Just over 100 years from its inception, British Airways has developed into an indisputable national institution – as representative of Britain as a nicely buttered crumpet or the Queen.
It has also become unquestionably one of the world’s most recognisable brands, enjoying levels of global recognition that most marketers can only dream of.
Speaking at MAD//Fest in London, chief operating officer Calum Laming revealed the size of the challenge involved in modernising a historic brand with such a pervasive cultural legacy.
While this might prove a tall order for many, Laming’s extensive experience of the aviation sector, rising up all the way from the call centre over the last 30 years, has certainly put him in good stead to understand what needs to be done.
“I mean, it’s a challenge – I’m not going to lie, and one that we take really seriously,” Laming explains.
“Our brand is 105 years old, with an amazing history and amazing legacy that we’re hugely proud of. And it’s one that a lot of people, not just Brits, feel almost a sense of ownership for – so that comes with a sense of weight and responsibility surrounding how we move it forward.”
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“Of course, we proudly fly the flag of the UK, and so we need to make sure that we’re modernising the brand and keeping up with modern Britain – but at the same time not moving ourselves away too much from where we were,” he continued.
“We are constantly working to make ourselves relevant to the modern consumer, and making ourselves relevant in the modern marketplace.”
With such a large base of operations and myriad moving parts, British Airways has been able to approach this brand modernisation process in many different ways, but has been primarily guided by its own unfailing attention to the customer experience.
After all, customer satisfaction is the be-all and end-all of any service brand and British Airways is no different, with an unerring focus on quality, comfort and premium air travel.
This quality perception follows the British Airways brand right through its marketing and especially its recent creative, which – in partnership with London agency Uncommon – has made many headlines in recent years.
Who could forget the immensely successful ‘Take Your Holidays Seriously’ spot launched in January 2023, demanding that Brits truly detach from work on holiday to the point of forcefully blatantly ignoring all work requests.
This is clearly the work of a brand with a distinct personality, and a playful one at that – something which might not have historically been associated with the airline.
As a chief customer officer, Laming might believe that customer experience is what defines a modern brand, but British Airways creative identity is surely what most of the public will associate it with, and working in close collaboration with Uncommon – it has certainly achieved that.
