When Alaska Airlines flew into the Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport, our charge was to spur people to give this major, low-fare airline a try. Our engagement tactic: an online travel contest. Online contests serve many purposes for the airport – promoting a new airline and route, engaging regional travelers looking to head to the Pacific Northwest and collecting stories for the airport’s digital magazine Eisenhower AIR. Alaska Airlines gave south-central Kansas a great, nonstop option to Seattle, our 10th-most popular destination city. Not only was this a new nonstop destination for Wichita, but also a new airline at the airport. Though one of the most popular carriers on the West Coast, it wasn’t well known in our region.
Online contest participants were asked to share the top four things they would like to do when visiting Seattle. We made it easy. All they had to do was choose from a pool of popular options, and then share their entries on Facebook or Twitter with the contest hashtag #SightsOnSEA.
We promoted the online travel contest for the airport with an email campaign, website homepage banner, online banner ads, a terminal poster and on the airport’s social media channels. It was a great success with 12,418 visits to the landing page, almost 500 individual clicks through to the Alaska Airlines booking website, and 275 contest entries on Facebook and Twitter. #SightsonSEA joined the airport’s other contests – Florida Fun and What a Trip – promoting other airlines, routes and travel opportunities Wichita can reach from their own backyard.
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