Airline Marketing and Advertising - Essay Example

?Airline Marketing Airline Advertising Advertising is not different from other marketing methods that are found in the airline industry although it is considered extremely controversial and important and thus treated on its own unique way. The success of an advertisement depends on the objectives set for it. Thus, it is necessary for the company to decide which advertisement can work or not work for the company (Shaw 311). In this context, applicability of print advertising in the airline industry will be checked. The advantages and disadvantages of print advertisement will be offered. Print Advertising Print advertising normally includes newspapers, directories, technical press, leaflets, yellow pages, and magazines. In the UK, print advertising accounts for about 75% of all the advertising expenditure. It is estimated that some million advertisers’ use print media on a daily basis and that over 12000 publications are found in the UK (Blythe 486). Print adverting usually contains unasked for and sought after advertisements. Sought after advertisements is classified and categorized according to product brand and consumer need. These are advertisements are considered to be people’s choice as people seek out for them. They contain all the information required by the readers. Unsought after advertisements are the display advertisements that are made to be eye-catching and persuasive to the readers (Blythe 487). Some of the elements that make the unsought after advertisements gain the reader’s attention include: Text – the weight of the content tends to have a significant impact on capturing the reader’s attention. Brand – The brand itself captures attention when it is well recognized. Pictorial element – Graphics/pictures are the key things to gain attention to the unsought after advertising (Blythe 487). Advantages and Disadvantages of Print Advertising for Those Airlines That Use It as Part of Their Marketing Communications Strategy The print media has various characteristics that make it advantageous, and they include: Variety of approaches – an example to this is the magazine, as it tends to touch on every segment of the market. Thus, the advertisers are capable of reaching various groups of individuals. Newspapers also target and attract particular readers. Permanence – it is important to note that print advertising unlike radio and TV is permanent. This is because the advertisement can be reread or clipped and saved. Among the print advertisements, magazines are kept for longer period than the newspapers while directories are normally kept for many years. Print media are easily read on airplanes, buses and on trains. This is because individuals rarely bring with them TVs or even radios on public transport. In such a case, the print advertising gets the readers full attention (Blythe 486). The success of advertising can be evaluated through checking coupon returns. Statistics are generally available on readership, circulation, and sales figures. These figures make the planning of media easier. Most of the magazines gather data on the reader’s characteristics and they are capable of telling potential advertisers about the readers’ demographics and the types of purchases they make (Blythe 487). Newspapers, magazines, and periodicals are the common types of print advertising used by most organizations as their marketing communication strategies. Each form of print advertising has its own advantages and disadvantages and thus it is the mandate of the organization or the company to choose the type of print advertising that suits them best. Newspapers are not costly hence; local retailers usually buy about 85% of them. Retailers use newspaper advertising extensively because it is relatively cheap in comparison with other forms of media advertisements. The newspapers offer local coverage thus a lot of money is not wasted in attempting to reach individuals outside the scope of company’s market area. It is timely and the advertisements can be placed prior to their appearance (usually several days before they appear) (Pride, Hughes, and Kapoor 435). Newspapers usually have broad coverage and a particular advertisement can reach a huge number of people. Newspapers are published on a daily basis and therefore, the similar advertisement is repeated constantly and it reminds the reader on a daily basis. An advertisement can be given to the newspaper print media at a very short notice. Last minute changes to the advertisement are very possible and thus make advertising relatively flexible. The newspapers are published in different languages and from different regions and they are capable of offering a greater choice to advertisers in approaching the desired region, readers, and market through the regional or local language (National Institute of Open Schooling 108). In the case of airline industry, it can serve the same purposes as those for retailers. However, newspaper advertising has several disadvantages. Newspapers have a short life span because they are usually read through once and then thrown away. The newspaper’s colour reproduction quality is not very high and thus most of the advertisements are printed in white and black colour. Targeting a particular demographic group is difficult among marketers because a wide group of individuals read the newspapers (Pride, Hughes, and Kapoor 435). The newspaper page size is relatively large and small advertisements can look minute (Bruneau 3). The company’s advertisement must compete extensively with other advertisements in order to grab the attention of the reader. The company is not assured that every person will read every advertisement it puts in the newspapers. This is because the readers may fail to read the segments the advertisement was put or they have skipped because the page was not very interesting to them (Bruneau 4). Individuals read newspapers generally for news and they pay little attention to the advertisements. Newspapers advertisements are not beneficial to illiterate people because they cannot read them (National Institute of Open Schooling 109). Magazines are also widely used by companies as their form of marketing communication strategy. The amount of money spent on magazines by the companies for advertising has been relatively stable in the past few years. The main advantage of magazines is that they can reach a particular segment of the market through advertisements in special-interest magazines. Magazines are however more prestigious than newspapers as they have high quality colour reproduction and thus are more durable than the other types of print media as they can be read for months and years and the advertisements found in them can be reread (repeatedly) from time to time (Pride, Hughes, and Kapoor 435). However, the main disadvantages of magazines include lack of timeliness and high costs. Most of the magazine advertisements are usually prepared in advance (two to three months before they are printed) and thus it is difficult to adjust them to reflect recent developments in the market. Most of the advertisements in magazines particularly full-colour advertisements are very expensive thus most of the companies find it unsuitable because of the high costs. Despite the fact that the costs of reaching a particular number of people may be preferable than other media, the price of a full-page colour advertisement in a magazine may be very high. For instance, a full-colour page advertisement in the Time can reach up to $287,440 (Pride, Hughes, and Kapoor 435). Periodicals are usually published regularly not a daily basis but on yearly, quarterly, bimonthly, monthly, fortnightly and weekly basis. The periodicals have a great number of readers thus making it advantageous as many advertisements that are published in them reach a large number of people. Their life span is much longer than the newspapers as they are stored and preserved for a longer period and for reference in the future. They are read from time to time whenever required. The periodicals have a particular target individual’s readership that makes it easy for the advertisers to know the target customers and come up with an advertisement that is suitable for them (National Institute of Open Schooling 109). However, the periodicals have major disadvantages that include high costs and selective advertisements. Due to their unique selective advertisements, they tend to reach out to a small number of individuals compared to the newspapers. Advertising in them is much costlier compared to other types of print media. Advertisements materials are normally submitted earlier and they offer no room of correction and thus reduces flexibility (National Institute of Open Schooling 109). Too Much Contemporary Airline Advertising Is Dishonest, Boring, Stereotyped and Sexist British Airways British Airways Avert, The Guardian. 25 Sep. 2008. The advertisement does not support the view that ‘too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The British Airways campaign (advertisement) purpose was to re-establish the image of the Heathrow Terminal 5. The terminal is known for delays at the security checks. The advertisement was also meant to dispel any negative notions about the terminal. Thus, the advertisement is not dishonest or even boring as stated by the view that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” It is very true that at the time of campaign, Terminal 5 of the Heathrow airport was working (Sweney 1). EasyJet Airline Source: MediaGuardian Advertising. The Guardian. 3rd June, 2007 Link: http://media.guardian.co.uk/page/0,,2262158,00.html The EasyJet does not support the notion that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The advertisement is about the reduction of fares during the summer period. It further states that if the individual finds it cheaper in another airline it will refund the fare used twice. Thus, the advertisement is not dishonest about what is says. Actually, during that summer period the fares ranged from ?19.99. Russell (1) states that Easyjet was expected to reveal several record peak fare sales to holidaymakers who were desperately looking forward to run away from the wet British summer. Air France Air France Advert on The Wall Street Journal. 12 October, 2010. The Air France advertisement supports the notion that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The Air France is too sexy and sophisticated. The advertisement shows logo of Air France on a trajectory connecting with the passenger’s clothes. The passenger is a beautiful woman. The ad is an indication that travel companies are again venturing into the risque territory. Thus, the Air France advertisement is sexist. Ryanair Airline Ryanair advert: The Guardian 13 Dec 2011 The Ryanair Airline advertisement supports the notion that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The advertisement is sexist and recently, two UK newspaper adverts for the airline were banned after complains from the readers that the ads treated women as objects and that they were sexist. The advertisement shows a woman posing in pants and bra with a headline that reads “Red Hot Fares & Crew! One Way from ?9.99.” Emirates Airline Emirates Advert The National. 17 Jan. 2012. Emirates Airline advert does not support the view that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The advertisement aims at making Emirates Airline brand as the simplest, authentic, and the biggest brand in UAE. Emirates Airline brand has been cited recently as the best brands in UAE. The advert defines Emirates Airline brand and the brand defines what Emirates Airline stands for. It also gives the customer the assurance that Emirates Airline will deliver its promise (Parmar 1). Etihad Airways Etihad Airways Advert, Khaleej Times. 8 Aug. 2011 The Etihad Airways advertisement does not support the notion that “too much contemporary airline advertising is dishonest, boring, stereotyped, and sexist.” The main aim of the advert was to welcome the Australians to change to their best. Considering its main theme, the advert does not support the above mentioned notion. The advert is also honest on what it says. This is because the Etihad brand has gained considerable success in the Australian and UAE markets for a short period of time it has ventured in the markets. It is, however, debatable if the airline is the best in both countries. The advert is built on a lively image without portraying the woman features as being sexy. Furthermore, there is no hint of stereotyping in the add. Works Cited Blithe, Jim. Principles and Practice of Marketing. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning EMEA, 2006. Print. Bruneau, E. A. Advertising. U.S. Small Business Administration, July 2007. Web. 6 March 2012. National Institute of Open Schooling. Lesson 23: Advertising. National Institute of Open Schooling. 9 September 2003. Lecture. Pride, W. M., Hughes, R. J. & Kapoor, J. R. Business. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning, 2011. Print. Shaw, Stephen. Airline Marketing and Management. Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2011. Print. Read More