It feels like Norwegian Air Shuttle has been taking a battering from all sides of late. The airline has been forced to embark on a major cost-cutting programme to shore up its finances, while only yesterday we learned it was planning on deferring some aircraft orders and was in the process of securing $350 million in new financing from a consortium led by Norway’s richest man.
If that wasn’t bad enough, problems with some of the engines on its fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliner’s last year created a raft of bad headlines when the airline had to wetlease less than desirable replacements. It’s amazing how quickly we forget what Norwegian has done to open up air travel with cheap and affordable fares, while also providing a good quality onboard experience.
Well, it seems like Norwegian’s marketing department has got the memo and wants to set the record straight with a new and rather risque commercial called “The World Has Never Been Closer.” It’s cheeky, fun and youthful – aiming to educate the airline’s target demographic exactly why they should be flying Norwegian.
“The concept material focuses close up on people, cultures, and places in a fast-paced, exuberant and engaging manner; evoking the senses and echoing Norwegian’s own fresh approach to air travel,” explains Norwegian’s marketing manager Stine Steffensen Børke.
“The world has never been closer’ concept brings our mission statement to life; to offer an affordable, high-quality product to consumers the world over,” she continues.
Saying that the commercial aims to primarily fuel the audiences wanderlust and sense of adventure, the ad also demonstrates how extensive Norwegian’s route network has grown over the last few years.
Now, depending on what side of the fence you sit on, you might either think that the world has never been closer because of Norwegian’s cheap airfares or that the airline is forcing full-service carriers to cut the passenger experience in a bid to compete on price. Interestingly, though, Norwegian has always seemed like more of a hybrid airline – enhancing the passenger experience with things like free seatback entertainment, free in-flight Wifi and new state-of-the-art aircraft.
It would be a real shame to see Norwegian fail – hopefully, consumers will buy into the airline’s new advertising campaign.
