How can you reach your target audience with airport marketing?

Airports are often a traveler's first point of contact with a city or region. Marketing can help create a positive impression of the airport and the destination, contributing to overall brand awareness and a positive image for the locality. And with airports increasingly becoming shopping and dining destinations, Marketing can promote airport retailers, restaurants, and duty-free shops, driving sales and enhancing the passenger experience.

A different perspective is to look at -Airport offerings as products targeted to right customers- Product 1- "passenger attention Hrs." airport need to market the Hrs based on passenger footfall and time spend. Targeted to buyers of advertisement space Product 2- "shopping mall". Market customer buying potential based on passenger class. Appreciate the real estate. Product 3- "airport cost for airlines" bring in the connectivity, reach factors, parking/ operating cost USPs to make it lucrative for airlines Product 4- "other revenue streams" eg.- Parking, cargo, luxury services etc. Now write a "Humane" story creating a brand for Airport's personality. Let the Airport show its personality as an important cultural Hub for society!

You can be an HSBC and ‘own’ a space in the journey. Or you can think about the experiential nature of airports and how to add to the entertainment and monotony of terminals. TSA checkpoints are not ideal for many reasons - distracted people slow down the process. But in the evening if you can achieve Time of Day displays — you can connect with people about things that matter at the time, about things that could improve their experience in that moment.

With an average of 2.56 million passengers per day passing through TSA checkpoints, airports are yet again seeing their pre-pandemic levels of traffic. As two thirds of airports non-aeronotical revenue comes from retail concesions, car parking and CRE leasing - and only about 4-5% comes from marketing and advertising... ... I would argue that airports should be fixing their attention to ad distribution and marketing effectiveness - as there is so much room for growth. To conclude, the solution to the problem is not in the "how" but "who" and in this case it is up to the airports and others in the ecosystem to find out systemic solutions.

Airport marketing, when executed adeptly, offers tremendous returns. This brings me to the linchpin of any successful marketing effort: understanding your target audience. Throughout my tenure of training professionals and architecting marketing campaigns for businesses, I've observed a consistent gap – a lack of clarity on who the true audience is. This is the very crux of marketing success. With the surge in travel in recent years, a well-strategized airport marketing campaign can significantly bolster a company's financial performance. To summarize, clarity in identifying your target ensures that you're not merely casting wide nets among the throngs of busy airport passengers and brands.

In my extensive experience with marketing, I cannot stress enough the importance of crafting a compelling Unique Selling Proposition (USP). This is your airport’s signature promise, the distinct advantage that sets it apart, tailored precisely to the needs and aspirations of your target demographic. Reflect on the unique strengths and benefits your airport boasts and how they position you ahead of the competition. It's not merely about being different; it's about resonating deeply with what travelers truly seek. In my view, a well-articulated USP is both concise and magnetic, driving home why travelers should prioritize your airport above all others.

Travellers (and Airport staff) have jobs they need to get done, and your Airport services can be positioned either to relieve pains or empower gains. Always consider your value prop from the eyes of your target customers.

Great brands do need great logos, but remember that a logo is only as good as the experience you’re able to build around it. In your search for a branding agency to help you build your strategy, look for chemistry. The partner you choose should be able to challenge conventional wisdom and you’re most likely to find that with an agency known for its creative work — likely outside of the travel vertical. If you choose a partner based on their airport portfolio, you’re not likely to get a solution that stands out among a sea of sameness in your industry. Be bold, take risks, hire for chemistry.

Do you sell your goods at the airport? Get a leg up on your competition by thinking about the customer journey and what your customer is doing before they get to the airport. What better time to promote your new mobile coffee checkout than when travelers are in an uber, in a taxi, or on the train en route to the airport.

One way to increase airport ridership is to advertise discounted fares and destinations on public transportation that travels towards the airport. While traveling by plane may not be on everyone's mind, people are in the process of some form of travel. Providing discounted fares is a great way to pique their interest in air travel. By highlighting specific destinations, people may be curious to visit the airport's website and check if the destinations they want to travel to are offered at a discount.

Choosing the right marketing channels, is crucial. The type of online and offline channels should align with the target audience's preferences and behaviors. There is an opportunity to leverage a mix of online platforms such as social media, SEO, and PPC to engage travelers, while supplementing the strategy with offline avenues like outdoor advertising and airport events. With the rise in 3D interactive experiences (i.e. VR/AR/mobile apps), integrating 3D interactive solutions across these channels can set the airport apart, by immersing travellers through a personalized experience.

To develop effective airport branding, it is crucial to gain a comprehensive understanding of walk-in passengers and the relevant target audience. This involves identifying their demographics, travel habits, motivations, and needs. Airports are bustling hubs of activity, where travelers hurry to catch flights, refuel with meals, or engage in leisure activities. Amidst this constant movement, capturing the attention of passersby can be a challenge. To effectively engage with such time-compressed travelers, your brand communication must be meticulously crafted to resonate with their needs and preferences, ensuring it cuts through the noise and captures their attention effortlessly.

The information should be more directed to the rights of each user, for example: lost luggage, flight delays. I believe that a user entering an airport should be welcomed more than a hospital, because it is being a long or short stay under its roof, and apart from security, it should be highlighted the welcome and welfare.

Tuesdays, there are several ways to measure the audience interactions digitally event in OOH or ambient media around airports.

Creating a powerful airport brand and marketing it appropriately is also a great way of contributing to the city's destination brand. The airport is the first touchpoint a traveller has with the city. Carefully crafting a well designed airport experience is key to developing and contributing to the destination's brand. The obvious positive effect of developing a strong airport brand is obviously higher passenger inflow which only gets better with positive word of mouth, better brand associations for on-ground shopping, F&B, luxury experiences and better airline tie-ups. Some of the well-known airport brands are Changi Singapore for unrivalled airport experience, Hamad Doha as architecturally significant terminal and so on.