benchmark report
airline marketing
Air New Zealand #cuddleclass tour
experiental
the big British invite British Airways has recently invested into advertising the brand internationally to entice a wider audience away from the domestic reach of the UK. Hosted in New York in March, The Big British Invite was a taste of London for resident NYers to whet their appetite to make the trip ‘across the pond’. The 2-day pop-up event showcased the famous cultural scenes shaping a contemporary UK and ranged from food and fashion to music and nightlife. Formed as a series of zones, the experience star ted by transpor ting quests into a British Airways pseudoterminal, where they embarked on a journey through Britain, being issued with a boarding pass, featuring a map of the event, wifi instructions and the hash tag #BigBritishInvite. After checking in with their flight attendant (British vocal ar tist
Estelle was just one of the famous tourguides), visitors interacted with some of the hippest retailers, food fixtures and nightlife trend-setters currently at the forefront of British culture.
Air New Zealand created a niche product when they launched their Skycouch seat in 2011, featuring a raisable leg rest on a row of three economy seats that turns the seats into a large lounge-style bed.
Passers by also had the oppor tunity to win, by using social media site Twitter and photo sharing site Instagram and simply uploading an image of the van using the hashtag #CuddleClassTour.
Collaborating with Visit Britian, BA par tnered with brands such as Liber ty of London, WAH Nails, Sanderson, Highlands Restaurant Group and Beefeater.
To celebrate and fur ther market this innovation, Air New Zealand took to the streets of London in May in a customised van that had onboard the economy skycouch product and treats ranging from cuddles and photos on the Skycouch with buff Californian male and female models, to e-scratchcards on an iPad with instant spot prizes like NZ wine up for grabs.
Air New Zealand Regional General Manager Americas, UK and Europe, Chris Myers spoke about the skycouch on the tour. “Skycouch has reignited customers’ passion for travel and revolutionised the onboard Economy experience. Not only does it help passengers to arrive at their destinations feeling rested and ready to go, it enables them to lie down and be as comfor table as they would be on their sofa at home.”
The temporary space was designed as a way to “Surprise and delight international travelers” as stated by John McDonald, Americas Vice President, British Airways. “British Airways hosts more than 3,000 travelers between New York and London every day, and with refreshed aircrafts, smar ter cabins and elegant lounges we pride ourselves on going above and beyond for our customers.”
The e-scratchcards on the iPads also offered the chance for someone to win pair of return tickets to Palm Springs, California and included hotel stays and car hire from Her tz.
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