Recommendations for Virgin Atlantic (Research Paper Sample)

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Table of Contents
Title Page................................................................................................................................................1
Table of Contents...................................................................................................................................2
Introduction..................................................... ......................................................................................3
Virgin Atlantic’s Present Marketing Strategies.......................................................................................3
Virgin Atlantic’s New Routes and Markets.............................................................................................4
Establishing a New Route, and Entering a New Market.........................................................................5
Marketing Mix of the Proposed Social Media Campaign Promotion.....................................................6
Integrated Marketing Communications.................................................................................................7
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Social Media Advertisements...............................................................8
Risk Assessment in using Social Media Promotional Methods..............................................................9
Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................10
Recommendations................................................................................................................................11
References.............................................................................................................................................14
Appendix A..........................................................................................................................................16
Appendix B..........................................................................................................................................17
Appendix C..........................................................................................................................................18
Appendix D..........................................................................................................................................19
Appendix E...........................................................................................................................................20
Introduction
While the Virgin Atlantic Ltd. has managed to establish numerous subsidiaries and attract customers from all over the world due to its innovative marketing strategies, it faces stiff competition from better-established corporations such as AMR Corp, Air France, British Airways, and Delta. Virgin Atlantic’s aircraft are supplied by Airbus and Boeing. These companies are supplied by the biggest distributor for aerospace parts, Satair, which excels in integrated materials management (Balmforth 2009). While Virgin Atlantic has its headquarters West Sussex in the UK, it has subsidiary companies in the US, China, Australia, the Caribbean, India, Nigeria, Hong Kong, the UAE, and South Africa (Balmforth 2009). To reach customers from different classes of society, Virgin Atlantic has created three different travel classes: the economy class, the upper class, and the premium economy travel classes (Virgin Atlantic 2015a). These different travel classes cater to business and leisure needs of the different social classes. While this has resulted in handsome profits for the company, there still remains an opportunity to reach even more members of the growing middle class travelers in nations across the world.
Thesis Statement
A detailed analysis of Virgin Atlantic’s marketing strategies is necessary, because it will point out areas where the company is under-performing, while highlighting opportunities that could be used to reach newer markets while sustaining the interest of existing customers.
Virgin Atlantic’s Present Marketing Strategies
One of Virgin Atlantic’s most successful marketing strategies is creating partnerships. At present, Virgin Atlantic’s partners include Air New Zealand, Air China, Malaysian Airlines, Hawaiian Airways, and Singapore Airlines among others (Carter 2013). It is such networks that allow Virgin Atlantic to transport passengers of different classes to various far-flung destinations. Virgin Atlantic also has financial partners like ‘American Express’, which has its headquarters in New York, and facilitates the use of credit cards and travelers checks by travelers (Brandon 2014). Partnering with such financial firms allows Virgin Atlantic’s clients to gain miles as they travel to different destinations around the world. Virgin Atlantic also has partnerships with hotel chains like Best Western, Blue Sky, and Radisson which are found in its numerous flight destinations (Balmforth 2009). It is such factors that allow Virgin Atlantic’s customers to enjoy an exceptional experience as they enjoy its services (Virgin Atlantic 2015a).
Virgin Atlantic’s New Routes and Markets
Virgin Atlantic has slowly expanded its route network to include new cities such as Shanghai, New York, Philadelphia, Washington, and Boston over the last few years. Even though its management made the decision to eliminate less profitable routes like Mumbai, Tokyo, and Vancouver late last year, it expanded Virgin’s service routes to the US (See Appendix B). This new development was also accompanied by Virgin Atlantic’s integration with the American Delta Airlines, which now becomes a minority shareholder of 49% of Virgin’s stock (Virgin Atlantic 2015a). This means that Virgin Atlantic will now be able to provide services to tourists from China who wish to visit Europe and the US. Furthermore, Virgin Atlantic’s new joint venture agreement with Delta enables both airlines to coordinate schedules in ways that optimize traveling conditions for passengers. This codeshare partnership allows Virgin Atlantic to connect travelers to and from different airports in the Caribbean, the US, and Canada.
It is an established fact that China has surpassed both Germany and the US to become the world’s biggest outbound market. According to Bowerman (2014), Chinese travelers, by sheer numbers, are the main source of tourism cash. So voluminous is China’s tourist population that it has pushed air travel in the Asia-Pacific region to the fore front (see Appendix A). Virgin Atlantic’s new routes in the US have become extremely popular with American regional travelers, as well as tourists from Europe and China who are on leisure visits to the US (See Appendix C). To make the most of this trend, the US government has even reduced the number of visa requirements for tourists from China.
China’s ever increasing tourist population provides tremendous opportunities for Virgin Atlantic. Moreover, it would be risky to use a single solution to market to its diverse population due to inherent differences between various groups of travelers. It is necessary to segment China’s tourist population after keenly observing differences in terms of factors such as spending habits, tour preferences, and behaviours. Such information will then help to segment and then prioritize each targeted market.
Establishing a New Route, and Entering a New Market
In the modern business environment, intense competition has forced companies to specialize when promoting products to customers (Borenstein and Rose 2007). Researching into the needs of China’s outbound population would help Virgin Atlantic to come up with sound investment decisions, and ensure that services are delivered in the most efficient manner. To capitalize on this opportunity, Virgin Atlantic has to invest in a route development team that has a deep understanding of social media promotional work, as well as its market. In the past, Virgin Atlantic used different online and offline methods to reach potential customers (See Appendix D). However, to reach consumers who are tech-savvy and are accustomed to social-media directed promotional campaigns, it is necessary to present the necessary information through digital channels. It is also necessary for the route development team to understand the strategies being used by competitors in order to outwit them in winning customers (Aizenman 2004).
In virtually all business industries, companies target specific segmented markets with messages that are tailored to their needs. Virgin Atlantic should embrace this kind of niche marketing by catering to the geographical and demographical attributes of segmented groups of customers from China through different social media platforms. Niche marketing will allow the Virgin Atlantic to communicate with potential customers in ways that specifically appeal to them.
There are numerous chat sites such as ‘WeChat’ and ‘SinaWeibo’ that Virgin Atlantic can use to decipher the needs of Chinese travelers and then create travel packages that are customized to meet these needs. There are also different social media strategies that can be used. These include:
Content Marketing: Content marketing enables a company to acquire internet traffic, nurture existing customers and convert potential leads to clients. Potential customers will be able to gain insight about the airline’s services and comprehend its particular brand through the content it provides (Munar 2012).
Pay-Per-Click: This method, which makes use of keyword phrases and strategic keyword, will allow V...