Turkish Airlines-The Dr. Oz Show

TURKISH AIRLINES - FLY GOOD FEEL GOOD

Over the years, various airlines have tried to create on-board events as a marketing tactic.

We’ve had in-flight fashion shows, inflight business networking events and in-flight hackathons.

Meanwhile in this issue alone you’ll find articles on the first in-flight silent disco and the first piece of immersive in-flight theatre (see the Delta and Icelandair pieces).

Now with Turkish Airlines teaming up with Dr Mehmet Oz, we’ve had the first in-flight talk show.

“Dr Oz”, as he is commonly known, is a Turkish-American surgeon and Columbia University Professor. He was the health expert on the Oprah Winfrey Show for five seasons, before getting his own TV and talk radio show.

The collaboration between Turkish Airlines and Dr Oz takes the form of a project titled “Fly Good Feel Good.” In it, Dr Oz is acting as the health advisor to the airline and its passengers, which includes tips on healthy eating and exercise on-board and before a flight.

To launch the project, Dr Oz recorded one of his shows, from 30,000 feet in the air, on an Istanbul to JFK flight.

On the flight, which took place on July 23rd, Dr Oz entertained c. 300 passengers with tips on keeping healthy while flying.

According to the Washington Times, “Passengers aboard that flight were given a boatload of tips and recommendations — from drinking tart cherry juice for a spike in melatonin to familiarizing one’s self with seatmates in the event of, well, an event.”

The whole project is underpinned by a nicely designed ‘Fly Good Feel Good’ website , which has sections on everything from travelling while pregnant, to how to deal with the fear of flying.

What’s noteworthy about the website is that Turkish Airlines branding is actually subtle. It concentrates on getting across useful information, as opposed to trying to act as a Turkish Airlines sales channel.

In addition to getting US and Turkish media coverage, Turkish Airlines has been promoting the campaign on its own channels. At the same time, Dr Oz himself has been talking about it on his own Facebook page, where he has over six million fans.

KEY TAKE-AWAY

Turkish Airlines has developed a well thought out campaign that links into something almost every traveller worries about: How can I stay healthy and fit on a long-flight.

The Dr Oz tie-up works, not only because of his US TV profile, but also because of his Turkish heritage. The tactic of recording a show on-board was a PR-able campaign element. And the website is focused on genuinely trying to tell passengers something useful, as opposed to trying to overtly sell seats.