Introduction
Emirates Airways is currently the leading airline in the Middle East. This firm was started in 1985 by the Emirati government. There was a rising concern that some of the international planes that were plying the route were avoiding the route and this was causing a lot of inconveniences to the people of this country. The government of United Arab Emirates realized that the country needed to develop an airline that would take care of the interests of the country’s nationals. The government had embarked on development of the infrastructure of the country. The roads were well developed and the airports were also properly expanded (Sandhusen, 2008). Dubai was rising very fast as a business center. The government had heavily invested in building social amenities, besides the infrastructure, and therefore this city was attracting a good number of tourists on a yearly basis. As a result of this, the government wanted an airline that would be reliable to its tourists, and other people that would be travelling to this country. They wanted an airline that could be controlled by the state. This was the genesis of this airline company.
The Emirates Airline has its headquarters in Dubai in Dubai International Airport. This firm operates in to four largest destinations across the world. The firm operates in more than 100 destinations in 74 countries. The company has managed to overcome the stiff competition that is in the current market. According to Charantimath (2007), the airline industry is very competitive. This scholar notes that this competition has been rising in the past decade with the entry of new airlines into the industry. It becomes a big challenge for a firm to operate in such a competitive market if it lacks proper competitive strategies. This scholar notes that the aviation industry has been consistently on the rise in the past one decade. The emerging technologies have brought in a lot of changes in this industry, and firms are forced to adjust their operations in order to meet the market demands. The emerging trends in the aviation industry cannot be ignored. It would force a firm to embrace these changes in order to realize the benefits that this industry has to offer. This is what the management of Emirate Airline has been keen on. This firm has received enough financial support from the government to enable it manage the emerging trends in the aviation sector.
Effective marketing has seen this firm become the largest airline in this region. According to Bissoondoyal (2006), marketing has changed from what it used to be in the past. Marketing was considered as part of production about 50 years ago. By then, competition was low, and the main concern was to increase production of the firm. The market was readily available in the global world. However, this has systematically changed over the years. Firms have come to realize that customers have various options to choose from when they want to make a purchase. Given such independence of the customers, firms have come to realize that they have to come up with strategies that would enable them attract customers. This has resulted in a scenario where every firm is struggling to come up with appealing strategies through which they can capture the attention of the customers. This competition is very stiff in the aviation industry. Such leading airlines like the British Airways, the Virgin Atlantic, Air France among others; the Emirates Airways is forced to come up with a strategy that would enable it capture the market in the best way possible. In this study, the researcher is interested in finding the marketing strategies of Emirates Airline that has helped it become the regional giant in the aviation industry.
Emirates Marketing Methods & Strategies
It is very important for a firm to clearly understand its strategies. The first step is always strategy formulation. The firm should then move to the implementation strategy before coming up with evaluation and control procedures. Emirates Airlines is one of the current success stories in a group of companies that have managed to be successful in the face of increasingly competitive environment. This is attributed to its strategies that have helped it manage the competition in the aviation industry (Rogers, 2001). The world is getting transformed with the emerging technologies. One of the defining technologies that are transforming the world into a global village is the communication technology. The phones and the internet have made communication very easy.
Another means of long distance communication has been through internet with the help of computers. This has seen many firms expand their operations to regions beyond their borders. As such, there has been a huge competition in this industry, making some of the firms fall off. Emirates Airlines has employed a series of strategies- as discussed below- to ensure that it remains relevant in this market. The strategies are very important because in such a market, any misstep by a firm may lead to automatic fall of the firm and therefore, every step must be calculated very keenly. Beecroft and Duffy (2003) note that the current world market is very competitive. This scholar notes that this competition is not only created by the fact that there are several firms producing the same product, but also the fact that customers are informed. The current customers are very knowledgeable and know exactly what they want. They have the knowledge of where to get that which they need and at what price. They know the alternatives that are available and this makes them more demanding. As such, turning these individuals into loyal customers of a firm is not easy. It forces a firm to develop a strategy that would enable it remain relevant in the market
Emirates International Campaigns
The world is very competitive. This means that firms are forced to find a way of making their products appealing to the marker. According to Belton and Stewart (2002), most of the firms that are emerging in the current market are coming up with products that are already available in the market. Their presence in the market causes saturation in the products they offer, making customers very choosy. In the current market, customers are very demanding. Firms are constantly under pressure to perform exceedingly well in order to manage the competition in the market. Firms face a lot of pressure from the suppliers. The jet fuel is constantly on the rise. The airline firms have to otherwise but to pay the increased price of fuel. The cost of maintenance is also high. This increases the cost of delivering products to the customer. The firm will also need to improve on the quality of the products in order to ensure that they outmuscle other competitors. When the product is delivered to the customers, the customer will demand reduced prices simply because they have other alternatives. This would force the firm to find a way of generating profits in such a harsh environment.
The Emirates Airways has come to realize that it has to develop means through which it can develop promotional campaigns for its products in the global market. The Emirates Airways has developed a brand in the local market, and the entire region of Middle East. The region appreciates the fact that this company offers the best travel services in the region. However, there is a very strong competition from another regional airline, the Qatar Airways, which is posing threat to this firm. It forces the firm to come up with strategies which can enable it attract the customers in the region. Regionally, this firm has positioned itself as a company that takes care of comfort, safety and security of the passengers. One of the leading concerns of most passengers is the comfort of the plane. This is because the distance is always very long. This would require some comfort for the passengers in order to reduce fatigue. The passengers are also concerned with their security once on air. This is because of the rising insecurity in most cities. Terrorist attack on the airplanes has become very common in the current globalized world. Passengers want reassurance that they will be safe when they embark on such journeys.
This market proposition has seen it win trust of the local market. This firm has also made concerted effort to attract travelers of other nations.
In order to reach out for the customers, this firm has tried to use both the social media and mass media to communicate their message to the customers. Locally, the firm has actively engaged in promotional campaigns in the mass media. It has developed television commercials that help it reach the local market. The social media has been very vital in reaching out for the international community. The YouTube has helped this firm in airing its television commercials to the international community. The Facebook and Tweeter have also been very vital in communicating to the customers in the international market.
Factors and Strategies
This firm uses various competitive strategies in the market in order to manage competition that is very rife in this industry. First, the firm has employed two of the porter’s competitive strategy of low cost and differentiation. The management of Emirates Airways has made concerted effort to ensure that the cost of delivering its services is kept at the lowest possible rates. This is the main factor that has helped the firm increase its profitability. Another factor that the management has been keen on is the need to differentiate its products from others in the market.
The timing tactic of this firm in launching new products has also been superb. This firm always come with a new product at such times that the market feels that they need a better product to serve their current needs. It introduced the entertainment system in the planes when the market needed an extra value for their products. This has seen their products receive huge acceptance in various markets when introduced. The firm has also been keen to employ cooperation strategy whenever needed. This firm has resolved to form alliance with other airlines to increase the scope of its destinations. This strategic alliance saw it gain market share both in the home markets and abroad.
This firm has also been able to implement Porters five forces.
To tackle the threat of new competition, the firm has been keen on producing new products, such as the cargo services to rival those of new competitors. To manage the threat of substitute products, Emirates Airlines has developed different passenger categories to satisfy different markets so that it may bring on board consumers that have been left out by other airlines because of the price that they charge. To increase its bargaining power with the consumers, it has continued to produce high end services with qualities that make it easy for the customers to appreciate their high prices (Burrow 2009). To increase their bargaining power with the suppliers, it has created a scenario where it is a single buyer with various sellers. This makes it able to dictate the terms of buying the products. To counter the intensity of competition, it has been able to acquire a special niche in this market, rendering its competitors irrelevant as their products are turned into mere substitutes of this company’s products.
Emirates Vs. Qatar Marketing Methods
Qatar Airways is one of the leading airline companies in the Middle East. Qatar Airways is a national carrier, and is wholly owned by the government of Qatar. The firm has its headquarters in Doha, Qatar. The firm is the biggest challenger of Emirates Airways in this region. The management of this airline has been very aggressive with marketing within the last ten years. The firm has increased the number of flights within the last one decade and is currently operating in over 100 destinations across six continents. The firm has been keen on making a heavy presence in the global market that has been dominated by airlines from the west. This company has a number of similarities in its marketing strategies with Emirates Airways. Both the two firms have extended their services to include cargo services. The management of the two firms have come to appreciate that offering services to passengers alone may not yield the much needed profits for the firm. The firms therefore started the cargo services in their cargo planes. The management of these firms has been keen on ensuring that the cargo services are adequately advertised in order to get the market attention it needs. The firms have also shared the fact that their customers are given extra services while on their planes. Such services as provision of bottled water, an array of newspapers, and in some cases snacks are very common services that the two airlines offer despite the fact that customers do not pay for the services.
The two firms differ in a number of ways in their marketing strategies. The most striking difference comes in the target market for the two firms. Qatar Airways has been keen on attractive the middle class customers. This explains the reason why the firm has made a huge impact in the emerging markets such as Africa, South America and Asia. Most of the customers in these regions are middle class individuals who make the trips because of business related reasons, or in rare occasions, just for tour. Emirates Airways has not been very keen on attracting the middle income earners. The management of this plane has made concerted effort to attract the high end customers in regions such as Europe and the United States. Although it also operates in other upcoming markets, it has not come out categorically to attract the middle class as Qatar Airways does.
Emirates Customer Satisfaction
Customer satisfaction is one of the most important tasks that the marketing department of this firm has been keen on. In the airline industry, one of the most important factors that would determine success or failure of a firm is its ability to satisfy customers. Most of the travelers who use the planes are repeat customers. They are customers who had made the purchase of the product before and were pleased. According to Chao (2007), most of the customers of Emirates Airways are business people, holiday makers, government officials and sportspeople. These people have no choice but to have regular flights to various destinations around the world.
When a customer makes a purchase of a given product, there is always a level of satisfaction that such customer expects. The expectation can be under-met, a fact that would lead to dissatisfaction of the customer. The expectation can be met, and this would make the customer be satisfied. In some cases, the service offered may be beyond the expectation of the customer. Such a customer will be thrilled. Most firms always struggle to make their customers thrilled. They always try to create an environment where their customers are able to appreciate the services they get from the firm. Emirates Airways has come to the realization that the market is very competitive. The management has therefore embarked on strategies that would make its products be thrilling to the customers. This has taken a lot of effort to realize. However, the result has been very pleasant. Most of the customers who use this airline were either customer who had previously used the service, or are referrals from those who had used the service. This has seen the firm develop a formidable customer base that is very loyal to the brand. The management of Emirates Airways has consistently been adding value to their products in order to increase customer satisfaction. When a passenger books for a trip to a given destination, he or she will pay for the trip. However, the passengers would get some additional services while on the plane. The passengers on the plane will get such additional services as newspapers, a bottle of water, and even some snacks. The following photo shows passengers on board being treated to a breakfast.
Research Objectives
In every research, there are always some specific objectives that the researcher is always trying to achieve. In this research, the researcher was interested in some specific objectives that were to be achieved by the end of this research. The following are the research objectives that the study seeks to achieve.
- To investigate the Emirates airline’s advertisement and marketing methods and strategies that enables Emirates Airways to gain competitive advantages.
- To examine how Emirate Airline’s marketing affects its global success.
- To identify the marketing changes that have occurred in the company beginning from the time the company was established to the present.
The researcher was interested in unearth the operational activities that have made Emirates Airways become a strong market leader in this region in the airline industry. By responding to the objectives as stated above, the firm will be fulfilling the need to investigate marketing strategies of this firm in this industry.
Literature Review
Emirates Marketing & Global Success
The management of Emirates Airlines has come to appreciate the fact that competition is healthy in a business environment. The management has realized that it has to use various marketing strategies in order to increase its market share. In this strategy, this firm has tried to sell its products at prices that would bring in as many of the customers as possible. Although the company has some of its products sold at premium prices, it has a number of its products sold at normal prices that can be afforded by the middle class members of the society. This was after the firm realized that the middle class makes the majority of the airline customers.
Another strategy used by this firm to manage competition is market development strategy. In this strategy, the firm has struggled to ensure that it increases its market share in the world market. This has been done through market penetration in the new markets where this firm had not make entries. The firm has also developed new markets and new users for its products. It created new users by reducing the prices of air tickets in the economy class planes in order to have a higher number of customers. Taking the product strategy, this firm has ensured that most of their products are up to the market expected standards. This firm has been keen to ensure that most of its products are not only of good quality but also of the right specifications in terms of timing.
In its research and extension unit, this firm has been very creative. It has been voted as one of the most innovative firms in this industry within this region.
Emirates Main Competitors
The aviation industry is very competitive. According to Chaston (2009), the aviation industry is one of the most competitive industries in the world today. The Emirates Airlines faces stiff competition from a number of airlines from all over the world. The closes rival of this firm is the Qatar Airways. This airline company has been keen on capturing the market share in this region. It has managed to capture the middle class in the region with its incentives. As sign of a massive growth in its market share and marketing strategies, the firm was voted the airline of the year in 2012 by Skytrack World Airline Awards. This was a clear message that this airline was posing a serious challenge to Emirates Airways. The last time the Emirates Airways won this award was about ten years ago. The Qatar Airways has therefore made headway, and is keen on taking the lead in the market as the regional leader in this industry. Another stiff competition comes from such firms as the Air France, British Airways and the Virgin Atlantic airways. This firm has the challenge of ensuring that its local market is protected from the competitors. The government has made an effort to ensure that the firm enjoys some exclusive benefits in the local markets. However, this may not be enough immunity against competition, especially in other markets. The firm must therefore develop measures that would help it compete favorably against other firms in the international market.
Emirates Marketing Campaigns in Different Countries
The domestic market of Emirates Airlines is in the United Arab Emirates, and the entire region of Middle East. This market is also home market for other giant airlines like the Qatar Airlines. For this reason, the level of competition is very high. The world market is also very competitive for there are other market players which are determined to provide high quality products to its customers. Strategically sweet sport is one of the avenues that this firm has embraced both locally and internationally. It has taken advantage that its products are able to satisfy its customers in a way that other rival firms in this region cannot. This has attracted it a sea of loyal customers.
Strategic windows make another strategy that this firm has employed. Through innovative minds, this firm has been in a position to develop new products in the world market to serve different new markets. An instance is the security gadget they develop to help in detecting weaponry at the airport. This strategic window has earned it a lot of revenue not only in the local but also the international markets. Passengers believe that they are safe when using this product.
Emirates Corporate Strategy and Multi-Business
Evans (2012) says that it is risky for a large business unit to specialize in a single area of production. It is important that a firm develops different lines of products that can cushion it in case one of the lines is experiencing a dry spell. Emirates Airlines stated out as a passenger carrier firm. However, as time went by, this firm realized the importance of diversification of its products. Taking research and development as one of the important aspects of the firm, Emirates Airlines has managed to develop new products to the market, extending its line of production. The firm currently has a series of products targeting various markets. Some of these products include different classes of the planes, the cargo plane and other currier services. This has enabled this firm to operate as a multi-business firm. This way, it is able to reap maximally from one line in case the other experiences a low season. In its early year, it entered into a joint partnership with Qantas to ensure diversification of its products. This resulted in huge profits, though this partnership is yet to get deep rooting
The Impact of Huge Marketing in Attracting Passengers from All over the World
Marketing has become a core strategic role of every organization in the current market. Organizations have come to realize that the only way to attract customers in the market is to develop communications that are appealing to them. This has seen firms develop strategies that can allow them to create competitive advantage in the market. According to a report by Ferrell (2011), the world market is very competitive. Customers are well informed. They know what they want, the quality that they should be getting, and the alternative places where the product can be found. As a result of this, they are very choosy. They always strictly demand for the product they need, at very low prices. A firm must therefore develop a communication that will attract the attention of the customers, and convince them that the price set is the fairest price.
The marketing strategies of Emirates Airways in the global market have had huge impact on the firm. The firm has been making effort to appeal to the global market of its good services to the customers. The firm has been particularly keen to advertise itself as one of the safest airline in the world. This has seen customers prefer its services because of the need for security when travelling. The firm has also positioned itself as the leading regional airline in offering quality services to the customers. This has seen many of the customers prefer it to other airlines in making long trips across the globe. The firm has used both the mass and social media in reaching out to the customers with the communication. The move has seen it remain as the regional market leader in this industry, ahead of Qatar airways that has been keen on increasing its market share.
Emirates Corporate Social Responsibility
Ethics, morality and law are some of the ingredients in a business set up that a firm cannot assume its importance. A business unit has responsibilities that it has to fulfill in order to be seen as a moral firm. Hill and Jones (2010) report on Carroll’s four responsibilities. These include economic, legal, ethical and discretionary measures. The firm has economic responsibility to its owners. Emirates Airlines has been very responsible to its shareholder. The firm has been very successful in its operations, making the shareholder have good value for its investment in the firm. Legally, this firm has respected laws and regulations that are put in place to protect such asserts as patents. It has been keen to ensure that it adheres to the set laws on traffic control and aircraft conditions. As a way of protecting the environment, the firm has eliminated planes that have been identified to cause a lot of pollution to the environment. The photo below is one such plane that they eliminated.
Emirates Airlines is one of the most ethical airline firms in the world. There has been a clarion call for the world’s major manufacturers to cut down on their emission of greenhouse gases into the environment. It is only a few firms, Emirates Airlines being among them, which have taken a positive reaction to this call. It recently launched a corporate social responsibility to help clean the environment in selected cities around the world. It has also sponsored planting of trees in various countries around the world, especially in emerging nations in Africa, Asia and other parts of South America. It has also endeavored to employ the locals in various locations where it operates. This is to ensure that it is responsible to the locals as much as possible. The firm has also maintained morality and ethics among its employees. It has encouraged ethical behavior among its workforce by defining specific code of conduct for all its employees. It has also been keen on encouraging sports. It is one of the leading sponsors of Arsenal Football Club in England, as the photo below shows.
This way, its employees are able to asses themselves and determine if they are on the right path as far as their behavior is concerned. The company has also respected the whistleblowers’ role. When one of the mid management employee reported on the inapplicability of some of the policies of the management, and the excessive pressure that was put on employee by the top management unit, the board of directors directed the management to restructure the policies, an act that not many firms may attempt. This was a utilitarian approach to ethics where actions are judged by their consequences. The firm also respects individual’s rights in the firm irrespective of the position held. Justice and fairness is one other guiding principle in the firm that has been relevant to the firm’s current success.
Building a Good Strategy Execution, People and Capability Structure
Strategy can only be beneficial if it is implemented properly. The execution of the strategy is done by people. Some of the pertinent issues that must be determined in the implementation process include determination of what is to be done, who to do which task, and how the entire team would work as a unit in the process of achieving its goals. In its mission statement, Emirates Airlines is very clear on what is to be done. It says that the firm is determined to customer satisfaction by availing products that meets and exceeds customer expectations. On who should be responsible for the implementation, the firm has its workforce specialized in various duties, ensuring that none of the units overlaps its duties to the other’s and no given task remains unallocated. This has ensured that the firm runs in a very smooth manner. In its mission to ensure that all its employees work as a team, the firm has ensured that all the employees master the vision of the firm so that in their respective tasks, they know where the firm aims to be at in a near future. They will appreciate the fact that they are working as a team towards the same direction, with each member of the team having a specific role to play.
Managing Internal Operations for Good Strategy Execution
Internal operations should be managed if a firm expects to have a good strategy execution. One aspect of managing internal operations is through integration of managers. Emirates Airlines has been able to create a pool of flexible managers who not only have deep knowledge of the firm, but also the ability to work with cross-functional teams, are willing to work independently, and have sufficient knowledge on cultural and emotional diversity within the environment (Mitchell & Jacqueline 2008). This team has seen Emirates Airlines attract talented employees for they know that the company will take care of them. Another important issue is the staffing strategy.
This industry is very competitive. As such, it requires employees who are dynamic, creative and very knowledgeable in their respective postings. In the current competitive world, this firm can only afford to hire the best if it hopes to beat its rivals like the Qatar Airways and British Airways who are giving it stiff competition in this industry (Gountas & Mavudo 2008). The employees have also been made to appreciate corporate culture as one of the most important qualities of success in the corporate world. Under very rare occasions, Emirates has considered downsizing their employee base to cut the cost of production.
Managing Good Corporate Culture and Leadership for Excellent Strategy Execution
Emirates Airways is an international firm that operates in many countries. It encounters different corporate cultures in different countries where it operates. In order to ensure harmony in its operations, it has employed assimilation of different cultures into its system. Some of the cultures have also been integrated into its system just to ensure that it has a rich cultural background that can be implemented by every member of the organization (Sandhusen, 2008). It has been the culture of this firm that cultural integration starts with the management. It is the management that should develop a deep understanding of each culture to be integrated into the system so that they are able to lead other employees in understanding and implementing it.
Discussion
Emirates Marketing Changes Over the Time
The market is very dynamic. The emerging technologies are changing at an unprecedented rate. What is relevant in the current market may be very irrelevant tomorrow. According to Hooley (2008), firms must embrace change. They must appreciate the fact that what is considered as a competitive advantage in the current may turn out to be a weakness in the future. The Emirates airline must appreciate the forces that dictate the market trends. It must embrace change, and be ready to come up with measures that will give the firm maximum benefits in the market. Organizational readiness for change is a very important factor that an organization must achieve in order to prosper. The management should ensure that the firm is flexible enough to contain various forces in the environment. It is important that a firm develops mechanism that would help employees adopt to environmental changes (Mercer, 1998). Employees will always be swayed to act in accordance with the management strategies of the firm. The respondents stated that their actions are always heavily influenced by the actions of the managers. The management unit of Emirates Airways must embrace change. The management must appreciate the fact that with the changing market trends, it can only succeed if it employs strategies that can enable it overcome the market challenges.
According to Liew (2009), change is one of the most important factors within an organization. Organizational change is always determined by the ability of the employees to change. Employees on the other hand, would embrace change if the leadership of the organization has the same attitude towards change. Emirates Airlines adapts well to changes that this firm may face. The management should develop positive attitude towards change, and encourage employees to embrace change in every action they take.
Emirates Special Offers
All the departments in the Emirate Airline should be closely coordinated to ensure that all the resources are used carefully. The finance department has the responsibility of planning for all the resources of this firm (Kitchen, 1999). The first step in the management of the company’s finance should be the determination if all the revenues of the firm. The management should have a clear knowledge of all the revenues of the firm within a particular financial period. Within this period, the management should determine the amount of money that should be spent on various activities. All the departments must prepare their budget at the beginning of a given financial period. The financial department will then fund the budgets of all the departments based on the estimates they deliver and the availability of finance.
At the end of a financial period, all the departments would have to draw another budget showing all their expenditure within that period (Handlechner, 2008). This way, it will be possible to trace all the finances of the organization and eliminate all forms of fraud. The finance department would then consider reimbursing the departments based on the amount of money spent in the previous financial year. The top management of this firm will be given a report by the finance unit on how the firm has spent its finance. The top management would also receive proposals from all departments. It would have the final decision on whether or not; the amount each department would be requesting is justifiable.
Entertainment Facilities in All Cabins
The Emirates airline has been keen on ensuring that it offers its customers superior service while on board. The competition was getting very stiff as new entrants entered the market. It was becoming very complex for the management to differentiate its products from others in the market. This was because the additional services that it was offering to its customers had become minimum basics in this industry. All other airline companies had incorporated such incentives as offering newspapers to the customers, drinking water among others (Handlechner, 2008). The management had to come up with something that was unique in the industry. The management knew that it could not use pricing strategy to gain a competitive edge in the market as the move could trigger price wars.
It was from this need to be unique that the management decided to install entertainment facilities in all the cabins in its planes. It first started by installing music system which would provide soft music to the passengers while on board. The management soon realized that different passengers preferred different types of music. Having a common music for all was therefore not giving enough satisfaction to the customers on board.
The management therefore decided to come up with a different strategy of providing music to passengers on board. It installed headsets and a system where passengers would select the type of music they would prefer to listen to, when on board. The result of this move was pleasing (Handlechner, 2008). Most of the passengers who were asked to share their experience noted that they were satisfied with the type of music that was offered by the firm. They were particularly pleased with the personal attention that they were given in terms of entertainment. The management of the firm therefore decided to advance the entertainment. It installed television screens for the passengers. That on board could watch their preferred channels while on board. The screen was connected to the earphones so that immediate neighbors could watch different channels without one interfering with the other. It became the first airline in this region to install this system. The graph below shows the response that was gotten from the customers. The picture below shows screen installed in the plane for every customer.
The music system and the television provide a very strong combination that offered a very good entertainment to customers on board.
Emirates A380 Flight Advertising & Marketing
One of the most advertised airplanes for this firm is the A 308 airbus. This flight is believed to offer customers a lot of comfort while on air. The management of this firm purchased a number of this plane for two main reasons. The first reason was because of the need to expand. The management needed more planes in order to expand its operations. The second reason was to offer customers more value for their products. There was a perceived extra value that this type of plane offered to its customers in terms of comfort and luxury (.Kitchen, 1999) The management therefore decided that as a way of advancing the quality of products they offer the market, they had to buy this plane to make it part of its fleet. The management then mounted massive promotional campaigns using this type of plane. Most of its advertisements in the year 20002 featured this plane. The impact of this move was a positive response from the market. Every traveler was inquiring about this plane (Lamb, 2012). Those who realized that their scheduled plane was different demanded to be provided with A380 airbus in their next flights. The management had to increase the number of its fleet to include more of the planes that had gained popularity in the local market (Hartman, 2002).
Emirates International Awards
Emirates Airways has won a number of planes over the years that it has been operational. This airline has been keen on offering customers an experience that is positively memorable. The firm started by ensuring that its customers were well informed of the services that the firm offered. The management then developed extra values for its products. This saw it attract more customers who wanted to enjoy the extra value that it offered. This has seen the firm earn a series of awards as a way of appreciation to the value they offered its customers. In the year 2000, Maurice Flanagan, who was the managing director of Emirates Airlines, was honored by the queen, and awarded Knighthood for his outstanding duties in the aviation sector (Gerber 2008). Because of the effort that the management put in its operations in the year 2001, the firm won another award. Skytrack voted the firm the airline of the year in two consecutive years (2001 and 2002). This was despite the challenges that this firm faced, including the September 11 attack. In 2011, the Emirates Airlines was named the airline of the year by Air Transport World. This was a positive comeback after years of struggling with market competition (McLaughlin, & Aaker, 2010).
Conclusion
The Emirates Airlines is one of the leading airlines in the Middle East. This airline is wholly owned by the government of United Arab Emirates. The firm is headquartered at the Dubai International Airport in Dubai city. The management of this firm has come to the realization that the world is very competitive. It has therefore embraced this competition in its operations. It is clear from the above discussion, that this airline has adjusted its strategies to ensure that it manages the market competition. The firm has developed marketing strategies that would ensure that it is able to attract the market in an industry that is highly competitive. The management of this firm has laid its focus on customer satisfaction. It has been keen to ensure that its customers are given maximum satisfaction when they purchase the services of this firm. This decision was because firms in this industry rely on repeat customers or referrals. The industry has its target market as the rich, and part of the middle class.
These individuals make frequent travels as business people, tourists, or other such related reasons. These customers would make regular travels, either during the major holidays or in between the month as a way of attracting customers. One of the strategies that this firm has been keen on applying is on providing maximum comfort to the travelers as an incentive to make them make repeat purchase. The airlines of this company are fitted with music system that makes the passengers to feel relaxed while on board.
The management fitted television screen at all the seats of its airline to provide more entertainment to the customers. The management settled on both the mass and social media as a way of reaching out for the customers. Customers within the region of Middle East are reached through the mass media. Those in Europe and the United States are reached through the social media. Facebook, YouTube, and Tweeter are some of the social media that this firm has been keen to apply as means of reaching out for the global market. Because of its strategic moves in the global market, this firm has managed to be the fourth largest airline in the world, edging out some of the traditional market leaders such as the Air France and British Airways on the basis on scheduled passenger per kilometer flown.
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