Marketing Strategy and SWOT analysis of Southwest Airlines
Travelling is one of the pleasurable activities in the world, and it is not a secret that traveling by plane is also the quickest method. In order to travel by plane, one has to choose the right company which will assure them safety. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Southwest Airlines Co. is one of the leading airline companies of the United States and the world’s largest low-cost carrier airline, which is and has scheduled service to 115 destinations in the United States and ten additional countries. As Southwest Airlines has world fame and a positive image, this post seeks to analyze some of the critical aspects that have led to this company’s success.
Let’s start by discussing the mission and vision statement of this company.
The mission statement of Southwest Airlines Co. is “Connect people to what’s important in their lives through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel.”
To begin, the company gives huge importance to the experience that their customers would have when taking flights with Southwest Airlines, so we can definitely say that they are a customer-centered company.
They believe that friendliness, reliability, and low cost are important factors when choosing airlines, which makes us understand that despite the financial aspects, the way their customers feel is also important for them. In the same way, we can also say that Southwest Airlines accepts itself as a friendly, reliable, and low-cost company.
In a nutshell, the mission statement of Southwest Airlines shows that the company is not indifferent to the emotions people might have when taking their flights and does everything to make them memorable.
The company’s vision statement states that they want “To be the world’s most loved, most efficient, and most profitable airline.”
We can notice that the phrase world’s most loved and most efficient over and over again shows the company’s intention to increase its focus on customer satisfaction.
Only after gaining the trust of their customers and satisfying them, Southwest Airlines can also become the most profitable one as more people would start to use their offerings.
This third component can also be interpreted as SA’s desire to become more competitive and effective.
Now, let’s move and discuss the positioning strategy of Southwest Airlines
In order to do so, we will review one of the Instagram posts of Southwest Airlines.
Having over 768K followers, this post of Southwest Airlines reminds us about some of the values that Southwest Airlines always tries to keep up– unity, courage, energy, focus, and discipline.
For example, the first picture shows how luxurious and beautiful is one of the planes of the company. This makes us understand how much focused and energized the workers of the company are that also give special attention to the design of their planes.
After watching the other pictures, the smiles of the workers subconsciously transfer to ours, making us believe how committed this company is to its customers and how happy they are to be part of Southwest Airlines.
All these things make us infer that Southwest Airlines belongs to The Hero Brand Archetype.
Now, let’s learn more about this brand archetype.
Desire: to prove one’s worth through courageous actions
Aim: To improve the world.
Strategy: become as strong, competent, and powerful as they are capable of being.
Now, let’s move into the messaging strategy of The Hero.
Level One: understand that someone needs your help.
Level Two: the development of boundaries
Level Three: doing your duty for the country, family, organization you live and work in
Level Four: showing and using your strength that would help make a difference
The Hero is a great identity for the brands.
•Which are addressing major problems
•Want to beat their competitors
•Want to be different from the other companies in a positive way
•Have customer base identity as moral citizens
Now, let’s move and look at the SWOT analysis of Southwest Airlines.
Strengths
Strong Brand Image
In 2019, it was announced that the company was ranked #11 Fortune’s most admired company in the world. SA is also the 4th valuable airlines brand in the world, having a brand value of over $6.6 Billion.
High Capacity
The capacity of SA in terms of available seats (AS) has become higher during the past years. Higher available seats for longer km contribute to the bottom line. From 2011 to 2019, the company’s AS’s grew from 120 Billion to 157 Billion, making it one of the few airlines with high AS capacities.
Many flights
It is not a secret that the more the airline flies, the more would its revenue be. In the case of Southwest Airlines, throughout the peak season, the company operates more than 4000 flights a day, which is a huge success.
Affordable price
Another factor that leads to the success of this company is the low price of flights. The price for most of the flights starts even from $45 for a one-way flight which makes many customers even more “addicted” to this company’s services.
Weaknesses
Lack of international routes
The company does not operate enough international flights. Southwest Airlines’ international flights include Mexico, Jamaica, The Bahamas, Aruba, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Belize, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and Turks and Caicos. Compared to other famous airlines, these are just a handful of destinations.
So, this kind of dependency on the domestic market may cause some revenue problems.
Dependence on Boeing 737s
Even from the beginning, Southwest Airlines has depended on Boeing 737s. This dependency will also negatively impact the company by making them lose revenues.
Opportunities
Partnership with international brands
Creating a partnership with other famous and leading companies will surely be beneficial for this airline as it will allow them to improve their market share and have more revenues in a short period of time.
Offer long-distance and international flights
As we already know, one of the weaknesses of the company was that they lack international flights. So, considering all these things and adding international and long-distance flights would bring more customers to them.
Booking methods improvement
It is not a secret that nowadays, most people prefer to choose and pay their fares on an online platform. While the company has added some websites such as PayPal and Apple Pay to their website and mobile app, expanding more e-payment methods would surely positively impact their brand image.
Threats
Intense Competition
Day by day, new competitors are coming to the industry, which can take lots of customers from the company while reducing its revenues. In order to not get into that kind of situation, Southwest Airlines should keep up with trends and not make the costs of the flights higher.
Terror attacks
It is not a secret that terror attacks increase the customers’ fair so that any terror attack would have devastating effects not only on Southwest Airlines but also the entire airline industry.
Increase in Fuel Price
The sustainability of airlines heavily depends on fuel prices, so the rise of its price would negatively impact the companies.
Unpredictable events
The COVID19 and other unpredictable pandemics or events are a real threat for the whole industry because when planes are grounded, and air travel demand is low, it leads to the loss of millions of dollars.
A way of illustration is the last pandemic situation in the world, which resulted in the loss of almost 200 million dollars. If this kind of situation repeats, then the company’s profitability would be affected even more.
Moving to the last part of our discussion, let’s watch understand what target segment Southwest Airlines has chosen for them.
To do so let’s have a look at this short commercial
So, this short commercial introduces us to a beautiful business lady at the airport, almost ready for her flight and upcoming adventures. However, as she is having trouble with her contact lenses and wants to solve them without noticing, she goes to the men’s bathroom, making her feel ashamed.
The commercial’s main idea, “Wanna Get Away?” is something that helps this woman run away from that uncomfortable situation to the flight.
Southwest Airlines has special “Wanna Get Away” tickets, which are the cheapest ones. These affordable fares are convenient for everybody, especially for those who want to save money and travel a lot.
Besides being cheap, these fares have an excellent baggage policy and a customer-friendly environment.
Taking some of the key aspects of this commercial, we can conclude that Southwest Airlines has chosen Sharers as a target segment.
Now, let’s learn some interesting facts about this target group.
The representatives of this target segment appreciate the time that they are given. For that purpose, they always try to make each moment of their lives special and memorable, including even usual and simple daily tasks.
People belonging to this target group are risk-takers and adventure lovers. They are not afraid of challenges and try to do them in any way.
When it comes to success, these people are very ambitious and hard-working. However, money is the best measure of success.
Sharers take care of their families a lot. They always take part in family duties, and it is very important for them to know that their parents and siblings are happy and healthy.
Taking care of garden is a real enjoyment for them. Besides, they are also fond of fixing things. For example, one can find sharers in a room, while painting the walls or putting the shelves etc.
They are very conscious about the way they look, which is one of the motives of why these people eat healthy food and exercise regularly.
Sharers also like to go to exciting and crowded places, such as cafes, wine vars, and discos, but rarely go to exhibitions or theatres.
Brand usage:
Sharers are considered to be brand-oriented and knowledgeable. When it comes to brands, they will not keep money and, in any chance, would choose premium brands.
While the people representing this segment are fond of shopping, they would mostly spend their money wisely. In other words, these people prefer quality over quantity. They like to go shopping either with their friends or family.
Media Usage:
Media is one of the methods that helps them to escape from reality. They are on top of the TV watchers and even average radio listeners. However, when it comes to Internet usage, Sharers are not proficient enough.
All in all, this post was devoted to one of the leading airline companies in the world- Southwest Airlines. We gave specific attention to some of the aspects that play a huge in the success of every company, including the target segment, SWOT analysis, positioning strategy, and core values.
I hope we could answer the questions you had regarding this airline company. To see more posts like this, please, check our home page.
