Same same, but different? Singapore Airlines ad gets Cathay Pacific executive all hot and bothered over similarities
- SIA video viewed 19 million times over a few days resembles 2015 Cathay ad, says exec in personal post
- Both ads celebrate the romance of travel, with one featuring a passenger, the other a flight attendant
In a personal post over the LinkedIn social media platform on Wednesday, Edward Bell wrote: “Congratulations Singapore Airlines on your latest brand campaign. But I can’t help notice that it strongly resembles what we did several years ago?”
Bell, who is responsible for the Cathay group’s global marketing communications, was struck by similarities to his airline’s 2015 ad in its “Life Well Travelled” series and included a link to it.
Both ads feature attractive long-haired women mingling with locals in a variety of colourful destinations, soaking up fun experiences and reflecting on the wonders of world travel.
While Cathay featured a passenger as its lead character, SIA showcased a “Singapore Girl”, one of its flight attendants, talking up its “World Class Experience”.
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Did SIA copy Cathay? Or in the world of airlines selling the romance of travel, were the two ads “same same but different”?
SIA’s ad has chalked up 19 million views on YouTube in just a matter of days.
Bell’s outburst online sparked a debate among people in marketing circles, but he insisted to the Post that they were just his “personal observations” and not an official Cathay response. His post has been deleted.
The issue caught the attention of marketing professionals, with at least two trade publications reporting the storm in a teacup.
Some saw the similar approach and storyline of both ads, while others pointed to differences, especially the messaging.
Tsang Kam-keung, CEO of marketing services group The Bees, said both were “similar in terms of travel experience”, but he did not think SIA copied Cathay.
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He pointed out that the two airlines had different tag lines for their ads, one was presented from the passenger’s perspective while the other was done through the eyes of the flight attendant. The scripts were different too, he said.
“I think both are original, but it’s very difficult to be distinctive when they are both talking about the travel experience,” he added.
While it was unusual to openly call out a competitor, Tsang thought Bell’s reaction was understandable.
“When you are the original [content creator], you think everything similar is copying, especially from a direct competitor,” he said.
Cathay Pacific declined to comment.
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An SIA spokesman told the Post that the group had seen Bell’s comment and “respectfully disagree with the view”.
Its “Welcome to World Class” brand campaign was conceptualised by creative agency TBWA to show the kind of service the airline aimed to deliver.
“It is a distinctive SIA campaign video, with clear differences in terms of tone, storyline, and objectives from other airline campaign videos,” the spokesman said in a statement.
With airlines worldwide seeing a revival in business after three years of the Covid-19 pandemic, Cathay and SIA are not the only ones sparring over ads to lure passengers.
Last year, Dubai-based Emirates airlines released its “Fly Better” campaign, featuring an animated brand ambassador, Gerry the Goose, who preferred to travel by plane instead of flying a long way himself.
That raised hackles among Kiwis, as Air New Zealand had a similar ad in 2016 with an animated goose named Dave.
Air New Zealand took a jab at Emirates on its Twitter account last September with a video in which Dave said he had convinced Gerry that “he got the wrong airline”.
Emirates shot back: “Don’t wing it, Dave! You definitely want to fly with Emirates for the long haul. And Dubai is a sweet spot for migratory stops.”
