This morning, at an intimate press event in New York City, Virgin Atlantic announced their new $25 million worldwide ad campaign: “Your airline’s either got it or it hasn’t.” Starting the week of October 11, you’ll be seeing Virgin advertisements on television in the USA for the first time in over 10 years.
The ad, which looks like a sexy music video (and a pretty good one, at that, with a terrific cover of Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” by Muse) is sure to appeal to a younger generation of business travelers and embodies VA’s “we’re not all buttoned up like the other airlines” allure.
Senior Vice President Chris Rossi calls the campaign a “brand redesign,” and to complete the picture, Virgin Atlantic is also ushering in a handful of new planes over the next two years (A330s) painted with a new design — in eco-friendlier paint, no less (it’s a thinner and lighter paint, and lasts seven to nine years). The new design features the brand name in huge, Gotham font letters and an updated Mustang Sally (“our scarlet lady,” Rossi calls her) carrying a far larger Union Jack flag.
The campaign isn’t just about flashy advertising, it’s also ushering in a new era of technological capabilities for the already cutting-edge brand. As early as this spring, you’ll be able to text message and make calls from your own telephone from an upper class Virgin Atlantic seat. Rossi says they’re unsure about the intrusiveness of allowing passengers to make such calls, but assures there will be a trial. “Our brand is a ‘let’s try it’ brand,” he says. Don’t screw it up, guys.
So, give the above commercial a watch and then look for it on TV as soon as the MLB Championships start. Check out the new livery below.
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