Free Marketing Dissertations - Although The Carrier Is Still Perceived As A Long Way Below Ba And The Other
Although the carrier is still perceived as a long way below BA and the other premium service carriers, its brand re launch has now enabled it to move into the top five in the list of the UK’s preferred airline brands (Curtis, 2004)
Positioning
Most people have an opinion about easyJet, which is one of its core strengths, built on the back of the budget airline’s initial positioning as a liberator, enabling people to travel more frequently around Europe, with prices more akin to domestic train travel than the traditionally high prices charged by European flag carriers. Also, under the guidance of Stelios Haji-Ioannou it developed as one of the UK's most distinctive brands, with a trademark anti-establishment attitude. However, the sector has seen growing competition from domestic entrants such as Thomsonfly and Continental start-ups such as Wizz, from Eastern Europe, with higher fuel prices are also hitting profits. As a result, in positioning terms, some feel easyJet has been squeezed between airlines such as British Airways and the ultra low-cost Ryanair. (Rogers, Jul 2004) It is as a result of this that EasyJet hired Sledge as its first ad agency to develop the 'Let's fly' positioning, and has recently launched a multimillion-pound drive aimed at business travellers. (Marketing (UK), 2005) The airline had previously focused its positioning and marketing efforts on holidaymakers, but is now looking to increase its share of the business market, with print, poster and radio advertisements carrying the strapline ‘You're a business. You work it out.’ (Marketing (UK), 2005)
In contrast, it is a different story for one of easyJet’s key competitors: British Airways, for whom it would appear that, no matter how badly the firm performs, the UK public will always remain loyal. BA has a clear lead as Britain's favourite airline, and is seventh place in the overall best-loved brands table; however this doesn’t tally with the reality of its declining fortunes, mainly at the hands of the budget airlines, which, with easyJet’s recent rise excluded, fail to make it into the top five airlines. This can be seen as a testament to easyJet’s strength, and successful positioning switch, that it has managed to make it into such list, especially when you compare the years of heritage and investment behind the BA brand, with the new re launch of easyJet. Comparing the easyJet brand, and relative success, to that of Ryanair, anlysts have claimed that: both easyJet and Ryanair spotted a gap in the market, but there is a difference between a good-value proposition and being cheap. (Curtis, 2004), and this has been cited as the reason Ryanair failed to make the top five.
Celebrity endorsement
The use of celebrities as part of marketing communications strategy is a fairly common practice for major firms in supporting corporate or brand imagery.
