Tag: AirAsia

As travelers increasingly demand personalised and real-time experiences, the aviation industry recognises the imperative to adapt and engage with their target audience in more dynamic and data-driven ways. Programmatic DOOH campaigns represent a paradigm shift, allowing airlines to deliver hyper-targeted messages across a myriad of digital out-of-home platforms.

In this digital age, harnessing the power of programmatic DOOH not only enhances brand visibility but also enables airlines to foster stronger connections with their passengers, optimising the passenger journey and driving customer loyalty to new heights.

In an era marked by ever-evolving consumer preferences and the digital transformation of the advertising landscape, airlines have found themselves at the forefront of innovation by embracing pDOOH campaigns. And AirAsia is no stranger to this, who has used such channels to offer new promos and incentives for travellers who are itching to get bang for their buck when travelling to new places. More recently, AirAsia has used pDOOH to promote its 7 million free seats campaign, launched in celebration 700 million passengers flown in conjunction with the airline’s 21-year anniversary.

In this article, we take a look at how AirAsia worked with Moving Walls to communicate irresistible offers to Malaysian travellers to places across the ASEAN region.

The Challenge

As audiences geared up for peak travel season, AirAsia knew they had to make their deals stand out and reach relevant audiences. Given the focus on driving users to their super app, being present in the physical world and at multiple locations was identified as key to staying top of mind. 

The Objective

Being the world’s leading low-cost airline, AirAsia is well-known for its seasonal flight and destination offers. The objective of this campaign was to ensure the latest offers were displayed at the right locations to drive audiences to take action online. Key digital out-of home (DOOH) locations were chosen for a period of seven weeks and the content being served should be relevant to the current offer.

The Solution

As the holiday season arrived, audiences yearned for new experiences. AirAsia designed several promotions inviting those in Malaysia to a range of different types of holidays. This wasn’t just a campaign – it was a meticulously orchestrated seven-week expedition tailored to every sort of traveller, with each week unveiling a fresh creative promoting a unique offer. Finally, the true flexibility of using DOOH screens was used at scale.

The Campaign Execution

The entire DOOH campaign was executed through the Moving Audiences Xchange platform, which boasts the highest reach in Malaysia covering every possible venue type and billboard location.

A select group of inventory was made available for the campaign and creatives could seamlessly be switched in and out with automated media owner approvals. Given that the platform provided real-time impression, ad play, and proof of play reporting, AirAsia’s marketing team was able to compare actual delivery to campaign forecasts and make adjustments where necessary. Below is a quick summary of the different mini-campaigns that got executed during the seven-week period.

  • Week 1: The Invitation to Regional Exploration – The first week was a siren call for regional exploration, offering a tempting 20% off on flight tickets to neighbouring countries. This week was all about stepping out of comfort zones and expanding horizons.
  • Week 2: The Indonesian Charm – The second week saw AirAsia igniting the travel bug with a flight ticket offer to Indonesia. The campaign was an open invitation to explore the rich culture and breathtaking landscapes of this Southeast Asian jewel.
  • Week 3: The Beach Bum’s Paradise – Week three was a sun-soaked, sand-strewn invitation to beach lovers with the tagline – “Fly for sun, sand, and sea”. It was a shout-out to those seeking to trade their office chairs for beach chairs.
  • Week 4: The Cultural Carousel – Week four was a cultural extravaganza, encouraging tourists to “Fly for exciting cultures”. This was an invitation for travellers to journey beyond their borders and dive headfirst into the vibrant cultures of different countries.
  • Week 5: The Lap of Affordable Luxury – The fifth week showcased the glamorous side of travel, with international flights starting from a mere RM279, and premium flatbed seats from RM899. This was a golden ticket for those seeking luxury without depleting their wallets.
  • Week 6: The Call of the Wild – The sixth week was a green signal for nature lovers to “Fly for serene naturescapes”. It was a call to all those yearning to swap concrete jungles with lush green landscapes.
  • Week 7: The Adrenaline Rush – The campaign reached a crescendo in the final week, with flight ticket promos encouraging thrill-seekers to “Fly for the thrill of it”. It was the ultimate call-to-action for adrenaline junkies ready to embark on their next thrilling adventure.

This seven-week odyssey was more than just a campaign; it was a testament to AirAsia’s deep understanding of its customers’ diverse travel preferences and an impressive display of creative DOOH ads. 

The Results

By including the use of Programmatic DOOH alongside their digital efforts, AirAsia was able to build up real-world awareness that contributed to the success of the campaign on other channels.

On DOOH alone, generated a reach of over 29 million impressions, far exceeding our forecast of 22 million. This was garnered over 37 sites, spanning 9 states and 10 districts in Malaysia, showcasing the growing reach of programmatic DOOH.

Beyond these numbers though, AirAsia continues to showcase best practices for executing through new media channels. The scale and flexibility offered by Programmatic DOOH enabled them to literally paint Malaysia red while still verifying the results and switching creatives based on actual performance.

Manila, Philippines – AirAsia Philippines has teamed up with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to bring local Filipino goods to passengers in-flight. This was done via DTI’s ‘Go Lokal!’ program.

Present during the signing of the agreement include AirAsia Philippines Ancillary Manager Pax Paloma; DTI Bureau of Domestic Trade Promotion Director Marievic Bonoan; AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricky Isla; and DTI Assistant Secretary Glenn Peñaranda.

Other homegrown brands available to guests flying with AirAsia Philippines include hand-made accessories from Tala by Kyla, handcrafted earrings and accessories from Boho Manila, Filipino-brand watches Ibarra Manila, and Team Manila Lifestyle apparel.

The partnership between AirAsia Philippines and DTI aims to proudly carry world-class Filipino talent and products throughout Asia and beyond. This also fulfills Capital A President and CEO Tony Fernandes‘ vow to promote Filipino brands all over ASEAN.

Steve Dailisan, country head for communications and public affairs and spokesperson at AirAsia Philippines, said, “AirAsia Philippines joins the government in showcasing proudly Filipino products. Now that all domestic destinations have recovered and returned to normalcy, our focus is now centered on helping small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and giving them a new platform for growth. We value their role in creating jobs and contributing to our economic development.”

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – AirAsia has enlisted the help of Malaysian synth-pop artist Sam Lopez (aka lost spaces) for the Sounds of Asean music project to celebrate and showcase the diversity of Southeast Asia for ASEAN Day.

‘Sounds of Asean’ contains a line-up of tracks featuring five songs from five cities: Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Jakarta, Manila, and Singapore. Each track is based on field recordings and will feature audio bites from these eclectic destinations.

For this audio journey project, the Malaysian artist visited these cities, mingling with the locals, embarking on adventures, capturing the sounds, and sampling the vibes of Asean along the way.

Rudy Khaw, CEO of airasia brand co., shared the reasons as to why they chose Sam for the project.

“Sam’s music has this great chill vibe, yet at the same time, it also features bright, clean sounds and great use of sound sampling. We knew right away that we had to get him to work with us on this project. We’ve always been passionate about supporting local talent, and Sam has really managed to bring each city to life with Sounds of Asean,” he said.

Sam has created an audiovisual experience through the Sounds of Asean that brings the listener (or viewer) closer to the rest of Asean, allowing them to immerse themselves in the region’s rich, intricate tapestry.

His works were inspired by the heritage buildings, hawkers, jeepneys, and tuk-tuks, train announcements, temple bells, and even local cats he encountered during his travels for the project.

Speaking on this project, Sam hopes that the vibes of each city will inspire more people to get out and explore the world.

“Bangkok is one of my favourite cities, I call Kuala Lumpur home, Singapore is just so well-planned and walkable. I love Jakarta’s music scene, and this project also brought me to Manila for the first time! Before this project, I’d never thought about how different yet ‘same same’ we are in Southeast Asia, and it’s been fun to work on this project and come up with these tracks,” he added. 

The project will also feature a full playlist and an upcoming travelogue series on Sam’s guide to his favourite places in each of these cities.

Singapore – AirAsia launched the “YASSS to Holiday Quickies” project, which aims to revive Singaporeans’ love of travel and adventure. 

Originally launched in 2019 as “Holiday Quickies,” this travel advertisement has sparked the desire to travel and adventurous spirit of many Singaporeans. AirAsia’s network of 130 destinations, including 15 direct routes from Singapore, has been embraced by tourists seeking the beauty of fast travel by enabling them to go on short, stimulating trips.

On Saturday, July 29, 2023, AirAsia launched PlayLive!, a voice-activation game on Clear Channel Singapore’s digital screen, where participants had a chance to win free flights by screaming “YASSS” for 10 seconds, enhancing AirAsia’s brand image as a lifestyle-oriented airline.

Speaking about the launch, Logan Velaitham, CEO of AirAsia Singapore, expressed, “We are excited to relaunch this successful campaign in Singapore with the return of our popular ‘YASSS to Holiday Quickies.’”

He added,  “What better way to reintroduce it than partnering with Clear Channel’s interactive voice-activation digital screen to not only get our guests to scream on top of their lungs for free flights, but also get our brand on top of their minds for future travel opportunities.” 

“As we are back in full swing with frequencies and capacities akin to pre-pandemic levels, with 15 destinations from Singapore, we look forward to flying Singaporeans to their much-needed and well-deserved holiday locations, always at the best-value fares possible,” Velaitham said. 

Cebu City, Philippines – Capital ACapital A’s campaign for diversity, ‘Time To Listen’, to release special single, the investment holding company of lowcost airline AirAsia, has announced a partnership with UnionDigital Bank, the digital bank subsidiary of Union Bank of the Philippines. Through this partnership, Capital A’s subsidiaries namely AirAsia, airasia Superapp, and BigPay will be involved and will extend its presence in the Southeast Asian markets of Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.

The new partnership was announced during the recent APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) meeting press conference.

Through the partnership, UnionDigital Bank’s role will be to provide embedded finance in partnership with BigPay within the airasia Superapp travel platform, the main booking channel for AirAsia flights in the Philippines.

Moreover, the partnership will enhance the travel experience of frequent fliers with flexible payment options with a Fly Now, Pay Later offer available in airasia Superapp, and exclusive co-branding deals. This will create a progressive shift in the way customers plan and pay for their flights and other travel-related services, making fintech more convenient and accessible for Filipinos. 

Tony Fernandes, CEO at Capital A, said, “For Capital A, the vision has always been to provide low cost, best value services, connecting people and realising dreams, for people of Asean and beyond. With UnionDigital as our proud partner, we are now on our way to create a future where travel meets innovative financial solutions that facilitate everyone’s dream journeys with unparalleled ease. We look forward to working with UnionDigital to redefine travel coupled with fintech as an accessible and enriching experience.”

He added, “Data has shown that 7 out of 10 of our customers in the Philippines save up for their travel plans, carefully budgeting to ensure they can explore the world comfortably. It is this inspiring dedication that fuels our determination to break down barriers and create a more connected and inclusive global community.”

Meanwhile, Zubin Rada Krishnan, CEO of BigPay, commented, “As tourism flourishes in the region, we are excited to elevate the end-to-end travel and payment experience of Filipinos through our collaboration with UnionDigital Bank and airasia. Through this partnership, BigPay is one step closer to making our financial services highly accessible in the Philippines, with the mission of empowering people to level up their lives, one transaction at a time.”

Lastly, Henry Aguda, president and CEO at UnionDigital Bank, said, “This is a pivotal moment for the two important sectors in the Philippines. We are forging a path towards greater convenience, accessibility, and innovation to empower Filipinos to live better lives. As we make these partnership announcements at ABAC, we are not just setting the stage but building a solid foundation for a brighter future with BigPay and AirAsia by our side.”

With pandemic restrictions now easing out, brands have been reevaluating their marketing strategies and exploring new avenues to engage with consumers. One approach that has gained significant traction is the utilisation of outdoor campaigns. With people eager to venture out and reconnect with the world, outdoor advertising provides a unique opportunity for brands to capture attention, build brand awareness, and foster meaningful connections.

Moreover, these outdoor campaigns have made brands recognise the value of reconnecting with consumers in the physical realm. By immersing consumers in their brand story and providing opportunities for participation, brands can forge emotional connections that extend beyond a mere advertising message.

This is especially true for campaigns related to tourism, more relevant with regions easing up borders to boost local tourism. And for low-cost airline AirAsia, it tapped into the wide reach of programmatic DOOH to promote its 7 million free seats campaign, launched in celebration 700 million passengers flown in conjunction with the airline’s 21-year anniversary.

In partnership with Moving Walls, AirAsia has forged its strategy and direction for this DOOH endeavour and successfully placed itself in front of consumers – at the right place and time.

The Challenge

As a low-cost airline, AirAsia wants to entice itching travellers to grab seats to local, ASEAN and further destinations around the world. The challenge was how should AirAsia rise to the challenge of creating awareness about its 7 million free seats promo to its specific target audiences.

The Objective

AirAsia aimed to launch an innovative programmatic DOOH campaign to drive awareness and drive bookings for its 7 million free seats promo. The objective was to engage audiences uniquely and leave a lasting impression that would lead to a significant increase in bookings for the promotion.

The Solution

AirAsia leveraged a programmatic DOOH campaign to promote its 7 Million free seats promotion, by targeting high-traffic locations frequented by its key audience segments. The campaign utilized dynamic countdown creatives that displayed the number of remaining free seats for the promotion, creating a sense of urgency and encouraging viewers to take immediate action.

The dynamic countdown creatives were designed in a visually appealing manner to attract viewers’ attention and encourage them to engage with the ad. The creatives were optimised for each location, taking into account the audience’s demographics and behaviours in that particular area.

The programmatic DOOH platform used real-time data to target audiences at the right time and place, ensuring maximum impact and relevance.

The Results

The mega sale campaign by AirAsia delivered exceptional results, leaving a significant impact on the company’s bottom line. The campaign reached over 4.10 Million people and exceeded our initial expectations with a unique reach of 500K. Real-time optimization helped us achieve a lower cost per thousand impressions of RM36, making the campaign both cost-effective and high-value.

By leveraging the programmatic DOOH campaign through Moving Wall’s Moving Audiences platform, they delivered the right content to the right audience at the right place and time. This dynamic creative strategy has helped AirAsia stand out in a cluttered and competitive market and generated high levels of engagement. As a result, the free seats offered were snapped up in just a few days, making AirAsia top of mind for travellers planning their year-end holiday.

The campaign’s effectiveness not only increased bookings and revenue but also demonstrated the power of combining creativity and DOOH for strong outcomes in a short period. The success of this strategic approach showcases the importance of leveraging Programmatic DOOH to create dynamic and effective advertising campaigns.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Capital A, the holding company of low-cost airline airasia, has launched a new entity called ‘airasia brand co.’. It has also appointed Rudy Khaw, most recently the chief brand officer at airasia, has been named the entity’s chief executive officer.

The airasia brand entity, which also sees Capital A CEO Tony Fernandes taking charge of the chairman role, will take ownership of the brand’s intellectual property (IP) portfolio, including all brands and marks across the Capital A group.

Khaw is a seasoned brand expert and has over 16 years of experience in brand management. During his recent role, he has successfully led several strategic branding initiatives for airasia that resulted in significant revenue growth.

Speaking on his new role, he said that through the new entity, they will explore new and exciting ways to connect with people through expanding airasia’s brand influence across diverse industries, unlocking its true potential.

“The airasia brand has become a symbol of value, quality, and connection. Our red planes have become an icon in the Asean aviation industry; together with our brand exposure work over the last 22 years, the airasia brand has gone from a little known brand in Malaysia, to an Asean and now a global brand seen all over the world. We are thrilled to embark on this new venture and take our brand to even greater heights,” he said.

Meanwhile, Fernandes commented that they aim to set new benchmarks in brand development and extend their brand’s relevance and create meaningful experiences beyond transactions for millions of airasia fans worldwide.

“The launch of airasia brand co. marks a significant milestone for all of us. The airasia brand is something we have always taken pride in – built by our Allstars, and we recognise its immense potential to go beyond aviation. I am confident that with Rudy’s expertise in brand management and his proven ability to drive growth, we will be able to find new spaces for people to express brand love and loyalty,” he stated.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – BigPay, a financial services company venture from Capital A, has announced that Zubin Rada Krishnan, recently the country head for BigPay Malaysia, as its acting chief executive officer following the news of CEO and co-founder Salim Dhanani stepping down from his role to pursue new ventures outside of the company.

Before joining BigPay, Krishnan was a partner with the Boston Consulting Group for over six years, where he focused on financial services, including: the design of digital banks in Singapore and Malaysia; large-scale bank operating model transformations; and the build & launch of innovative digital products. He was also a co-founder of Tuas Capital Partners, a private equity fund. 

Prior to that he also played a strategy role at Hong Leong Bank where he helped set up a new subsidiary in Vietnam, and supported Malaysia’s last major retail banking merger. He began his career in KPMG Business Advisory, supporting financial institutions across financial risk and strategy.

Speaking on his appointment, Krishnan said that they have a stellar team behind the business, who are instrumental in deepening and expanding their footprint in Malaysia and across ASEAN, with a planned launch in Thailand later this year, followed by Indonesia and the Philippines.

“I am excited to be given this opportunity to drive BigPay’s mission. I will leverage my nearly 20 years of experience across financial services and capital markets to better provide our customers with the accessible and supportive products they need to live better lives. With an increased focus on our customers and deeper collaboration with airasia Superapp, I am confident in achieving greater growth for BigPay, which saw 56% YoY growth in revenue and a 43% improvement in gross profit margins,” he said.

Meanwhile, Colin Currie, president and CEO at airasia Digital commented, “The management would like to thank Salim for his leadership as CEO since December 2020, and for being a part of BigPay’s journey to challenge conventional banking in Asean. We are excited to welcome Zubin Rada Krishnan as acting Group CEO of BigPay, who has been the country head for Malaysia for nearly a year.” 

He added, “Zubin takes the helm of this great company at a time of strong, sustained performance and we are confident that he will continue to grow BigPay’s mission of giving Southeast Asians the financial services they need to level up their lives, one transaction at a time. We are excited for BigPay’s next step as we seek to tighten our links with AirAsia guests to provide a seamless travel payment experience within the Capital A ecosystem.”

Lastly, Dhanani said, “It has been an immensely humbling experience serving as the CEO of BigPay, securing capital to scale, developing a suite of financial services for our customers and diversifying revenue streams since inception. I trust that the amazing team I’ve had the privilege to work with will ensure that we have a sustainable business model scaling within the AirAsia and Capital A ecosystem as BigPay embarks on the next chapter with the new leadership.”

Sydney, Australia – Independent agency This is Flow has added AirAsia to its client portfolio following a competitive pitch and the airline’s return to the market following COVID.

Under the partnership, This is Flow will work with AirAsia across a full suite of marketing services, including media planning and buying in Australia and New Zealand. The agency will also run key market activations and manage social content, influencers, and creatives through Flow’s partners, L&A Social.

“We are thrilled to work with This is Flow as our chosen strategic partner to take our brand to the next level in Australia and New Zealand in two key markets we are returning to first, post pandemic,” said Karen Chan, AirAsia Group’s chief commercial officer.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Hyett, founder and CEO of This is Flow said that the agency is seeing renewed excitement about international travel and commented about what Flow can bring to AirAsia.

“With a vibrant brand and a passionate team, Flow can add to the mix lots of fun activations, great media, and engaging content – when combined, makes AirAsia a dream client to work with, and we’re so excited to be a part of their growth story in a rebounding travel industry,” he added.

This is Flow has also previously won the media account of cruise operator Carnival Australia and its four brands in ANZ.

Malaysia – David Viray, who is head of branding of AirAsia for the last 2 years, covering both the airline and the super app in the Philippine market, has been elevated to assume the branding leadership region-wide. Viray, who announced the new appointment on his LinkedIn, is now the head of brand of AirAsia’s airline business in Malaysia and across all of its markets in Asia. 

Viray is a seasoned marketing leader within the AirAsia network, having accumulated almost 9 years of experience in the company. He started as a brand manager in 2014, and moved to several leadership positions in a combination of both region-wide and market-specific capacities 

In his LinkedIn post, he expressed elation on the way he would be starting his ninth year as an ‘Allstar’, the unique moniker of the airline for its employees. He shared that the excitement never fades despite being with the company for quite some time, and goes to thank Rudy Khaw, the airline’s chief brand officer. 

“Challenges keep on coming which helps me constantly feel that there’s always room for growth and possibilities,” he said. 

In November, it was announced that Tony Fernandes, the former Group CEO of AirAsia‘s budget airline, AirAsia X, has relinquished the said position to focus on his group leadership at parent firm Capital A.