The Brief

Qantas, Australia’s largest airline, is re-establishing itself as Australia’s premium airline. Competition across the business and first class sectors in the airline industry is fierce. New airlines are competing for what has been home turf for Qantas, so we needed to remind our most valued existing customers – almost 4,000 Platinum One Frequent Flyers - that only Qantas offered an unparalleled level of service,tailored to their journey, wherever they were going. For these customers the time in the air is the most valuable and one where, as the ‘owner’ of this time, we decided to target our direct communications.

Creative Execution

Our starting point was to build a one-on-one conversation with those who experience our brand on a daily basis. We wanted to put something useful and engaging in their hands. Something with relevance and value, in the air, in the lounge and in their briefcase that would reinforce positive brand associations and promote preference in the crowded airspace. In this modern age of kindles and iPads, we still enjoy turning a page at 30,000 feet. By calculating a reading time to match the flight time, Qantas was able to show the ‘extra mile’ it's prepared to go in customer service.

Describe the creative solution to the brief/objective.

We created a bespoke collection of ten books written by Australia’s best contemporary writers. And each book timed perfectly to the flight time of a specific Qantas route. Long journeys were coupled with long stories. Brief flights were matched with short stories. From great satire, history and adventure to drama, thrillers and comedy.... Brilliantly realised by some of Australia’s freshest voices... Beautifully designed, ingeniously edited and carefully paired with key Qantas routes.

Results

The books eceived resoundingly positive commentary from the broader creative and marketing community, with nearly 21 million free media impressions generated globally, including publication in the New York Times, The Huffington Post, LA Times, San Francisco Chronicles, Taiwan Sun, Hindustan Times and the Malaysian Insider. Despite that there were no specific objectives to trigger behaviour with this initiative, strong word-of-mouth recommendations coupled with the succeeding brand TV that continued the messaging of “For every journey”, saw Qantas Frequent Flyer enjoy new membership acquisition at double the rate of the same period in previous years.