To get a sense of how these courses run and what the course material is like, you can watch some videos here and download more information here. Hope to see you soon at one of these courses!

Alternatively, if you’d like to have customized courses delivered for your airline, for a duration less than three days – then the SimpliFlying MasterClass would be perfect for your airline/airport, which are offered in 1/2 day, 1 day and 2 day formats. Learn more under University.

• SimpliFlying and IATA partner to offer training courses on airline social media strategy
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• Viral videos on Youtube as airline marketing strategy – lessons from Air New Zealand

IATA Training and Development Institute trains more than 35,000 air transport professionals each year. And the “Airline Social Media Strategy” courses will be offered across IATA’s six training centers in Montreal, Geneva, Miami, Delhi, Beijing and Singapore, in addition to other locations like Sao Paolo and Sydney.

These case-study based courses will offer interactive sessions conducted by a SimpliFlying Certified Trainer and offer in-depth analysis into the latest trends in social media while stimulating participants to come up with solutions of their own to pertinent questions. The courses will typically run for three full-days, which makes them very complementary to SimpliFlying’s own MasterClasses, which are offered in 1/2 day, 1 day and 2 day formats.

Goals

Upon completing this course you will have the skills to:

• Identify specific drivers of ROI and present a case for media budget and resources
• Evaluate the appropriateness of social marketing approaches and tactics
• Build a brand personality through social media
• Increase the effectiveness of e-mail marketing and SEO through social media

Audience

This course is recommended for:

• Senior managers in commercial departments at all levels
• Suppliers working with airlines, including travel agents and IT companies

Airline Social Media Strategy is a required elective for the Diploma in Airline Business Development, and recommended for those who have taken the Advanced Airline Marketing course. To register and find out the next available course at a location near you, please visit the course website.

These IATA courses can also be delivered on-site at your airline’s offices. Please drop us a line through the contact form in the sidebar, or getting in touch directly through the IATA course website.

• SimpliFlying-led 3-day IATA courses on airline social media strategy – sign up today!
• Thai Airways get hands on social media training to drive brand strategy for the airline
• The future of airline marketing in 2011: key takeaways from IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium
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• Announcing the judges for SimpliFlying Awards for Excellence in Social Media

The last session at the conference turned out to be an intimate round-table sharing session, where all those present shared their key takeaways from the conference. It was unique because unlike most sessions where someone speaks and others listen, everyone loosened their ties and got up-close-and-personal.

I’ve compiled here some of those sharings, which essentially gives us a to-d0 list of senior airline executives from a commercial perspective in 2011.

What does the future of airline marketing look like?

1. “Gotta get off the fence on social media. Time to act is now, otherwise it’s too late” – a major west-European hybrid airline
2. “The expansion of the traveler lifecycle is a key development to be acted upon, as travel begins much before the passengers board the aircraft.” – Stuart Barwood, Brolin Consulting
3. “It’s time to accelerate data personalization for travelers, both online and offline” – Datalex VP
4. “Turkish Airlines should become a lifestyle brand – selling all top brands that are co-related to the THY brand, eg women’s apparel, co-branded credit cards etc.” – senior Turkish Airlines executive
5. “Stuff you’re selling on the web should also be sold on the phone” – a senior airline executive from an Asian carrier
6. “We’ve got to revenue optimize the whole travel process, not just the passenger seat” – senior Navitaire executive
7. “We’ve got to start listening more – better feedback, quicker” – Frank Kardonski, Director of eCommerce, COPA
8. “Use content to add value to specific customer segments you’d like to market to” – major regional European airline
9. “We’ve got to learn from retailers like eBay and Amazon, not just airline websites for marketing” – Ethiopian Airlines CIO Sushil Bagaunt
10. “That travelers search 21 sites over 9 sessions before booking shows sheer indulgence in the travel process – and that’s a missed opportunity. How do you know you’ve got enough information?” Sarah Kotlova, VP, Geary Interactive
11. “Customers are willing to give us data, and we should be able to use it. Usability is critical for online sites. Why not have Facebook connect for Check-in? Why need a PNR number? People are not logging on to airline websites >> no incentive! Why should they?” – Karlis Smiltens, airBaltic
12. “Is your airline cheaper cheaper or better? It’s both! Unique value that you offer to your customers.” – senior VP, Sabre
13. Trend is toward merchandising and personalization.
14. If you see something you like, do it.

Well, I hope with these top 14 takeaways, you’ve got a good idea of what the IATA CSS was about and what senior executives took away from there. If you weren’t able to join this year, do join us next year in Singapore during the IATA Passenger Week in October, where the CSS will be held.

• SimpliFlying and IATA partner to offer training courses on airline social media strategy
• Join me in Istanbul, for IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium (two passes up for grabs!)
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• IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium 2010 – Live from Istanbul
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Stay tuned for the Live updates here.

• Join me in Istanbul, for IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium (two passes up for grabs!)
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• It’s our first birthday, and we want you to join us in Athens, Greece at the IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium
• Join me in Santiago de Chile, at IATA Wings of Change conference – 2 free passes up for grabs

Now, I’d like you to come join me in Istanbul, at the IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium (more details here)!

I’ve been invited to deliver a pre-conference workshop and speak on how airline brands can drive engagement, loyalty and revenues from the latest Web 2.0 technologies. I will also be the Chairman of the eMarketing track. In conjunction with that, IATA has kindly agreed to give away two free passes to the Symposium to SimpliFlying readers (yes, you!).

Read on to learn how you can be part of this respected aviation event in Istanbul, and rub shoulders with the likes of Patrick Murphy, former Chairman of Ryanair and Dr Temel Kotil, the CEO of Turkish Airlines.

How to win two passes to attend IATA CSS?

It’s simple. Just do either of the two things below.

1. On the blog: Leave a comment on this article answering this question: Which is the foremost challenge airlines face today and how would you solve it?
2. On Twitter: Follow @SimpliFlying and Tweet to us in 140 chars Why you’d like to attend the IATA CSS in Istanbul? In your Tweet, you must mention @simpliflying (for tracking) and the URL for this article: http://bit.ly/IATACSS .

It’s that simple. Two winners will be announced on 30 Nov 2010, through a lucky draw. So the more you Tweet, and the more you comment, the better the chances of winning.

So, what’re you waiting for? Get started right now. And you never know, we might just meet face to face in a few weeks in Istanbul!

For those of you interested in attending the event, you can still get the early bird discount by entering code “CSSEBOK” when you register, having $100 per person! Hurry, register now!

And if you’d like a taste of what it’s going to be about, register for the free webinar “Selling Levis to airline customers – the Amazon strategy for airlines to increase revenues and reduce cost” to be held on 3 Dec 2010, by speaker Ursula Silling and myself.

• Join me in Santiago de Chile, at IATA Wings of Change conference – 2 free passes up for grabs
• It’s our first birthday, and we want you to join us in Athens, Greece at the IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium
• Announcing the World’s 1st Twebinar (twitter+webinar) Series for airlines (Plus: How you can win tickets worth $600)
• SimpliFlying welcomes two aviation stalwarts to its Board of Advisors – Donald Schenk and Patrick Murphy
• The future of airline marketing in 2011: key takeaways from IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium

As many of you know (from my about page/LinkedIn/Twitter), I’m in Athens, Greece right now at the IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium 2009. It began with me leading a sold-out pre-conference hands-on workshop for airline executives on social media. Today and tomorrow I will be Chairing the e-Marketing and IT tracks.

And I also do a keynote, focusing on trigger points within the customer lifecycle on social media that can be leveraged for driving profits by an airline. And as always, I’d like to share my slides with all of you on the day of the keynote itself. They’re right below (If you can’t see them, click here)

In this presentation, I share examples of how travelers are openly sharing their travel information online, and how airlines can use this for their advantage – for driving revenue and loyalty. One very good example of this is Lufthansa’s MySkyStatus.com (read my thoughts), where you can update your real-time position while traveling, on Facebook and Twitter. I’d love to have your feedback on the presentation!

• Driving social media ROI for airlines, airports and travel businesses – Keynote presentation from #SMtravel11
• Redefining CRM – Cult Relationship Management is in, and how loyalty marketing can benefit – keynote presentation
• How can airlines optimize social media content for maximum conversion? [keynote presentation]
• Six ways social media can drive brand loyalty: Bollywood-style keynote presentation from World Brand Congress, Mumbai
• [Slides] Social Media Strategy for Lufthansa – how a legacy airline built a strong customer engagement model

On December 7, 20009, SimpliFlying will turn ONE! And what a rocking year it has been. You are part of a community of 206,000 airline and branding enthusiasts, who have spent over 4,700 hours reading almost 250 articles here on airline brands from around the world. You’ve given us over 1,500 suggestions through comments and thousands of you are LinkedIn group members and Twitter followers. Again you have my sincerest thanks, and my assurance that SimpliFlying will remain the leading knowledge source on airline branding you have trusted for a year: FREE, cutting-edge, and thought provoking.

Join us in Athens, Greece: Free social media branding workshop

Moreover, with Thanksgiving just around the corner, I want to thank you for making SimpliFlying what it is today. I’ve received multiple requests from airline executives (and other readers) to keep them updated on where I’m speaking and and if there are opportunities to attend. The time has come.

I’d like you to invite you to join us in Athens, Greece, to the IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium (CSS) being held from Dec 8-10. We’ve partnered with IATA to extend a special offer to SimpliFlying readers – you will get free access to the social media branding workshop for airlines and airports, when you sign up for the conference itself. How do you do this? Just follow these instructions:

1. IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium <<Click here
2. Click on “Register Now”
3. Select your delegate type (airline, travel agent etc)
4. Insert discount code “SIMPLIFLYING”
5. Select the package you’d like to sign up for and complete the registration. The half-day workshop will be included at no extra charge to you (savings of US$500)

This special offer is valid for only 20 registrants, on a first-come-first-served basis. So you gotta act quickly!

Five free full-conference tickets up for grabs as well

To sweeten the deal further, in addition to the above discount, I’m giving away five complimentary passes, with full access to the conference as well as the workshop. This will be exclusively for SimpliFlying’s Twitter followers and blog subscribers. The passes will be given away Monday to Friday next week, one per day, in a lucky draw held each day at 10pm Pacific Time.

So now that you’re all excited about the prizes, let me get down to business and explain how you can win!

Winning on Twitter

1. Follow me (@simpliflying) on Twitter [Current and new followers both qualify]
2. For the next 7 days, pick a quote from any of the articles published on SimpliFlying, or from an interview and tweet it with a link to the article (see example below)
3. Each tweet gives you one chance to win! (so, the more the merrier!)
4. Make sure the tweets contain “@simpliflying” somewhere, so that I can count you in the draw

Example: “True brand loyalists should ideally fly due to a deep emotional connection, not just miles.” – @simpliflying http://bit.ly/3ch2jt

Winning on SimpliFlying, the blog

1. Subscribe to SimpliFlying updates either by  email or RSS
2. Leave a comment on this article answering this question “How do you think your favorite airline can do a better job of connecting with you via social media”

That’s it! You have to do one of the two tasks above to qualify. It’s that simple.

But here’s the easiest way to participate…

Simply click the birdie in the box below and follow me on Twitter:

You’ll have to take care of your travel and accommodation. But with flights running empty these days, I’m sure you’ll be able to find a good fare. I look forward to meeting  25 of you in Athens in 2 weeks!

Keep Flying, SimpliFlying,
Shashank

• Keynote from IATA Commercial Symposium 2009 – Driving revenue for airlines from real-time customer insights on social media
• Join me in Istanbul, for IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium (two passes up for grabs!)
• IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium 2010 – Live from Istanbul
• Etihad Airways video trip report – Business Class: Athens to Delhi, via Abu Dhabi
• The future of airline marketing in 2011: key takeaways from IATA Commercial Strategy Symposium