With surging fuel prices, the airline industry is in dire condition. Even before the rising fuel costs, the industry as a whole was in pretty bad shape. Through it all, there has been one shining (and profitable) star. You can probably guess that I am writing about Southwest Airlines. They have been profitable, and remain profitable because of shrewd business decisions and good customer service.

Well, they have made another good decision, and this one touches in our world. Like everyone else, they want to drive as much traffic as they can to their website. Of course, their way of building traffic is not traditional, and excellent out of the box thinking. They are sponsoring the upcoming Midnight Gaming Championship. The ages for these participants are 16-25 years… not exactly your frequent business travelers.

The marketing message is about their desktop widget and their weekly email. Of course, the participants have to register for this event, and I can guess you know where that is done… their company website. This appears to be another great business decision by Southwest Airlines… exposing future travelers to their company and their services. Based on their track record, you would have to predict this will be successful.

We are having great success with email marketing and list management at Leadpile. This can be used to build traffic and/or be more transactional and create sales. Please let us help you and your company become the Southwest Airlines of your industry.