Developing a national brand with several different stakeholders groups required, for South African Airways, a new brand positioning. Brittany Golob reports

From 30,000 feet above the savannahs of sub-Saharan Africa, the continent sprawls out beneath a jet plane like a field of gold interspersed sporadically by a riot of olive green in the shape of a massive acacia tree.

That environment was coopted by South African Airways (SAA) and the Brand Union into what they called the 80/20 project – reflecting the 80% savannah/20% greenwood seen from the window of a plane. The national carrier had enlisted international brand consultancy, the Brand Union’s South African office to refresh its visual identity and reposition it behind a changed proposition. The 80/20 philosophy was applied to the way in which SAA would design the interiors of its fleet of Airbus jets and Boeing 767s.

Janet Kinghorn, executive creative director at the Brand Union South Africa, says premium service was emphasised not just for the business and first classes, but for all passengers, “Africa is about hospitality. As a continent, we’re one of the most accessible and we wanted to push that as an offering and as a differentiator.”

The undertaking began three years ago when South Brand:rebrand Africa was, like most of the rest of the world, suffering from economic problems. As partially-state owned, SAA is accountable to taxpayers and government stakeholders, particularly in regards to budgeting. The carrier had a poor brand equity even at home and struggled on the international scene. As the flag-bearer – literally and figuratively – for South Africa, a strong brand was important for national reputation and for the long-term sustainability of SAA itself.

Kinghorn says SAA had never put a clear communications strategy in place, so this was where the Brand Union began. She says, “We were able to help them identify a vision which they felt could take them into the future. That was critical. By giving them this idea of what they could be really helped to motivate the change within the organisation."

With a 15-year turnaround strategy drawn up, the Brand Union focused on changing the perception of the airline from an average national carrier with average reviews by SkyTrax customers – the aviation industry’s prominent customer forum and ratings organisation. The new positioning focused on a premium offering of quality customer service and hospitality.

The airline industry features both the no-frills, budget carriers like EasyJet, Pegasus and Monarch, among others and those known for a premium offer – the Virgin Atlantics and Emirates of the world. SAA aspired to be mentioned in the same company, only with a specific focus on hospitality – something uniquely African.

“Africa is putting itself on the map and finding its feet as a force to be reckoned with,” Kinghorn says. “We tapped into that. We’ve been able to achieve this idea of a new class of travel in the African continent. The premium African story has been quite a powerful one for SAA. I think what has happened in the airline industry at large is it’s become quite a commoditised business and the consumer has been left out. [The new SAA] is a lot more accessible, warm and engaging.”

Tourism has become a huge industry for South Africa. According to the state’s Statistics South Africa department – the country recorded an 89.9% increase in arrivals in 2012 in comparison to data from 2000. About 82% of those arrivals traveled through OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg, and SAA’s main port of call. Tourists proliferate from around the world and, in particular, from SADC countries – or the 15 states that comprise the Southern African Development Community, ranging from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the north to Madagascar and the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean to South Africa itself.

South African Airways flies as far afield as Buenos Aires, Sydney, Washington D.C., London and Beijing, but it also has a responsibility to its many African passengers. Creating a brand proposition that catered to this multicultural, multilingual and multinational audience was no easy feat. The Brand Union sought to capitalise on South Africa’s national advantages and characteristics to engage customers around its African personality in an accessible manner.

Kinghorn says the South African spirit of Ubuntu – a way of greeting and acknowledging people by native tribes – was indicative of the direction in which SAA wanted to take its brand. “There’s a South African greeting that translates roughly as ‘I see you, I acknowledge your existence. It’s about engaging people as consumers and as people.” That spirit makes up the basis of the 80/20 project – a means of redesigning aircraft interiors to better reflect a service and luxury-led brand.

The airline’s tail fin livery and wordmark were to remain constant – as they were strong existing brand assets – in the refresh. The rest of the brand – from interiors and uniforms to wayfinding and tone of voice – was overhauled by the Brand Union and its partner interior design firm Priestman Goode.

Priestman Goode was brought in to develop the interiors of SAA’s fleet in little over 11 months, a process that typically takes two years. The agency developed the strategy and positioning defined by the Brand Union and created a characteristically African environment. Yet, they shied away from what could have been an overwhelming melange of tactile fabrics and colourful patterns in the same way that the Brand Union positioned the brand around hospitality – a characteristically South African theme, but one also accessible to external audiences.

“Neutral palettes work best for larger items in the cabins, such as seats, so that passengers get an overall impression of calm and serenity. Details are then added to provide a sense of culture and place,” associate director at Priestman Goode, Chris Parker, says. “In today’ globalised world, a lot of design looks generic, standardised. We value local  and national identities and think they should be celebrated. And in a saturated market such as aviation, it’s a great way to add identity to cabin interiors and create an offering that stands out from your competitors.”

Luxury was again, the underpinning value. Parker adds, “There are different interpretations of what luxury means in aircraft interiors. For us, where short haul aircraft are concerned, where the cabin consists predominantly of economy class seats and perhaps just a few business class seats, luxury means quite simply a comfortable passenger experience in an elegant environment with a distinct brand and cultural identity.”

The design called for a change from the decidedly drab, blue economy class and black leather business class seats to reflect the new luxury positioning. Priestman Goode’s designs used neutral colours for the main parts of the seats and interior fixtures which were then complemented by subtle colours and textures in fitting with the brand’s values and African heritage. Parker says, “It’s about subtle applications that aren’t necessarily noticeable to the passenger, but creates a holistic brand experience.”

But the other value defined by the new brand strategy – attention to the customer – was also addressed through design. Parker says the comfort and tactile experience of the fabrics and materials chosen was important, however Priestman Goode went beyond that. The agency integrated a power supply and support for a tablet into the seat backs in business class. That element could then be reconfigured to accommodate traditional in-flight entertainment systems. This, alongside the restraint exhibited in choice of colour palette and textiles, makes the interiors sustainable for use over a long period of time.

Kim Thipe, head of ,arketing at South African Airways says, “The aircraft redesign forms part of a larger project that addresses the overall visual language of SAA across its passenger touch-points.”

Beyond the planes themselves, the Brand Union developed the brand across a plethora of touchpoints. It took the arrow device present on the tail fin – itself a tribute to the South African flag and modernised it to give SAA another brand icon to use in its communications. Kinghorn says it was about developing a new context for the company’s existing brand assets, particularly those with links to South African culture.

The Brand Union also revamped SAA’s signage system within OR Tambo Airport and the tone of voice with which it communicated with customers. Kinghorn says, “Our local airports are quite horrific. There’s not a lot you can do, but we’re updating and refining each year and getting better.” The new signage had to check a lot of boxes: it had to incorporate Star Alliance – of which SAA is a member – branding, it had to ease navigation around airports and be distinctive in design and it had to meet the high standards of SAA’s government stakeholders. The tone of voice was addressed, and, like the interiors, was treated to subtle changes that eased communication with passengers.

The interior redesign and new wayfinding system helped SAA win a four-star rating on the SkyTrax site – a huge validation of the success of the brand positioning and design implementation. Achieving the premier rating was a primary goal for SAA’s public sector stakeholders.

Kinghorn says working with government officials on SAA’s brand refresh was challenging, but ultimately helped change internal perceptions, “The fact that they were parastatal and there were multiple levels of stakeholders that needed to be satisfied – and not all of them brand literate – we had to work hard to educate and guide them through that process.”

She adds, “Because it’s a national carrier, they represent the country. The idea that so many different stakeholders – from a customer perspective as well – the tendencies are to sometimes talk to those markets with different strategies. But there needed to be a consolidated brand with its own identity and voice that could live across all those different stakeholders."

All of the changes made to the SAA brand had to address these audiences, stakeholders and, importantly, the challenge of communicating a brand’s values through physical design. For SAA and the Brand Union, that meant following through on its 80/20 project – putting the brand to work in the physical space – addressing customer touchpoints to enhance the brand experience and, above all, allow Africa’s personality and character to imbue the brand in order to change perception of the carrier itself.

South Africa draws visitors from across the savannahs, from beyond the Sahara and over the seas. It acts as a cultural ambassador for Africa and South African Airways, as its national carrier, acts as the cultural ambassador for South Africa. As Kinghorn says, “We helped them stand for something and linked them to the rest of the world.”