benchmark report
airline marketing
bonding buffet KLM Anyone who’s ever tried to corral their various far-flung family members and friends around a dining table during the holidays will surely appreciate KLM’s innovative Bonding Buffet spot. Hoping to combat the loneliness and isolation of the often hectic holiday commute at airpor ts far and wide, KLM’s charming, Christmas dinner-themed spot gives new meaning to the term “social experiment.” And the result just might be the innovative holiday airline spot running in a season overflowing with them. Placing a lavish, KLM-branded holiday feast on a table set 4.5 meters above a large ring of barstool-style chairs in Amsterdam Airpor t Schiphol, the cameras rolled as curious passengers began to sit down on the stools. Quickly realizing that the table lowered a bit every time a new passenger took a seat, JAN 2017 ISSUE
the group were soon excitedly recruiting their fellow travelers to join them. And once every seat was filled, the table lowered enough so that the gathered crowd could enjoy a delicious Christmas bonding buffet with their newfound friends at the airpor t before jetting off to destinations unknown. Celebrating the spirit of togetherness that so often eludes harried passengers this time of year, the beautifully-shot clip is the brainchild of KLM and the innovative creative team at the award-winning DDB & Tribal Amsterdam – who also produced a spectacular inflight safety video for the carrier last year using stopmotion animation and Delft Blue tiles. Already proving to be massively popular online, KLM’s bonding buffet spot has been viewed on YouTube more than 1.5 million times in less than two weeks and even had its innovative use of product design celebrated on the Product Design
community page of up-and-coming hipster social media hub Imzy.com . And on top of all that, the spot was also recently rated 4.5 stars out of 5 for best use of “Christmas Spirit” and labeled “Brilliant” by Dailycommercials.com . Also written up on a number of travel and marketing related sites including Marketing Communication News , Adsof brands.com , and the Australian website TheStable.com.au , the hear tfelt spot continues to win over everyone who sees it. But the real proof is in the Christmas pudding itself, so to speak, as evidenced by the reactions of the lonely travelers featured in the original spot. The looks on their faces as they realize what is happening, and that they must work together to reap a wonderful holiday reward is absolutely beautiful and probably the most ringing endorsement yet for KLM’s focus on
providing superior PaxEx for all, even during the holidays.
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