new platform and its usage seems to be focused on communicating brand values and associating the travel experience with the destinations that it leads to.

At SimpliFlying we strongly believe that this platform has great branding potential and, if used correctly, could prove invaluable to both small and large businesses. For this reason we have created two specialized Pinboards to showcase the best examples of Airlines and Airport pins, and have already readied our consultants and trainers to provide expert advice on how to use this platform.

If you wish to learn more about how SimpliFlying can help your airline or airport harness the powers of the social web (or even only Pinterest) and engage travelers profitably , we offer Strategy Consulting and MasterClasses that can be customized to your needs. You can get in touch with us directly at shubhodeep@simpliflying.com.

Find SimpliFlying on Pinterest here.

• How BMI SimpliEngaged Customers with a Pinterest Visual Lottery
• Airlines rush to get brand pages on Google+, but why? 7 questions to ask before you join a new social media platform
• How BmiBaby Used Instagram to Visually Engage Travelers and Locals
• Airports That Twitter & Why It Is An Effective Tool (for the airport brand)
• [Infographic] The first-ever insights into how airlines are using Google Plus

Two things that SimpliFlying loves to see are conference #hashtags and the use of social media to increase audience engagement. Both of these things were in full
effect at Routes Americas.

Leading up to the conference I quickly learned which of the socially tapped-in industry players would be attending, and was able to follow their arrivals and expectations through twitter and the #RoutesAmericas hashtag. Throughout the event many tweeters also seemed to be following along with the conference #hashtag from afar.

Sunshine and (Aviation) Matchmaking

When I arrived in Nassau, I learned that Routes also had the foresight to offer attendees a conference specific smartphone application – something that proved to be invaluable for keeping up with agendas and re-caps. Our sources at UBM Aviation Routes tell us that while the use of a Routes conference app debuted at the 2011 World Routes event,  this is the first time an app has been used for a Routes Regional event and that 207 unique visitors used the app.

It works on all of the major smartphone platforms (iPhone, Android and Blackberry) and provided users with a full list of delegates and online profiles, which is key for event followup. I found myself constantly checking the app to keep on top of the daily agenda and to use the map features to find my way through the expansive resort.  My favorite features were the HUB News section and the social media links, as they created an easy way to keep up with current conference updates.

• Routes Americas 2012 – Airport-Airline Relationship Building at its Best
• Indigo Airlines goes international chic with latest brand campaign – the model of a modern global airline
• Simplinnovative Air Service Development Marketing by Penticton Airport to get Westjet service
• [Video] The best holiday greetings from airlines this season
• Social Media for Airlines Conference – Live coverage from London #SMairlines

KLM is well known for its social media initiatives, but the speed and quality of their campaigns is really starting to become something unique. Just a few days ago we reported about their “Meet and Seat” social-seating initiative and now they’ve surprised us again by creating a fun, and very shareable, initiative that will surely help create new positive associations with their brand. Read on:

Ever dreamed of becoming a stewardess? Or of dressing up as one?

Well, personally I haven’t, but since it’s Carnival, I decided to accept a fun assignment by trying out KLM’s latest initiative: their “Stewardress Yourself“ Facebook app. Eventually, I ended up taking some rather embarrassing (but admittedly entertaining) pictures of me as a SimpliStewardess.

The initiative has been launched trough a dedicated tab in KLM’s facebook page that houses a unique Facebook app designed to bring customers even closer to the brand. This is how it works:

Users are first prompted to like the KLM facebook page and give permission to the app.

Next they are asked to choose picture from their facebook albums, upload one, or take one with their webcam. And then…  Well you can see for yourself in the pictures below:

You can have plenty of fun adding your face to one of seven different “vintage” pictures and portray yourself as either a stewardess or a pilot, and share the result with your friends.

But it does not end there

Users who share the campaign with at least 5 other friends can win one of 5 personalized posters portraying them as a KLM flight attendant. Furthermore for those who do not want to rely on their luck to get a personalized KLM item, the company also offers the chance to buy (remember ROI?) personalized mugs, rucksacks and mouse pads.

Ultimately, this initiative again affirms the fact that KLM is undoubtedly one of the most innovative airlines in the world and has mastered the art of creating initiatives that not just create buzz but can ultimately be tied to their business objectives as well. Kudos to the team. We can’t wait to see what they offer next!

• How BmiBaby Used Instagram to Visually Engage Travelers and Locals
• Top 50 case-studies of airlines and airports excelling in social media
• An analysis of how KLM is winning the social media battle among European Airlines
• The Big Flight: How Malaysia Airlines is using social media to launch their new A380
• Vote for the SimpliFlying Hero of April 2012: bmibaby vs JetBlue vs Virgin Atlantic

In the world of social media Google Plus is currently the youngest and least understood (albeit, fast rising in popularity) kid on the block. Over its relatively short life it has earned its fair share of both lovers and haters, generating an interesting debate on what it will become when it grows up, and whether it is worth investing in it.

When Google Plus was finally opened to businesses with the launch of its business pages there was a rush from companies all over the world to get a G+ page, but as our CEO Shashank Nigam warned in an article about the potential pitfalls for airlines using Google Plus, few of these companies seemed to have a clear idea of what to do with this new platform.

Let’s get some hard data

To get some clarity and hard data SimpliFlying did what it does best: walk the talk! We got ourselves a brand page on Google Plus and sent one of our team-members on a data-finding mission. While signs of progress on this particular social network is admittedly slow, after a week of relentless searching, we have come up with the first ever snapshot of the airline industry on Google Plus.

The main finding were:

• There are now 70 airlines with brand pages on G+.
• The vast majority of the pages are in English – about 78.5%. But on average, pages in Spanish are “liked” more often.
• The airline with the highest number of “likes” (known as “+1″s) was Mexican low cost carrier Volaris with almost 3000, double that of the second most popular page.
• The most common type of content on G+ pages is brand-related.

If you are an airline executive eager to know more, please do contact us and we’ll offer you a customized consulting or training solution to suit your needs.

Download a larger version of this infographic here.

What are your thoughts about how airlines should use Google Plus? Where do you see Google Plus headed? Tell us in the comments below or tweet us @simpliflying. Or, better still, join us on Google Plus.

• Airlines rush to get brand pages on Google+, but why? 7 questions to ask before you join a new social media platform
• How to drive Facebook engagement like KLM? Start playing “destination hangman”!
• Top 10 Facebook Timeline Implementations by Airlines and Airports
• [Infographic] Airlines on Twitter – April 2011 data reveals the need to focus on Customer Service
• Episode 5 of SimpliFlying Podcasts: Interview with Vueling’s CEO Alex Cruz and Industry Updates

Then, last year, there were significant indications of things to come with Malaysia Airlines allowing customers to sit next to their Facebook friends. However, a couple of months ago KLM announced that they would launch the first “truly” social seating system for airlines matching customer’s social profiles with those having similar profiles or interests.

So far, given the lack of details about how the system would exactly work, the announcement was both welcomed as well as met with trepidation by the online community. Some claimed they’d love to try this new system, saying that it would spare them long hours of boredom on their flights, to  the outraged reactions of people who thought it would be an unjustifiable invasion of privacy and could lead to in-flight harassment to unwilling seat-mates.

Today’s the real deal!  At KLM`s headquarters in Amsterdam, the world will witness the announcement of something different, radically innovative but also, controversial: allowing passengers to choose seat mates based on information about their shared interest taken from their Facebook profiles!

Let’s move on now to what’s really happening at Amsterdam.

Click here to view the embedded video.

KLM’s Meet and Seat – Live!

Follow the live-blog below to get blow-by-blow updates as the new product is unveiled (the blog will be updated as soon as the press conference starts)

Photo credit: @polledemaagt

[1.30pm] Social Seating will be launched on flights between Amsterdam and San Francisco, Sao Paolo and New York City.

[1.40 pm] We’ve learnt that passengers will be able to share information from their Facebook or LinkedIn account and will be to see who else is traveling on a particular flight and has shared relevant data. Everyone can decide which data they want to link with their flight. This information can be used by passengers to choose a seat-mate.

[1.45 pm] KLM President & CEO Erik Varwijk said that KLM has always strived to be cutting edge in social media and it’s latest revolutionary initiative will be fun and useful for people with similar interests to connect.

[1.50 pm] Meet & Seat will be can be reserved 90 days to 48 hours before departure on all intercontinental KLM flights via ‘Manage My Booking’.

[2.00 pm] We’ve managed to secure the very first look of what Meet and Seat will be like.

[2.15 pm] Essentially, after booking your KLM flight, choose what Facebook or LinkedIn profile details you want to share. Subsequently, view the profile details of fellow-passengers to find like-minded people or business partners. After evaluating such details you can choose to sit beside a person whose profile you find interesting. Of course, once you’re tuned into the social seating game, the potential is limitless as you could later choose to have a coffee at the airport or even share a taxi with the person you sit next to.

Here’s the Live video of the unveiling…

Click here to view the embedded video.

• The Future is Social: Interview with KLM’s VP of eCommerce reveals how airline marketing is set for a complete overhaul
• How an intelligent seating system can bring ancillary revenues, and is great for the airline brand
• 5 Ways to Incorporate Social Media Into the Flying Experience, and leverage on your “followers”
• Vote for the SimpliFlying Hero of February 2011 – Finnair vs Delta Air Lines vs Malaysia Airlines
• Three ways the Cathay Pacific brand can come alive by infusing social media into the People site

A short brand-recognition exercise

Let’s do a little exercise: name 3 brands of Cola.

Now let me guess: The first one that you thought of was: Coca Cola? And maybe the color red? The second one was: Pepsi, perhaps? And the third one?  Maybe you struggled a bit with this one, but probably it was the top selling “white label” brand from your local supermarket

Let’s do one more:

Think of good times (or more specifically, the recent holiday season) and name a brand of soft drinks.

I guess that you probably thought of something similar to the image below:

One last test:

Can you think of the holiday season and an airline/airport in the same breath?

Having troubles? Well it’s understandable since no airline brand has managed to “own” this idea yet, at least not in the minds of the general public. However some have managed to execute some “wow” campaigns aimed at associating their brands with positive emotions such as the ones associated with the holidays and Christmas seasons. As a result, they have ended up delighting customers, driving brand engagement and building loyalty.

In the spirit of the holiday season just gone by, with this Top 10, we have shown how some airlines and airports have spread smiles and goodwill amongst their customers.

• Top 10 Route Launches: How Airlines and Airports engage customers in new destinations through social media
• Toronto Pearson Airport sings you a Christmas carol if someone tweets you’re flying out – and they sang one for me
• Five airlines (and an airport) that surprised passengers this Christmas with Wow campaigns
• Oman Air’s re-branding effort – worth it?
• Vueling Business Class drives awareness creatively: The cloud that fell from the sky

Today, we’re launching SimpliFlying Podcasts – a brand new product that should excite our readers, most of whom are travel marketers. Starting this Wednesday, SimpliFlying will be releasing Marketing Strategy podcasts for airline and airport marketers on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month. Each podcast will have great insights on the latest in marketing from the best minds in aviation.

Why you should listen to the podcasts

Helmed by Shashank Nigam, the CEO of SimpliFlying, every fortnight we will interview a well-known face from the world of aviation (mostly CxO level). The in-depth interviews will be followed by a detailed discussion of insights into the latest in airline and airport marketing by SimpliFlying staff.

The podcasts will be available in two versions – a shorter, free version, lasting about 20 minutes, will have only the interview (you can listen to them below); the longer paid version, lasting about 40 minutes, will have the interview as well as the insights along with a detailed pdf transcript. Each premium podcast will be available at an introductory price of only $19 per podcast!

Listen to the first episode!

Our inaugural podcast has Tero Taskila, CEO of Estonian Air as the guest. Estonian Air, as you know, has been featured previously in our Top 10 case-packs for their innovative social media campaigns involving some rather interesting techniques to drive revenue such as reverse auctions on Facebook.

In recent months, the airline’s major claim to fame has been that it has developed the world’s first social media based loyalty program on Facebook. The app, Airscore, helps Estonian Air provide real-world rewards for virtual actions such as online brand advocacy. The social loyalty program has been path-breaking in terms of how it rewards loyalty and has won a number of awards as well. To learn more about Estonian Air and its great initiatives straight from their CEO, listen to the podcast below. You can subscribe to SimpliFlying Podcasts on iTunes as well!

Hope you enjoyed listening to our free podcast! Our premium version has 20 additional minutes of discussions on the hottest trends in the travel market with a focus on aviation. Burning issues such as social loyalty, measuring ROI on social media, opportunities for location-based services etc are discussed in detail by Shashank and Marco Serusi, our Community Engagement executive based out of Valencia, Spain. What’s more, if you’re not patient enough to listen, you’ll have access to the complete transcript of the 40-minute podcast as well. We’re offering all this, as we mentioned earlier, at a great introductory price of only $19!

This is just the beginning. Watch out over the next few weeks for a couple more exciting new products from SimpliFlying!

Full disclosure: SimpliFlying helped Estonian Air build their social loyalty program.

[Flash player for those having difficulty with the HTML5 player above.]

• Episode 3 of SimpliFlying Podcasts: Industry news roundup and exclusive interview with KLM’s VP for eCommerce
• Episode 4 of Simpliflying Podcasts: Exclusive insights into the world of airline loyalty & Interview with Gabi Kool, the CEO of Baltic Miles
• Episode 5 of SimpliFlying Podcasts: Interview with Vueling’s CEO Alex Cruz and Industry Updates
• Can AirAsiaX make the low-cost long-haul model work with focus on Asia-Pacific? Interview with CEO Azran Osman-Rani
• Size doesn’t matter. Interview with Estonian Air CEO Tero Taskila reveals a grand vision for the future