In the past, Falcons players could not wear team logos in AirTran advertisements, so the airline dressed them up in its corporate colors of teal and white.
Falcons players now will appear in official team gear on billboards and ads all throughout metro Atlanta.
“It looked like the uniform that [Brian Finneran] wore at Villanova in 1991,” said Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan of the old ads. Ryan, Finneran, Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood, all of whom had endorsement deals with AirTran in the past, will be included in the campaign as part of the multi-year agreement.
“My relationship with them is great so I’m glad that the entire organization gets to work with them from now on,” Ryan said.
AirTran’s billboards with their clever slogans appear up and down Interstate 75/85. Falcons Vice President of Marketing Jim Smith said he is glad those billboards now will sport both the Falcons players and the team’s logo and uniforms.
“AirTran is a company that is very creative and we like to work with companies that believe in extending partnerships and believe in both companies’ brands,” Smith said.
Tad Hutcheson, AirTran’s Atlanta-based Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said the agreement gives his carrier “a lot more visible in the community.” Hutcheson said AirTran runs the nation’s largest low-cost hub out of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
“Prior to the Falcons’ deal we could hire the players, but we couldn’t show them in Falcons gear or Falcons marks,” Hutcheson said. “We had to constantly call out their names and now we’ll have them in Falcons and marks and logos and people will recognize them.
“We think this is a huge deal… Falcons fans are very loyal. We believe that loyalty will translate into selling airline tickets.”
Hutcheson said AirTran flights run at about 82 or 83 percent of capacity, meaning about the only flights that have empty seats are the ones that depart at 5 a.m. or late at night.
He expects the deal with the Falcons to increase sales.
He said the two organizations match up well, as AirTran is community-oriented, like the Falcons. And both he and Smith said that fans can expect a variety of AirTran-sponsored activities at the Georgia Dome. AirTran also will paint one of its planes with the team’s name and logo and will run radio and television commercials to promote the relationship.
“We’ll activate the partnership more than you’ve seen in the past,” Hutcheson said. “It will be an incredible partnership with a lot of creativity. It’s a little too early to discuss all the details, but we’ll have a lot of different things in the Dome that will be fun for the whole fan experience. And the fans will really enjoy it and hopefully remember the Falcons and remember AirTran.”
AirTran’s presence within the Georgia Dome also will be increased in the form of signs on the jumbotron.
AirTran is known for its innovation – it became the first major airline to offer wireless Internet to passengers. Smith said he likes the company’s word play in its marketing campaigns with the word “touchdown.”
“The one thing they did, which is genius, is they tapped into touchdowns, which we score a lot of touchdowns,” Smith said. “So you’ll see a lot of AirTran at the Georgia Dome this year.
“One of the unique things about this partnership is it really enhances the fan partnership as well as promotes both our brands rather than just having a static brand message. This one ties very much into the game experience, so it’s great. It’s a winner for everyone.”
