International Marketer’s Blog

Korean Air, Korea’s flagship carrier, is launching a global campaign with the new theme, “For life on a whole new scale”.

The push stresses the scale of the airline’s vast worldwide network and emphasises its attention to detail in customer service.

This new positioning marks a departure from the airline’s long running slogan, “What Korean Air is made of”, which debuted in 2007.

International marketing activities have kicked off across television, print, outdoor and digital channels.

To ensure the global campaign execution has local relevance, three different versions of the television ads have been developed for Asian, European and global markets.

According to AdWeek, the latest push extends the sophisticated messages of the earlier ads, and also includes a more sales-driven version, highlighting some of the key destinations in the carrier’s network.

Cho HyunMin, corporate communications and integrated marketing team manager at Korean Air, described the new campaign as both extraordinary and original. (more…)

International travel operator Eurostar has asked its roster agencies to pitch for a brief in regards to the company’s advertising around its sponsorship of the 2012 London Olympics.

According to the report in Campaign magazine, the rail services operator has asked TBWA\Brussels and the Paris-based Leg to pitch for the project which will incorporate all the company’s international marketing activities in the lead up to and during the Games.

Eurostar will be the international rail services provider for London 2012, following the announcement in May that the company has signed up as an official tier-three sponsor of London 2012.The deal means that as a tier-three sponsor, the company will be entitled to use the London 2012 branding on its product .

Additional news from Eurostar is the launch of its social media platform, designed to aggregate customer reviews of European destinations. The new site europebyeurostar.com asks users to share their recommendations about European cities and favourite places at destinations that can be accessed via Eurostar. (more…)

Chinese sportswear maker Li-Ning has signed a long term endorsement agreement with Evan Turner, the 2010 number two overall draft pick of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers, to front the company’s international marketing activities.

In what is widely seen as the Bejing based footwear and apparel company’s biggest step into the U.S market so far, Turner will play a major role in Li-Ning’s global brand marketing plans beginning immediately. This will be followed in the second year of the agreement with Turner showcasing his own Li-Ning branded footwear and apparel product line, available globally.

Since becoming one of the leading sports brand enterprises in China, Li-Ning has been actively looking to ramp up marketing activities globally, particularly since the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing when the company was able to make a first-hand impression to athletes, marketers and other businesses. The company has its US headquarters and a retail store in Portland, which is the long-time home of Nike and Adidas. (more…)

Diageo Global Travel & Middle East (GTME), the specialist Travel Retail division of multinational drinks company Diageo, is planning an integrated global retail campaign for its vodka brand Smirnoff.

According to the report in Marketing Week, Diageo GTME has tasked shopper marketing specialist agency Saatchi & Saatchi X with creating the international retail marketing campaign, which will run primarily in travel retail environments such as airport terminals, on-board aeroplanes, in border stores and on-board cruise liners worldwide.

The international marketing execution will include in-flight, experiential, digital and in-store activity, and will aim to engage leisure travellers in an ’immersive’ experience.

The campaign will be underpinned by Diageo GTME’s growth strategy, which includes strong investment in shopper insight in the Travel Retail channel. The company has developed an extensive series of initiatives to support retailers and airport authorities in driving revenue, including the sharing of shopper insight and innovations in new presentations of the retail offer. (more…)

Global sportswear manufacturer Adidas is rolling out an international marketing campaign, tagged ‘miCoach Says’ to promote its mobile app miCoach and campaign site micoach.com

The app is designed to allow smartphone users to to turn their phone into a personal coach, with pace triggered voice coaching, personalized and sports-specific training plans, a workout calendar and workout feedback. The app includes six specific conditioning programs for basketball, football, running, soccer, and tennis as well as an additional program for staying fit. Users can sync automatically with campaign site, micoach.com, which encourages users to select individual targets, join groups and then compare their progress with their online communities.

The multichannel concept created by 180 Amsterdam and its digital arm RIOT, includes a 60-second film featuring international sporting heroes including World Cup winner, Villa, tennis ace, Andy Murray and Heptathlon World Champion, Jessica Ennis . Marketing collateral includes print, point of sale as well as digital and social media at facebook.com/adidasrunning. (more…)

South Africa is to build on the success of the World Cup with a multi-million dollar international marketing campaign, aiming to attract tourists and returning football fans in particular.

According to the report in South Africa’s Business Day, the World Cup has shifted international perceptions of the country, which has a reputation for violent crime.

“We have always had to focus our campaigns as being a welcoming destination in a global market that regarded Thailand and India as more friendly. However, the tournament has finally changed that perception,” said Roshene Singh, chief marketing officer of South African Tourism.

The 188 million rand (around $US26m) international marketing activity will feature ads on major television networks in which Indian, Nigerian and American visitors will relate their World Cup experiences. SA Tourism will also use social networking sites, such as travel website wayn.com, to communicate the positive World Cup story. (more…)

Virgin Atlantic has released a new brand identity and livery in a bid to retain the essential elements of the company’s first twenty five years and refine them for the future.

The new brand identity, the first since 2005, was developed with London based design consultancy Johnson Banks, and will be applied across the company’s 38 aircraft as well as signage, communications and advertising.

The Virgin Atlantic name, previously on the front end of the fuselage is now emblazoned large across the whole of the aircraft in a fine custom drawn font. In addition, the undercarriage of the aircraft now features the new Virgin Atlantic logo in dark purple – making the aircraft more easily identifiable when taking off and landing.

The iconic, flag carrying flying lady, who appears on all Virgin Atlantic aircraft, has been rejuvenated with a subtle cosmetic makeover and enhanced detailing – now fluttering a larger Union Jack.

The redesign underlines the company’s aim to find global brand solutions to combat challenging economic conditions affecting the industry. Joe Ferry, head of design for Virgin Atlantic, said: “It is essential that we set a firm, confident foundation for the future of the Virgin Atlantic brand, one which is relevant in the new commercial environment. It’s critical that we portray and live our differentiating brand values.” (more…)

Consumers in Shanghai and London will respond favourably to Tourism Australia’s global advertising campaign, according to a survey taken in the lead up to the campaign launch by advertising research specialist Ipsos AIS.

The results from the testing in Shanghai, an emerging market for Tourism Australia showed that nine out of ten people surveyed responded positively to the ad, although the figure dropped to six out of ten responding positively in the more established London market. Ipsos AIS tested a 90-second version of the finished ad with 50 people and eight focus groups in each market.

Created by advertising agency DDB Australia, the ad features Australians singing amid a backdrop of famous Australian landscapes with the tagline ‘There’s Nothing Like Australia’ The campaign which launched in the UK in June as a TV and cinema campaign will be rolled out in China on August 2.

According to today’s report in the Sydney Morning Herald, Nick Baker, marketing director for Tourism Australia said the results from testing the ad in the two markets showed the international marketing campaign would have strong impact and reinforce the message that Australia was different from other tourism destinations. (more…)

An online presence is no longer a luxury for international travel brands, it is a necessity, according to Kenny Picken, Managing Director of travel technology firm, Traveltek.

Speaking at the Advantage Travel Centres’ conference in Lucerne, Picken said that all travel firms, whether small or large, need to establish an online identity or risk being ignored. This follows a story on Freedman’s blog last week reporting Virgin Atlantic’s new global marketing push, which features several online tools.

Picken said that travel companies should choose no more than six topics to market online, whether they be walking holidays or business travel, but warned that they shouldn’t expand online until they have made a profit.

“E-marketing shouldn’t be expensive,� he said, advising that the most important thing is to ensure that content is relevant. Consumers searching for flights to Dubai should not see results for holidays in Spain.

On search marketing, Picken warned that travel companies must make sure they are picked up by the search engines, in order to maintain an online presence even when a paid-for advert goes offline.

“For every pound you spend on pay-per-click advertising, spend another on search engine optimisation,” he said. (more…)

Virgin Atlantic, one of the world’s leading long-haul airlines, has this week announced the launch of its first ever global marketing campaign, which as reported in the Freedman blog in March, comes as a result of a recent overhaul of international marketing strategies with the aim of establishing the company as a global brand.

The campaign is designed to establish the brands new strapline “Your Airline’s Either Got it or it Hasn’t.” and to reinforce global brand consistency, creating a seamless look across all its global gateways. The message aims to build on the brand’s ethos – a passion for flying and challenging the norm to give travellers a unique and unforgettable flight experience.

Passengers are encouraged to engage with the brand by comparing their flying experiences and to ask “does your airline have ‘it’?” The multi-channel concept, which was developed by the Virgin Atlantic global team and incumbent agency RKCR/Y&R in the UK and Y&R offices globally, includes ads in consumer and lifestyle print publications, online banners, rich media, email, promotions, and events sponsorship. To experience the Virgin Atlantic difference, the carrier has launched a new microsite www.Virginatlantic.com/experience (more…)