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America West aspires to reach airlines' top tier.
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Author: Cuneo, Alice Z.Goetzl, David
| AMERICA WEST ASPIRES TO REACH AIRLINES' TOP TIER |
DELAYED $15 MIL BRANDING EFFORT EVADES DISCOUNTING, SOUTHWEST
With its labor conflicts resolved, America West next week takes flight with a new branding campaign.
The advertising,
tagged ``Every flight counts,'' is a departure from its previous
discount positioning and that of its primary competitor in the Phoenix
and Las Vegas markets, Southwest Airlines.
``One of our
objectives was to raise America West's position in our customers' minds
among the major tier of airlines,'' said Mike Smith, senior
VP-marketing and sales. ``We wanted to reintroduce ourselves and what
better way than to have our employees involved.''
The effort, estimated
in the $10 million to $15 million range, uses b&w spots in which a
different airline employee speaks about his or her job. Publicis &
Hal Riney, San Francisco, is the agency. The shop won the account in
late 1997, but this is the first major branding work they've done for
the airline, which has been plagued by labor issues.
`THE GUY IN COACH'
The campaign is
targeted to business travelers taking 10 to 20 trips a year-``the guy
in coach'' whose company and accumulation of frequent-flier miles
doesn't allow for first-class or even business-class seating, said Troy
Tarwater, management supervisor on the account at Riney.
The ads also are meant to inspire employees.
The advertising is
``aspirational for our employees,'' he said. ``It's a clean and clear
message to them that every flight counts every day.''
PASSENGER MEMOS
In one spot, a flight
attendant talks about the memos written and read by passengers on her
flight, and how the passenger in 4C took a well-deserved nap. In
another, a baggage handler says he knows the people looking out the
window are watching their bag.
The musical score is reminiscent of that used in the early advertising the agency did for Saturn Corp.
The campaign was in
the works before the airline averted a possible flight-attendant strike
last month by reaching a five-year collective bargaining agreement.
The airline, which
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1991, recently reported
record first-quarter earnings and said losses from the labor turmoil
were offset by gains made during the pilot sickout at American
Airlines.
America West has
spent the past two years expanding service to new markets, such as
Cleveland and Detroit. Now, the airline is shifting its focus to
increasing the number of flights to existing markets.
It has more than 300
daily flights in and out of its Phoenix hub and expects to boost that
by 30% by 2001, Mr. Smith said. Additional flights have been added to
Boston and Newark from there.
One of America West's
major advantages, according to Mr. Smith, is that it operates hubs in
two of America's fastest-growing cities: Phoenix and Las Vegas.
TRAFFIC INCREASE EXPECTED
Analysts remain mildly bullish on the airline, which they expect to increase its traffic by 8% to 10% this year.
Though America West
is the ninth-largest U.S. airline, with about a 3% market share,
S&P Equity Group analyst Stephen Klein said it deserves credit for
solid performances in its core markets. America West is the top carrier
to Phoenix, ahead of Southwest, and trails leader Southwest in Las
Vegas.
``They're doing well
[in] their home turf,'' he said. ``If they weren't doing well there,
they'd probably be heading to extinction. Airlines have to have
someplace with some kind of dominance,'' Mr. Klein said.
The TV spots will run
in Phoenix, Las Vegas and Columbus, Ohio, with a radio effort in Los
Angeles and other cities, as well as print and airport poster displays.
TV is under consideration for Los Angeles and New York as well.
PHOTOS (BLACK & WHITE): Hello, again: Riney ads use workers to help reintroduce the airline to travelers.
~~~~~~~~ By Alice Z. Cuneo and David Goetzl
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