As I write, QANTAS, the Australian Kangaroo, one of the few truly iconic Australian brands, is in the shitter.
Yesterday, their CEO Alan Joyce announced a massive loss for the quarter, 5,000 job cuts and the need to save (very quickly) a massive two billion dollars off the bottom line.
Now, I don’t profess to know anything about the running of a business of that size.
Although, I do wonder, how the hell does any business get in to such huge debt in the first place, and keep the doors open?!
However, I digress.
QANTAS’s dire situation has got me thinking about how that brand should go about marketing itself going forward.
Historically, from what I’ve observed, they’ve run big budget TV commercials, covered the landscape with billboards and sponsored our national sporting teams.
Each of those marketing channels would be big bucks – combined, I’m guessing the bill would run in to the tens of millions.
Now, I’m guessing QANTAS’s advertising and sponsorship agencies have been put on hold for the time being.
But that doesn’t mean they should stop marketing.
They’ve still got to get bums on seats right? Literally!
So, I got thinking – what clever marketing could they do without spending a fortune?
Remember, they’ve got to save a lazy two bazillion!
So to answer that, I’ve put the hat on of some past guests of this show, and asked myself, what would they do?!
So, here goes.
Do you remember Tom Dickson from Will It Blend. The fellow who believes in his blenders so much that he creates viral videos where he blends almost anything? Well, why don’t QANTAS create a viral video series called Will It Fly? It would involve attaching objects to the top of their aircraft and see whether they’re still there at the other end!
Mmmm, maybe not! But crowd sourced videos of people’s travel experiences could work – I reckon past guest Jonathan Wilcheck of Frankston TV would agree with that.
And what about past guest Nicole Nuert from Kix 4 Chix? She got 45 of her clients to tattoo her logo on their bodies. Why doesn’t QANTAS do the same – maybe for the first 100 people to tattoo the flying kangaroo on themselves they get free flights for life. The publicity would be huge.
And what about Joe Pulizzi of the Content Marketing Institute? I’m sure Joe would suggest QANTAS get out there and create amazing content that answers people’s travel questions. Stop pushing and start pulling he’d say. Quit the advertising stuff – instead share video travel tips, do a podcast on amazing destinations and host a Forum where people can seek travel advice.
Sell more by selling less, I say!
And finally, what about past guest, Kym Illman of Messages on Hold do? The Guerrilla marketer extraordinaire would have QANTAS signs popping up all over the place – in the background of news reports, hanging off the harbour bridge – I reckon he’d even manage to get one on a Virgin Plane!
My point is this.
QANTAS is in trouble and they need to act quick smart.
More TV ads aren’t going to cut it.
But smart marketing will.
You and I know there’s never been a better time to market a business. And smart marketing doesn’t have to cost a fortune. You just need to be helpful or amazing. Both are marketing G O L D!
What marketing idea have you got to keep the flying kangaroo in our skies?
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