Without a Marketing Plan, much of your ad dollars may be wasted

The first thing every company (not just aviation businesses) should do that is going to seriously invest in promoting their business is to develop a Marketing Plan. And no, it’s not a simple, easy thing to produce, hence the avoidance by many, but it is probably the most important thing to accomplish that will ensure your marketing will be effective, and result in the long-term success of your business.

Time and time again I’ve seen companies embark on haphazard advertising and promotions, spending thousands of dollars without having clearly thought through what they want their marketing to achieve and how it fits into their overall business goals.

While a marketing plan can be complex and extensive, most aviation companies would do well by providing thoughtful answers to simple interview questions: who, what, where, why, how, and most importantly, how much.

I’m not going to go through all of them, instead I’ll focus on one at a time and do the others in subsequent posts. The first question is “who”. Basically, “who” exactly is your customer?

For different businesses, the answer is varied. It really depends on whether you’re selling to other businesses or to consumers. For instance, an FBO that wants to attract high-end charter and business jet traffic, would first want to identify those companies that you want to do business with and then identify what attributes they are looking for in an FBO. The outreach for that type of audience would be to ensure that your FBO is listed in all the major flight planning and informational websites available, such as AirNav and FltPlan.com.

Of course, you should have these linked to a tasteful website which would provide compelling reasons why they should use your facility. But really the most important thing that you need to do, is make an internal assessment of your facility, and to make an honest determination whether you have the kind of facility that can meet the demands of the high-end corporate business traveler. An FBO seeking that kind of customer is really in the hospitality business, and not in the aviation business. Your facility should have the ambiance and accoutrements that is going to make your high-end customer feel comfortable, and at home. Your staff has to be trained to provide exemplary service. You have to have the ability to do all the little things that make a big difference, like get chauffeur driven limousine, book a hotel, provide ground transportation, have a red carpet greeting, etc. All the things that culminate into superlative professional image.

It’s really about providing hospitality, and not just about pumping jet fuel.

When you’re marketing to consumers, it’s a different approach because consumers tend to purchase more on impulse and emotion. They don’t have anyone that’s going to look over their purchase and they don’t have a cover-their-ass mentality (unless their spouse is involved).

In this situation, it’s really the relationship that’s important. If you’re a flight school and a customer comes in the door, how is that person greeted? Are they made to feel welcome? If they’re coming in and are interested in doing flight training, what is the sale process to turn this prospect into a customer. Do you offer introductory flights at a reduced rate? Is the instructor that takes them up, skilled at getting that prospective student excited about flying and aviation? Is he or she going to ensure a positive experience that the prospective student is going to feel great about? Is he or she going to put the “customer first” – ensuring they are comfortable in the aircraft – taking them up in the right conditions? If you take prospective student flying on a turbulent day in less than ideal conditions and they anxious and end up barfing in the plane – you’ve lost the prospect and you still have to clean up the plane.

Be creative and think of alternatives to build rapport with the prospect. Perhaps get them in the cockpit and show them some of the fancy, dual-panel, glass avionics, provide some basic ground instruction – maybe fire up the engine and them taxiing the plane around the ramp. You can someone excited about becoming a pilot without actually having to takeoff.

Those are some of the approaches in terms of knowing “who” is your customer, and understanding what is going to motivate them to buy from your business. It’s a key component of a comprehensive marketing plan that every business in aviation should develop.