The new Singapore Airlines’ low-cost-long-haul subsidiary, Scoot, has been officially unveiled. The quirky name only confirmed the rumors going around for a couple of months, amid lots of chatter about the appropriateness of the brand identity. Everyone seemed to have something to say about the name of the airline, the livery or even what this would mean for Jetstar and AirAsia X.

Scoot will be flying ex-Singapore Airlines Boeing 777s to Australia and China initially, then expanding the fleet to 16 aircraft by 2016 and adding destinations too.

From a PR perspective, I’d say this is close to a dream launch. After all, the aim is to get the world talking about it, even if the brand is polarizing.

 
A polarizing brand gets [famous] people talking
Remember Rico? The furry Air New Zealand mascot? Just as many people hated him as those who loved him. The same can be said about Richard Branson’s acts when promoting the Virgin brand – you either love him or hate him.

When it comes to branding, a polarizing image not only gets people talking passionately – they take sides and defend themselves too. The result may not be …

 

Welcome to Twitter, Singapore Airlines (SQ). And Facebook too! Welcome to the Branding 2.0, where a brand is not what you say it is, it’s what they say is.

For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, possibly the last major airline brand (see AdAge article) has just caught the wind about engaging customers through social media and began their new journey by first taking over a existing Facebook fanpage with over 100,000 fans, which was started by a real fan in 2006, and setting up a new Twitter account. All this happened on Sept 5, 2011 – over two years after we wrote here in May 2009, “why time is running out for the Singapore Airlines brand to get into Web 2.0″.

Better late than never. They have the advantage of learning from the mistakes of others, but at the same time need to match high expectations set by worthy competitors like AirAsia, Cathay Pacific and Qantas. So, now what?

Twelve things Singapore Airlines needs to do social media right

“Just because you built it doesn’t mean …

 

I have to admit that I’m a big Singapore Airlines (SIA) fan, and when someone says “you’re a great way to fly”, I can almost sing the SIA melody in my head.  But even I was surprised when SIA announced that they will be launching a low-cost long-haul airline, on the lines of AirAsia X and Jetstar.

Yes, Singapore Airlines is no longer the most profitable airline in the world (Cathay Pacific took over that title), and yes they’re losing market share to the likes of Emirates and AirAsiaX (to a lesser extent), but to go with a business model that’s hardly proven was a surprise move for a brand that’s been risk-averse of late.

While the initial reports stated that a good amount of analysis has gone into the decision and a “largely untapped market” exists, it’s safe to say that SIA is playing catch up in a market carved out in its backyard by AirAsia X and Jetstar. While the key success factor for SIA till date has been its endearing Singapore Girl brand, that’s exactly the dilemma they need to address – whether to extend the brand to the low cost airline or not….

 

Of late, there’s been a surge in airlines highlighting their flight attendants, like we saw with airBerlin’s weather girl on TV. And now, the most famous flight attendants of all – the Singapore Girls, are back at the forefront of a renewed Singapore Airlines brand strategy.

In advertisements released this month, there are no A380s. No business class beds. No gourmet food. No lounges. But just the Singapore Girl. I bet some of you would recall that in the late 70s and 80s, this was precisely the brand strategy for Singapore Airlines – something that set it a class apart from the rest. Here’s what the new ad looks like:

Of course, we were more than curious about the latest move, and managed to get an interview with the spokesperson at SIA. And here’s the interview, verbatim.
Interview with Nicholas Ionides, VP, Public Affairs, Singapore Airlines
Q: It’s refreshing to see the Singapore Girl being the center of SIA’s brand. What led to the re-think?
A: The Singapore Girl has always been central to SIA’s branding, and she …

 

Recently, I discovered that Hainan Airlines of China has been awarded a “5 Star” status by Skytrax putting them in the same reign as Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways. While Hainan might be a decent airline, putting it in the highest category seemed out of context. And it wasn’t just me, discussing sprouted up around the web on this. Someone on Airliners.net said that Skytrax is becoming “Skytrash”. Someone else called it “Skycash” due to allegations that airlines need to pay big to acquire a new star level.

I feel rating Hainan as Five Star was the final nail in the coffin for Skytrax. Here are three reasons why I believe Skytrax is dead:

Irrelevant – If I’m a Kobe Bryant, then the only Business Class seat that’s Five Star for me is Oman Air’s – not Asiana or any other 5-star-classified airline. Because I can fit in there. Moreover, service and products differ dramatically for airlines on different routes and sectors. Hence, airlines ratings need to be relevant – which Skytrax is not.
Not real-time- Annual ratings are no longer desirable as airline service levels can dramatically change over a much smaller period of …

 

I recently traveled First Class on Singapore Airlines from Singapore to Los Angeles. And then traveled Business Class on Emirates, from Singapore to Dubai.The former has been a dream for some time, and I was keen to learn what the real difference was. Alas, it was quite simple.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Image Source: Singapore Airlines"][/caption]

In both the flights, I felt a distinct connection with the flight crew that was serving me. I kept wondering why that was. The difference was eye contact. In Singapore Airlines, each time the Singapore Girls spoke to me, they kneeled down, looked at me at eye-level and then spoke. In Emirates, while the flight attendants didn’t kneel down, they always looked me in the eye when speaking with me or passing me something.  And coupled with a smile, it was always heartwarming. Even the smallest of interactions were a pleasure.

Quite simple isn’t it? It doesn’t cost anything to smile, and while it might take some time to kneel, it creates a lasting impression. One that often drives brand loyalty. Hence, it’s worth it.

What do you think? Why aren’t more airlines using more such gestures that …

 

This is a guest article by David Doctor, Director of Airline Distribution at Amadeus. Amadeus is the leading transaction processor and provider of advanced technology solutions for the global travel and tourism industry.

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The latest study from Ideaworks, sponsored by Amadeus; shows that airline ancillary revenue is on the increase, up 45% on last year to €11 billion ($13bn), and that in order to be in the top 10 ancillary revenue generators an airline must drive €300 million in ancillary sales. Airlines cannot afford to ignore the rapid development of this trend but strategies to take advantage of ancillary revenue will need to vary according to each airline’s brand positioning, and this involves careful decision-making.

Unbundling translates into cash
As can be seen from the graphic above, LCCs have moved full steam ahead with unbundling, selling exit-rows, extra legroom and priority boarding. However, the story of the last couple of years has been the entry of the U.S. majors – United and American now generate around €1.5 billion each. Even Singapore Airlines has started charging up to $100 for exit-row seating on their long haul flights.

There are compelling reasons for an …

 

This article was first published on the CNBC blog———-Qantas announced today a net profit after tax of A$58 million for the first half of the financial year, down from $210 million a year earlier, although the airline did recover from a loss in the second-half of last financial year. This 72% dip in profits resulted in the shares falling by up to 7.2% in early morning trades. However, Alan Joyce, the CEO, says the carrier has done better than most of its rivals. And it has, indeed, thanks to its agility.Agility through smart cost-cuttingAlthough revenues dipped by 13.4%, costs were slashed by 16.2%, which shows Qantas’ diligence and discipline in reducing expenditure in the past year. The cutting of frequencies to unpopular routes and grounding of older aircrafts was key to these cost savings.Load-factors have been the highest in five years – at 82.4%, on flights that carried a lesser number of total passengers as compared to the past year.This simply means that flights were more full than in the past, despite the recession. Of course, the downside was that this was achieved by …

 

I recently flew Singapore Airlines’ First Class for the first time. It was a trans-Pacific flight, so I got to enjoy it for the longest time possible (23hrs!). What an amazing experience it was. Aside from the product aspects, the service was unmatched. A level I had never experienced before, not on SIA’s economy class, and not on any other First Class. This got me thinking…the marginal cost providing an exceptional service nothing compared to that of providing a superior product in a plane. And if such a service could be offered to the masses (in Economy class) for a charge, then it might be a win-win! What a VIP service on Economy class could be like? Great service on-board SIA is something even other airlines talk about (Aeroflot sent their staff to be trained by SIA last year!). But not everything that’s offered on First Class can be duplicated on Economy. So, here’s a quick list of what can and cannot be done: Being addressed by name, all the …

 

Two small steps to the heart, one big leap to the wallet
A little girl’s hand was held by an elegant SpiceJet stewardess dressed in striking maroon. As the two ladies headed towards the galley, I saw tears rolling down the little one’s cheeks. Her ears were probably hurting as we started descending into Jaipur, India. The stewardesses in the galley started playing with her and then opened up one of the carts for her too! She was given a few packets of biscuits and a SpiceJet kids’ coloring kit. The little one was soon beaming from ear-to-ear and ran back towards her parents full of joy.

You must be wondering I’m telling you this story? Not just because the kid in me got excited and requested for one (see pics below), but because such instances of brand execution are an inherent part of every successful airline’s brand strategy.

Something else that happened on my SpiceJet flight was that an elderly lady who was seated in the bulkhead row was reluctant to put on the seat belt because she was hurting around the waist as the belt was too tight. Instead of shouting orders (which often happens on US-based airlines), the stewardess calmly …