Airline marketing typically relies on the travel essentials: where you are flying, when you are flying to and how much it will cost. However, these questions reduce the experience to a mere step to the real destination, taking away the brand behind the ticket. This is not to say that the questions posed aren't relevant — they are — but your airline means more than what your competitors are also advertising.
To get to the heart of what it takes to build genuine brand preference, especially as it relates to premium airlines, we spoke to Leigh Papadopulos, Manager for International and Cargo Marketing at Virgin Atlantic. Papadopulos shares her perspective, especially how it relates to the South African market, and whether marketing can translate into genuine brand loyalty.
Tourism marketing usually focuses on inspiring people to visit a destination, while airline marketing has to persuade them to choose a specific route and carrier. How does that difference influence your marketing strategy and the way you approach developing campaigns?
Tourism marketing is largely about inspiring the desire to travel. Airline marketing has the additional challenge of influencing how people choose to travel and, ultimately, why they should trust your brand over another.
At Virgin Atlantic, we know that customers don't simply buy a seat — they're buying an experience, a service and a brand they connect with. That's why our marketing goes beyond flying schedules and fares to tell a richer story around who we are and what we stand for.
Virgin Atlantic focuses on our customer experience, our people, our premium products and our purpose to inspire everyone to take on the world. Every campaign should reinforce our ambition to become the most loved travel company.
In South Africa, local relevance is equally important. As we celebrate 30 years of flying between South Africa and the UK, we have an opportunity to tell stories that reflect our long-standing commitment to the market. Whether we're supporting trade, engaging local media or celebrating key milestones, we ensure our global brand resonates authentically with South African audiences because, ultimately, people choose brands they feel connected to.
Our "See the World Differently" brand philosophy reminds us to challenge convention and look beyond simply selling flights. It's about creating experiences that customers remember long after they've landed. That mindset shapes how we market.
We don't see advertising, service, loyalty and customer experience as separate functions — they're all part of one connected experience. Marketing creates the promise, and every interaction with our people and product brings that promise to life.
South Africans are value-conscious travellers — how do you market a premium airline experience without making it feel inaccessible to the broader market?
Premium today isn't about exclusivity; it's about delivering meaningful value.
South African travellers are incredibly discerning. They want to know they're investing in an experience that genuinely enhances their journey, regardless of which cabin they choose. Our role is to demonstrate that value through thoughtful service, innovation, reliability and the distinctive personality that has always defined Virgin Atlantic.
We also recognise that travel means something different to everyone. For some it's a family reunion, for others it's business, education or a once-in-a-lifetime holiday. Our purpose is to connect people, businesses and loved ones across borders, and that purpose shapes how we communicate our brand.
Rather than positioning premium as something reserved for a select few, we focus on making customers feel welcomed, valued and understood. It's that emotional connection, alongside a consistently high-quality experience, that helps make Virgin Atlantic both aspirational and accessible.
For us, premium isn't defined by price; it's defined by how customers feel. Every touchpoint should reinforce the same experience, whether someone is travelling in Economy or Upper Class. That's the red thread that runs through our brand — making every customer feel valued, welcomed and looked after.
South Africa is a highly competitive travel market, with airlines competing on similar fares and value propositions. When those factors become less of a differentiator, what role does brand marketing play in influencing customer choice?
Brand becomes one of the strongest competitive advantages when products and pricing begin to look similar.
A strong brand creates familiarity, trust and emotional connection long before a customer is ready to book. Those positive perceptions often become the deciding factor when routes, schedules and fares are closely matched.
For Virgin Atlantic, brand marketing is about consistently reinforcing what makes us different. We're purpose-led, customer-obsessed and committed to creating brilliantly different experiences. Our ambition is to be the most loved travel company — which means every interaction should leave customers feeling something, not just getting them from one destination to another.
In South Africa, we've spent three decades building meaningful relationships with customers, trade partners and the media. That long-term commitment, combined with our strong heritage and the special connection Sir Richard Branson shared with Nelson Mandela, has helped build trust that extends beyond any individual campaign.
Brand marketing creates a promise. But that promise only becomes meaningful when the customer experiences it consistently. That's why brand, service and loyalty can't operate independently — they all work together to create trust.
In a competitive market like South Africa, customers don't simply remember what you said in an advert; they remember how your brand made them feel. When customers trust your brand and recognise what you stand for, price becomes just one part of the decision rather than the only one.
How do you go about proving commercial impact when you're evaluating a campaign? What metrics tell you that you've genuinely shifted customer behaviour in your brand's favour?
The most successful campaigns are measured across the entire customer journey rather than through a single KPI.
We evaluate a combination of brand and commercial metrics, including awareness, engagement, website traffic, search demand, PR impact, social sentiment and trade partner feedback, alongside booking performance, route demand and overall commercial contribution.
However, context is equally important. Some campaigns are designed to drive immediate bookings, while others are intended to strengthen brand perception, reinforce our position in strategic markets or support long-term customer loyalty.
Ultimately, the strongest indicator of success is when brand performance and commercial performance move together. If customers are engaging more with the brand, choosing Virgin Atlantic more frequently and recommending us to others, that's when you know you've influenced behaviour in a meaningful and sustainable way.
As a purpose-led brand, we also recognise that commercial success and customer experience are intrinsically linked. When customers genuinely connect with your purpose, trust your brand and enjoy their experience, commercial results naturally follow. That's why customer experience sits at the heart of everything we do.
Brand marketing sets expectations. Customer experience brings them to life. When those two work seamlessly together, loyalty follows.
Travel is one of the few industries where the product itself creates stories people want to share. How do you use this to your brand's advantage instead of just relying on beautiful destination imagery?
Beautiful destination imagery will always inspire people to travel, but it's rarely what they remember most. What people talk about are the moments that made them feel something — the unexpected act of kindness from cabin crew, celebrating a special occasion at 35 000 feet, reconnecting with loved ones, or simply feeling genuinely looked after throughout their journey.
At Virgin Atlantic, we believe the journey is just as much a part of the story as the destination itself. That's why we focus on creating experiences people naturally want to share rather than simply telling them how great we are.
Our role as marketers is to amplify those authentic moments, because customer stories are always more powerful than brand messages.
It's also why customer experience sits at the heart of our brand. Marketing creates the expectation, but it's our people, our service and every touchpoint along the journey that bring that promise to life. That consistency is the red thread running through the Virgin Atlantic experience and it's what turns customers into advocates.
For us, the most compelling marketing isn't created in a studio — it's created in the moments our customers choose to share.
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*Image courtesy of contributor and Canva