Content Marketing

Aviation Marketing: Delivering the goods for visual storytelling

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment
How aviation manufacturers are using content sharing sites to tell their brand story and deliver on the brand promise.

Aviation manufacturers are active participants on content sharing sites. Whether by design or happenstance, photos of their products are shared, commented on, and liked by people that are passionate about aviation. These sites present a ready-made inbound marketing opportunity for brands to gain a competitive advantage by creating an emotional connection with the viewers and present their brand story through visual storytelling.

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Aviation Marketing: Dynamic customers require quality content

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment
Aviation marketers should pay attention to consistency of story to keep dynamic customer engaged in phased purchase cycle.

Connecting with dynamic customers is challenging, requiring aviation component and system manufacturers to engage their customers with a positive brand experience, and consistent story line through-out the phased purchase cycle of awareness, consideration and intent.

Jeremiah Owyang, industry analyst and partner at the Altimeter Group presented at the Digital Blue conference. The presentation was to help companies better understand changing industry dynamics, identify innovative companies and to learn from best-of-bred in other markets.

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Aviation Marketing: Inbound marketing budgets increase as cost per lead goes down

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment

Inbound marketing channels are proving their value in lead generation and customer acquisitio

HubSpot recently published their 2012 State of Inbound Marketing Report. Based on a survey of 972 professionals in both small (1-5 employees) and large (500+ employees) businesses, the report is designed to help business and marketers understand the current usage and results of inbound marketing.

The report identified 5 key takeaways to look for in 2012 that are important to aviation marketers:

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Designing a social marketing strategy for Aviation Marketing

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment
Implementing social marketing tools and tactics accelerates customer engagement.

Aviation component and systems manufacturers already practice the basic elements required for social marketing. Taking what you know on the B2B side and moving it to the people-to-people social marketing side requires a shift in thinking – losing the urge to dominate the conversation and understanding the tactics and tools of social marketing.

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Content development for aviation marketing is a communal affair

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment
Content development for aviation marketing is a company-wide affair, led by the marketing department but requiring consensus and support from the C-Suite and the engineering department.

The Altimeter Group recently published a research study entitled “Content: The New Marketing Equation.” The research methodology is based on qualitative interviews from marketers in 38 companies. Many of the brands are leading B2B and B2C companies, including: Continue reading →

Why people-to-people marketing is replacing business-to-business in the aviation industry

/ Bailey Burk / Leave a comment
In aviation marketing successful brands are creating loyalty and commanding premium pricing by connecting on a personal and emotional level with their customers. 

Historically, aviation industry component and system manufacturers have practiced traditional business-to business outbound marketing (push marketing model). The outbound model relies on bought media to push key messages to a mass audience, segmented by demographic, SIC code, business title or purchasing authority.

Tactical execution takes the form of:

  • advertising
  • direct promotion
  • trade shows
  • sales literature
  • web banners
  • micro sites
  • company websites

Often public relations tactics such as press releases and product stories in trade publications support out-bound efforts.

The push marketing strategy is predicated on disrupting the viewer to convey predetermined key messages that support product features, benefits and value propositions.

For many aviation industry manufacturers, this has been a successful approach to building brand awareness. However, outbound marketing requires a large investment in bought media and advertising return on investment is hard to track.

Customers are disillusioned with the “about me” aspect of the creative product further challenging the advertising’s ability to disrupt the viewer in the work environment. In addition, outbound lacks the stickiness to build community and form a one-on-one relationship with the individual.

Enter People-to-People Marketing 

People-to-people marketing is predicated on building relationships with individuals and communities through conversations that nurture and build trust. Technology is at the heart of inbound marketing (pull marketing model).

One of the most intriguing aspects of people-to-people marketing is its not confined to the workplace. Personal computing power in the form of smart phones and tablets makes it possible to connect with customers in venues not traditionally associated with aviation marketing.

Social media outlets provide the means to listen and carry on conversations with individuals. People-to-people marketing requires aviation marketers to reevaluate and rebalance their marketing mix to achieve their marketing goals.

Successful people-to-people marketing shifts the focus from “me oriented” to “story telling” to create the personal and emotional bonds.

In addition, personal computing power opens up new venues for storytelling through video, slide share and other syndicated platforms. Inbound marketing also comes with a wide array of analytics packages to help establish data chains for measurement and marketing investment.

Finding the right balance

Today, successful aviation marketing requires an integrated mix of inbound and outbound marketing to tell the brand story. Aviation marketers are challenged to accomplish more with less, forcing them to reassess traditional marketing efforts and move towards more cost effective inbound marketing venues.

Many of these new venues are reaching maturity, offering integrated marketing and viable ways to reach prospects, establishing relationships and forming one-on-one connections with your audience.