Marketing: The Relentless Pursuit of Relevance Continued from page 11 When reading these questions aloud to a room full of department heads, the outside sales manager will likely answer that marketing “primes the pump of the sales engine” or some other such ridiculous metaphor. The reality is much simpler, and funda- mental to us as humans. Just like people, businesses have a need and desire to remain relevant. And just like a child who has drawn a picture and seeks a parent’s recognition and approval, businesses likewise need to present the picture they have drawn, their unique narrative, and receive recognition in the form of patronage by their customers. Marketing, ergo, is that relentless feedback loop; the relentless pursuit of relevance. To lose relevance, is to no longer be needed, which is a very dangerous thing for a business. Establishing the need for mar- keting for FBOs, marketing is an altogether-more-complex affair than just the affordability equation. First, in the FBO space, there are far fewer customers to whom FBOs market than a normal retail business, and those customers, are far more savvy consumers than most. While all of us need water to survive, we don’t have to visit an FBO to survive, even if many do offer free bottled water. Hence, if one is marketing bottled water to the general populous, that product appeals in some way to every human being alive today. For an FBO, marketing is limited to those who understand what an FBO is, or does, and who have a business or personal need to operate, own, or fly on a business or general aviation aircraft. Who is your FBO’s customer? Furthering the complexity, potential customers onboard an aircraft tend to fall into distinct groups—either flight crew member or passenger—each with differing needs, interests, and responses to different marketing messages. It is these groups that lead to one of the longest running debates at the FBO level: Who exactly is the FBO’s customer? Is it the pilot or the pas- senger? While data quantifying the number of business or GA passengers is unavailable, the statistics for “ac- tive” pilots is a published figure. At the end of 2015, that number stood at 590,039 according to the FAA, a remarkably small group in market- ing terms. An FBO mustn’t forget of course, there are other customer groups not on the plane, such as charter, management or fractional companies; and they are influenced by the marketing function differ- ently than the pilot or passenger. Finally, and largely recognized by the industry, the generational shift that began ten years ago is in now full swing. There are pilots today in their twenties and thirties flying passengers in their sixties and seventies. Captains of industry are flown by captains of the computer era. Plus, there are pilots in their sixties or seventies flying passengers in their twenties or thirties, the latter of whom may have made their fortunes online. In either case, the various mediums used for marketing, and the messaging itself will need to vary for a few years still to come. Loosely translated, and using advertising as the marketing example, FBOs today should con- sider both print and online outlets. Aviation Business Journal | 4th Quarter 2016 Brand Awareness Notwithstanding the complexities of a small customer base, an ongoing customer identification debate, and a shifting demographic in the cockpit and cabin, marketing, in all its forms, can be categorized much more simply: Brand Awareness or Call to Action. And often, one must establish Brand Awareness prior to embarking on a Call to Action message or campaign. The first form of marketing is what it means—Brand Awareness. Be it an ad campaign, giveaways with an FBO’s name, or even an FBO’s website, Brand Awareness is simply to create recognition of who the FBO is, their marketplace position, location, and offering. Keep in mind the “who” is a loaded term, and an FBO’s nar- rative should stem from its guiding principles, mission, and competitive edge. In other words, what makes the FBO relevant to the customer? Why should a customer choose your FBO over your competition? What is your FBO’s unique narrative? For a moment, let’s reflect on the phrase “unique narrative.” Many FBOs are justifiably proud of their safety record, high service levels and great people. To be sure, our people make the difference is an oft-uttered marketing differentiator. But, at the FBO level, such lofty claims fall on deaf ears. Nor for that matter, is an impeccable safety record or exceptional service unique. It is an expectation that a high quality FBO has all three—safety, service and great people. This not-so-unique narrative is most manifest in FBO advertising. These ads feature the exact same imagery: A cabin class Continued on page 15 13
