Airports are fascinating places which can be a part of some of the better experiences in our lives and some of the worst. You get people who are going on that eagerly awaited and much needed holiday, people going off on their hopefully once in a lifetime honeymoon, and families finally getting a chance to spend some valuable time together. However you also get business people being forced to leave their family yet again, people tired after long flights, frustrated after flight delays and just plain angry over having to stand in queues. Whether it be positively & negatively, emotions are heightened in airports, which makes people less resistant to experiences providing they’re handled in the right way.
In a number of airports around the world you can now see “SYMPVERTISING” where brands provide services for travellers such as baby change rooms, free wifi, free baggage trolleys etc – passengers get the service for free, the airport either gets the costs covered of something they would have otherwise paid for or generates income from the sponsorship, and the brands get to be the “white knight” by physically demonstrating their customer care. Recent examples include 3M’s Airport Haven at Atlanta airport, free dance lessons at CDG Airport aimed at reducing stress levels of passengers, or even with a distinct twist the Absolut sponsored flash mobs who have greeted lonely or depressed looking passengers arriving at JFK.
Its also becoming increasingly common to see “BRAND SPACES” at airports such as ABN AMRO’s preferred banking client’s lounge at Schipol, Samsung’a Mobile Travel Centres at Dallas Airport (with access not only to workstations, seating & power but also coffee, pastries & sandwiches), Orange’s cellphone recharge lockers (where you can lock your phone while it charges & you go shopping), or even HSBC’s free taxi’s in NYC where you can get a free ride if you show your HSBC card. More recently we’ve also seen Hieneken’s airport lounge at Newark Airport – which arguably is as much a brand space as it is an opportunity to try the product.
Product sampling or trial opportunities are another large area of growth within airports and an increasing source of revenue for the airports. Cleveland Hopkins International were recently paid US$2m by Pepsico for exclusive pouring rights for 5 years. But the airport didn’t only receive money, as part of the deal Pepsi are promoting & donating to various communities in the Ohio market, as well as make advertising available on all of its distribution trucks allowing for the promotion of “hot or important” things at the airport.
Boston’s Logan International Airport have recently entered into a deal with Dunkin’ Donuts to create awareness & trial of its special blend of coffee. The programme involves a combination of sampling programmes, a 117ft long pedestrian bridge graphic and a 7ft high brand icon of the Dunkin’ Styrofoam coffee cup in two high traffic areas of the airport.
Brand sponsorship of usages is also becoming increasingly common. This is where a brand, such as USA Today, buys the branding rights of a broader usage such as a newsagent. These stores are then strongly branded & signed, for example USA Today, without actually being run by that brand.
