Virgin up in the air with content marketing – or just another top ad?

Virgin up in the air with content marketing – or just another top ad?

Written by

Tony Hallett
 

10/05/2012

Virgin has shot a short movie entirely at altitude, featuring several well-known stars on its planes.

Which Virgin airline? How about all of them.

Working ‘up in the air’ on Virgin Australia, Virgin America and Virgin Atlantic Departure Date uses a supporting case that includes the talents of Philip Baker Hall, Luis Guzman and Janeane Garofalo around what looks like a romantic plot.

Direction comes from Kat Coiro, perhaps best known for a string of credits as an actress in well-known US TV shows.

Why do we care?

It’s not because of the logistics involved in doing this. (Which are considerable.)

Here at CC:UK we often ask whether content marketing is a separate, increasingly interesting beast or whether the examples that get cited most often are just effective (often cheesy) high-end advertising.

If one of content marketing’s defining characteristics is lack of an overt ‘BUY NOW’ then Departure Date has made it through security checks.

But if the first mantra of CM is ‘educate, educate, educate’ then the jury is out.

Release date is 11 June. Check out the trailer here:


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