benchmark report
airline marketing
luxury awaits above the clouds
the MEA safety video MEA
LUFTHANSA
MEA has released a new destination-based safety video, which takes a page from other popular videos we’ve featured over the years in these repor ts by showcasing iconic landmarks and the natural beauty of Lebanon, while delivering critical safety instructions in a fun and engaging way.
The airline chose to publish it as a Facebook video where it received over 880,000 views and nearly 8,500 likes in just over one week. Most of the comments were very positive with people expressing amusement and pride that Lebanon’s beauty was showcased in this way.
It features a group of dancers standing-in as passengers who are led by two members of crew who tour Lebanon’s mountains, snow covered peaks, ancient ruins, the Jeitta Grotto and the famous Pigeon’s Rock formation on the beach.
One commenter on Facebook who saw the video on the aircraft had this to say: “I saw it on Monday on my way to Nice. amazing It is the first time that I watch the safety instructions. A smar t way to make people watch and pay attention. I looked around. Everybody was watching.”
The crew and dancers change location as they step and swing through the various safety instructions. Seat belt fastening is demonstrated on aerial ski lifts, and life jacket donning instructions are demonstrated on the shores.
SEP 2016 ISSUE
On YouTube the video had nearly 80,000 views, which is good for one week, but suggests that Facebook might be helping these campaigns get more attention when they are published directly to Facebook.
It’s been a while since an airline attempted to leverage the incredible global traction of Airbnb (the powerhouse travel accommodation sharing website valued at $30 billion) for marketing. Two years ago, KLM used Airbnb to launch a contest where the winner got to stay in a remodelled airliner. This summer, Lufthansa, gave it a shot with the aim of promoting and selling seats in its long-haul Premium Economy . In June Lufthansa listed itself as an Airbnb host, with a profile on the peer-to-peer accommodation platform. The airline then created a listing called ‘Luxury Awaits Above the Clouds’ (which has now been removed) listing a bed, four bathrooms, a common room, TV, air conditioning and wireless internet as amenities. In the listing, Lufthansa adver tised its Premium Economy
“accommodation” as follows: “Our cabin isn’t in the woods, but in the sky! Personal food and beverage service at 910km/h. Multimedia enter tainment is included in our Lufthansa Premium Economy Seat from Frankfur t to NYC and Wi-Fi is available. Includes return flight.” The only flight adver tised was a Frankfur t to New York return, so the campaign was clearly intended for the German market. Passengers who took advantage would have cer tainly saved some cash, as the Airbnb price was just €699 (plus Airbnb fee), while the cheapest fare one reporter found online was about €934. This story was picked up by several mainstream digital and travel publications including tnooz , The Economist , and Digital Trends .
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EXPERIENTIAL SOCIAL DIGITAL TV, PRINT, OOH
