Wednesday, 16 November 2011 07:39

Ad of the Month - American Airlines: Everyone is an Individual

American Airlines is creating a new campaign aimed at attracting business and first class travelers. This time the spotlight doesn't focus on the comfortable chairs, or the excellent service, but on the consumers. Through the tagline "Everyone is an Individual", the company aims to highlight a brand philosophy of understanding the individual flier.

As you may have already noticed, Kevin Spacey plays three very different roles in this commercial--a father, a retiree, and a bachelor. Each of the three characters feature his own morning routine, thus alluding to three different seating preferences when in flight. In the end, Kevin Spacey appears on the plane as himself with a strong claim to "want to be served as myself".

We use it as the ad of the month because FiG is a true believer that customer-centric marketing drives business success. Too many times, marketers are busy talking about how awesome their products and services are, and they forget to ask themselves what the customer wants and cares about. For example, if American Airlines' fast-class consumers want comfortable chairs, should the company spend money on commercials featuring great red wines?

You might argue that different customers want different features. Focus on the customized flexibility that you can offer, like the clever tagline in this example "everyone is an individual". If you have trouble figuring out your customers' preferences, don't hesitate to contact FiG!