Is Air India ‘cool’ now?

Last year Tata unveiled Air India’s new logo and design language indicating the transformation that the brand will undergo under the Tata group. The new logo was inspired from the jharoka window style, in golden yellow depicting the window of possibilities.

Now with that same window perspective Air India released a cool ad #TogetherWeSoar where you sometimes look up at the sky towards the plane and then the perspective changes and you look down from north to south, west to east of India with vibrant colours and an equally cool fusion music. Aptly timed India’s airlines sees the release two days before Republic day and LinkedIn is buzzing with it right now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10XbmuHmjbc

Marketing like a new age brand

Tata has always delighted consumers with coolest to most daring ads under its other brand names Titan, Tanishq to name from a wide range of brands that it now has under it. They also know how to leverage the digital media unlike a lot of legacy brands. So if you search for Air India under Tata you will find a lot of influencer led videos from both domestic and international influencers.

Vision for Air India as a brand

Let’s dig deeper and look at the new vision for Air India.

"The vision we have for the airline is also in the backdrop of a new resurgent India where the aspirations of everyone are limitless," ~ Tata Sons Chairman, N Chandrashekaran.

Taking advantage of the new love of Indians and the central govt focusing on made in India, entrepreneurship and hustle culture; Air India is making a direct appeal to the Indian audience, while still positioning itself as a low cost airlines.

But the transformation goes beyond ads

The transformation is definitely beyond ads and marketing, with 2024 awaiting

• 3 classes of travel options in some long-haul flights economy, premium-economy and business class
• Renewed uniforms by Manish Malhotra
• Refurbished lounges by Hirsch Bedner Associates (HBA) which is behind interiors of major hospitality chains in the premium segment
• Relaunch of frequent flyer program

Tatas have always known how to elevate customer experience (Taj Hotels is all about that) and all these plans show elevated passenger experience are in the cards.

But what about consumer trust

All the information shared till now are derived from articles and information sliced from the internet where you never know the difference between paid and earned. The biggest indicator of a transformation will always be word of mouth.

This year when Indigo earned a bad name and exorbitant fines, I heard some of my frequent flying friends and acquaintances preferring to book tickets with Air India and Vistara. And that’s a massive bump in consumer trust.

From the lal bindi wali, daant lagane wali aunty brand to the stylish Manish Malhotra adorned staff transformation to being the one that you can trust in bad weather promises a cool brand in making.

What is your say on this?