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Getting passengers onboard before they come to the airport
Let's focus on the time between trips
They are out there. The people in your catchment area who use your airport when flying for business or pleasure, frequently or only once-in-a-while. As an airport executive or airport marketing professional, you already know what they want when it’s time to travel, right? Flight status, parking information, airline and gate information and the like. This article is not about any of that.
Instead, let’s focus on the time in between trips. When the travelers are doing non-travel things. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t thinking of traveling. In fact, 20% of Americans say they are “always” thinking of their next vacation according to a recent survey by SWNS. Plus, McKinsey & Company research found that travel is a higher priority now than it was prior to the Pandemic for 66% of us. So, engaging people in between trips when they are thinking about their next travel experience is very much worthwhile. Keeping your airport top-of-mind will reap benefits when thinking of travel turns to booking travel.
Connecting the Dots of Travel Behavior and Social Media Use
The same McKinsey & Company study in 2024 revealed that younger generations have a growing, significant interest in travel, with Millennials and GenZers taking on average 5 trips in 2023 vs less than four for GenXers and Baby Boomers. Considering that data shows Millennials are also the most active demographic on social media with 69.2% estimated to be using social media in 2025, and GenZ users spending the most time on social media (an average 2 hours, 59 minutes daily) followed closely by Millennials (2 hours, 50 minutes daily), the importance of a robust, ongoing social media strategy and plan becomes even more apparent.
OK, now raise your hand if you feel your airport is doing a good job with social media. That’s awesome! I can’t see you, but I know there are lots of hands raised. Now, let me ask you to raise your hand if you have a nagging feeling that you could be doing better. It’s OK, no one can see you. It’s fair to say that nearly everyone feels that there is always room for and a need for improvement in your airport’s social media efforts. But “How?” is the question.
Social Media and Content Philosophies
- The answer begins with these philosophical concepts that we have embraced:
- Step 1 is not to create/ideate. Step 1 is the listen to what the platforms are telling you.
- For the ideation process, look at all things through an organic lens to ensure it’s aligning with something in the digital sphere.
- Social is a two-way conversation, not a broadcast medium.
- Cultural relevance is the most important KPI to reach Gen Z/Millennial audiences.
- Good content shouldn’t rely on paid amplification.
- There is no copy-and-paste per platform strategy, you must curate content to meet the nuances and best practices of each.
- Content is a catch-all term for a myriad of communications (web, social, experiential).
Also, maintain a holistic view of your digital ecosystem that needs consistency and does not/should not exist in silos. Instead, Social Media, Website, Traditional Creative, Experiential, Video and Animation, Music/Sound, and all other forms of content should be an elegantly integrated and connected composition of shared content that is relevant, authentic and valued.
Cornerstone Content Social Media Strategy
We have adapted an approach to content development and social media strategy created by sales and advertising veteran and author of The Invisible Sale, Tom Martin. Known as the “Cornerstone/Cobblestone” principle, it serves as an effective framework of organizing and planning a strategic approach to content creation and distribution, especially with, but not limited to, social media. Here’s the framework that we use:
- Cornerstones are the big ideas, the comprehensive, primary information and content that you want to share about your brand that reflect your core mission and positioning.
- Cobblestones are the smaller more specific pieces of content that support the Cornerstone idea with subtopics that provide reason to believe that are both meaningful and differentiating.
- Drumbeat content is that which is consistently shared as ongoing reinforcement of key brand messages.
- Opportunistic/Non-Planned content is just that, content that is topical and culturally relevant in the particular moment with the audience.
- Pebbles are small bits of varied, relevant content shared on an ongoing basis to stimulate and maintain engagement with your brand.
Employing this framework will enable you and your team to plan content across the calendar to ensure a balance presence while providing a strategic roadmap for content creation.
Staying Vigilant
- A key factor for success that makes some content and social media programs stand out from the rest is when there is someone or a team vigilant in:
- Trend-spotting and social listening.
- Monitoring Google search spikes.
- Tracking comment sentiment shifts.
- Spotting emerging memes before they peak.
- Diving into online content to see what people really think.
Airports, Furby and Play-Doh
The above is not only applicable to airport content and social media programs, it is also a proven approach for two very different brands that are part of the Hasbro portfolio. To learn how we applied the things we have described here, take a look at how we creatively built awareness and engagement for the return of Furby and the launch of a Play-Doh + Papa Johns partnership.
If you raised your hand when I asked if you have a nagging feeling that you could be doing better and would like to talk with us about your airport’s content and social media needs, we would welcome that conversation. Reach me, Steve Mason, at smason@fuseideas.com.
