Social Media Travels Around Airlines

I never associated air travel with social media before I heard of the new media marketing efforts made by Southwest Airlines and Jet Blue. According to an article titled “Airlines' social-media use takes off”, Southwest and Jet Blue aren’t the only airlines to experiment with social media. American airlines recently gave customers a 10 percent discount once their Facebook page reached 10,000 fans, and a Delta YouTube video of a Northwest plane being repainted with Delta colors was viewed 200,000 times.

Although these are positive examples of social media marketing, there is also a risk for negative publicity. While most attempts by airlines promote consumer interaction, the internet and social networking sites also offer a forum for consumers to complain about bad service, flight delays and lost luggage. For instance, a Canadian musician posted a video on YouTube this past summer describing how United Airlines destroyed his expensive guitar.

However, I think social media marketing for airlines is ultimately more of a positive endeavor for airlines than a negative one. I’m a very nervous traveler and I am definitely uneasy on any flight long or short. However, if airlines are able to create a brand image that is friendly safe and open, I would be more likely to fly with them even if it is more expensive. In general, I feel that people who are able to interact with a brand and feel good about a brand will be more loyal to that brand. It’s important to be able to trust a company, especially when they are in charge of your personal safety. When airlines like Southwest allow employees to post comments and updates on Twitter and Facebook, it makes the airline seem genuine, safe and trustworthy.

Although airlines have seen success by utilizing pre-existing social media sites, many feel that the next frontier is for companies to create their own social networking sites. American Airlines has created one specifically for African American consumers called BlackAtlas.com. This site will have featured bloggers and rely on user-generated content about travel destinations from an African-American viewpoint.

I agree that companies should head in the direction of American Airlines and create their own social networking sites. I use Facebook and Twitter, but I rarely seek out interactions with brand on these sites. When I think of pre-existing social networking sites, I think people already have pre-existing notions of what they like to use them for. If someone always uses Facebook to keep in touch with friends, it is going to be a tough transition for them to keep tabs on their favorite airline. Therefore, I think that airlines are travelling in the right direction when it comes to creating their own social media sites.