Blog 
Tiger Airways has rebranded itself as Tigerair, with the jumping tiger gone from the fuselage and more contemporary, simple titles. Much more like an LCC, like Peach in Japan. The airline has also updated its website to reflect the new look. Tigerair said the new image was intended to be “warm, passionate and genuine”.
Good refresh, now re-think marketing?
While the new look is just a start, I wonder how just an image can exude warmth and passion. I’ve flown Tiger Airways over 20 times in the last few years, out of Singapore and Melbourne, and can call them efficient, at best. In fact, there was a time that Changi Airport received more feedback from Tiger Airways’ annoyed passengers, than Tiger Airways did itself, because there were hardly any feedback channels.
Perhaps the airline is looking to avoid repeats of two negative passenger experiences which hit the headlines recently: travellers stuck on a Tigerair flight last month in Australia caused on outcry when they talked of how they were charged for water, and another passenger attracted a lot of attention when he complained about being kicked off his flight on Facebook.
In fact, the airline’s website states, “We’ll be rolling out a “voice of the customer” system to gather feedback from our passengers after their booking, flight and call-center interactions with us. We encourage you to be honest with us, as we’ll be using your feedback to prioritise our change process.”
In today’s age of the connected traveller, airline managers need to realise that your brand is not what you say it is, but what they say it is. If Tigerair wants to be genuine, then they need to figure out the key brand touchpoints and ensure genuine service is delivered across all of them. If they want to be warm, then the cabin crew and ground staff needs to be re-trained to deliver a warm service. And passion is something that can hardly be inculcated through training – it comes naturally. So they probably need to hire a different set of people, if they are to deliver their brand promises, which the new image aims to bring forth.
Speak to customers in the same language, using the same media
During the launch of the new livery, Koay Peng Yen, group CEO of Tiger Airways Holdings said, “Leisure travel is all about accumulating great experiences and memories. We hope that the new Tiger air can represent relaxation, joy and adventure in the hearts on our customers.”
He clearly understands who his customers are, and what they are aspiring for. However, I’m not very sure if they’re listening.
The savvy travellers of today get their news customised to them on their mobile devices, through multiple feeds, and seldom through newspapers. And Tiger Airways held a press conference, which had all the traditional media, but hardly any bloggers, to get their message across to the new generation. They still seem to be communicating in a one-way manner. Royal Brunei Airlines recently had a livery refresh, and did quite well with grassroot engagement building up to their new livery launch.
Tigerair need not look too far for inspiration on ensuring that their brand refresh doesn’t stop at the logo, but creates and communicates a different experience. Their cousin, Scoot, has been doing a surprising good job of engaging consumers through mobile and social media. Both Jetstar and AirAsia are social media stalwarts in their own right.
And Tigerair now needs to start using these mediums to actually connect with their travellers and have a two way conversation, not just market cheap fares and destinations to them.
Airline marketing today has evolved from having pretty logos and flight attendants, to engaging customers in a meaningful manner, before, during and after their travel. Tigerair has made a good start, but now needs to deliver on the bold promises it hopes to communicate through a new logo, with bold actions on the ground, in-flight and online.