How United Airlines is Delivering on Brand eXpectation in the Age of Sustainability
An accurate projection of what an airline is about and the experience it will deliver to the customer is the essence of brand eXpectation.
Making an authentic brand promise is the key to having satisfied customers. A strong brand promise emphasises the airline’s core identity, visual and otherwise, and reflects its clear differentiation and positioning in the marketplace.
Sometimes, airlines get so consumed by day-to-day operations that they disregard this aspect of the business and set false or ambiguous expectations. In other cases, brands set extremely high expectations and fail to deliver.
An accurate projection of what an airline is about and the experience it will deliver to the customer is the essence of brand eXpectation.
Clarity and focus should drive a brand’s promise, with the aim of creating a lasting impression in the potential customer’s mind. Ideally, the positioning should hit logical and emotional chords and differentiate the airline from its competitors.
Differentiation could come in terms of key strengths like pricing, service, or even destinations. When it comes to price differentiation, budget airlines like WIZZ and Southwest are some of the best. Legacy carriers like Singapore Airlines and Air New Zealand rule the skies in terms of setting expectations of exceptional service. The likes of Turkish Airlines often tout the number of destinations they fly to.
Setting the right brand expectations goes beyond traditional advertising mediums. Efforts should be focused on reaching potential customers where they are present. The aim should be to set the right tone for the engagement – to entice the customer for the first time and subsequently induce loyalty. However, the real test is when the customer experiences the product—by finally flying the airline.
Case Study - United Airlines hires a new CTO
In early 2023, United Airlines hired a new CTO. His name is Oscar. You may be familiar with Oscar if you’ve watched Sesame Street growing up. Yes, it’s that much-loved character who loves trash. CTO here stands for Chief Trash Officer.
United Airlines is leveraging Oscar to publicise how the airline turns regular trash into sustainable aviation fuel. While it is a complex process in partnership with Fulcrum Energy, what stands out is the airline’s effort to focus on simple storytelling to get its message across to a wide audience.
Sustainable travel initiatives and technologies are inherently interesting. But they are too complex to weave stories around. Few airlines do a good job communicating sustainability initiatives that resonate with multiple stakeholders without attracting backlash from climate activists and authorities. United Airlines’ focus on storytelling shows us a way forward.
United is investing heavily in a future where planes can be fueled by sustainable aviation fuel and has launched a commendable marketing effort to educate the public, media and other stakeholders in the simplest way possible.
The airline has released multiple videos explaining its approach towards a more sustainable future in simple terms.
The videos say nothing about carbon-neutral flying. Instead, they talk about turning trash into sustainable aviation fuel, which is a fact, not a claim. The videos go on to say the airline is “investing more in sustainable aviation fuel production than any other airline in the world.” These are all indisputable facts.
There is also a dedicated landing page explaining the multiple initiatives while introducing the mascot, Oscar. While in the past we have seen airlines use a mascot as a brand ambassador, like Rico at Air New Zealand, no other airline has engaged this method to promote sustainability like United Airlines.
This is an extract from our “6X+S Airline Brand Model” whitepaper which presents a new framework for airlines to build lasting brands in the age of sustainability. Download the whitepaper to explore the rest of the 6X+S model concepts and the accompanying case studies in our whitepaper.