Virgin Australia puts staff at centre stage as it takes brand battle to Qantas
Virgin Australia has taken the brand battle to Qantas in the next phase of a marketing drive that puts its staff at the centre of a strategy to build an emotional connection with travellers.
The campaign is Virgin Australia’s third high profile brand push since the airline rebranded from Virgin Blue in 2011, all of which have been the work of Clemenger BBDO. Qantas is tipped to follow suit with a brand crusade of its own later this year.
Virgin’s TV campaign is being supported by print, digital, outdoor, social channels as well as being driven to its Velocity frequent flyer database. It will run until the end of October with a second wave of the campaign to follow.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q2FmeHLnAs
It feels like a bad knock off of the Etihad ad, which was actually pretty good.
I think it’s disingenuous to submit that this is the typical Virgin flight attendant.. 5 star hotels, designer outfits, all young and attractive.
Also having the staff just wondering aimlessly around an airport tarmac just feels way too fake / removed from reality.
I fly with Virgin a bit and will continue to, but I find this ad pretty ordinary.
Not a bad ad I think it will connect well with people.
It does feel like a poor low-budget version of a scene from ‘Catch me if you can’
Both the picture and music edit leave a bit to be desired – it feels like it lacks a clear story telling narrative – more just feels like a montage of nice shots put together
Oh dear
an ad with nothing to say…. says nothing. this does a good job of that.
I guess they’re trying to rediscover the glamour of flying.
It may be polishing the FA experience, but getting up at 4am with bed-head in a Coolangatta motel, then taking the crew bus to the airport probably doesn’t come across as well.
A bit of wallpaper that says nothing really.
As if we are to believe that all these “glamorous” cabin crew members, on their salaries, drive classic cars and live in sprawling country retreats.
Makes me want to be a flight attendant!
Nice to hear a classic artist/track and not a soundalike !
Trying to work out what the insight is exactly. Hot trolley dolly montage with some Sinatra, right, and?
Chewing gum for the eyes. At least most of the staff are young and attractive.
A similar ad from Qantas would be shot in a nursing home.
I wonder if anyone has pointed out that Ansett used the same song in an ad campaign not long after the pilots dispute in 1989/90?
It’s big, it’s sexy, that’s the big idea. Don’t over analyse it and move on. We like our clients to do that, but of course kick the crap out of it amongst our peers when the work isn’t ours. And BTW this was always Virgin’s territory from Virgin Blue days.
Not sure that old blue eyes works. Seems to me it makes Virgin feel old, the exact opposite of all those young flight attendants. This might be their attempt to win over older flyers on Qantas which conflicts with the cutting edge image I’ve had of them up in the past
only an occasional flyer and the newer Virgin planes are quiet good but the music caught my attention- think it is “big noise from Winnetka” swing music from the 30’s, have not heard this version, can anyone ID the band playing it as would like to hear the complete version?.
Oh dear. I have huge respect for Clems, but I suspect that they know, in their hearts, that this is simply client-pleasing wallpaper. Was [Edited under Mumbrella’s content moderation policy]?
Great music choice – timeless. But it sounds like a low res MP3 – not a high quality track.
Time for Virgin to ask some hard questions about post production.
And bastardising the track to fit 30 seconds – that’s crass. Not on. Poor form.
Someone has no class.
What a wasted opportunity! Weren’t Virgin pushing young, attractive female FAs when they were a LCC? To be still doing this seems limiting and also feels a bit sexist. Surely they’ve got a lot of other attributes worth focusing on? Also, they need to drop their tagline
Typical Clems Sydney…
All style, no substance.
If staff are the ‘soul’ of Virgin’s business then why have they hired model Alexandra Agoston to pretend to be a flight attendant? It certainly looks like she’s living the glamorous lifestyle of a model and not a flight attendant in the TVC.
I don’t know about all the “cabin crew” featured in this ad but the female lead in the ad (tall, long hair at the beginning of the TVC) is definitely not a flight attendant – it’s Alexandra Agoston, a model.
Just read comment by “Model Life”… well spotted. I think if you’re trying to put your staff at the centre of your advertising then it’s probably not a great idea to use such a well known model.
THEY SHOULD TAKE A LOOK AT THE ETIHAD SPOT.THAT,S WHAT AN AIRLINE TVC SHOULD LOOK LIKE.REALLY GORGEOUS AND SOPHISTICATED.