cirrus sitelet vs. cessna sitelet
November 10th, 2005
While flipping through the latest batch of aviation magazines I noticed new ad campaigns by both Cirrus and Cessna. Both are interesting because of their use of sitelets, which can be a productive tactic when executed properly. A quick look at the attempts of Cirrus and Cessna show the good and the bad.
In the case of the Cessna “43 Reasons” campaign, the overall concept is lacking but the execution is terrific. The sitelet leverages the strength of the Internet by easing potential customers into a dialog. Visitors can simply subscribe to receive email notification of new reasons and they can also contribute their own reason for supporting Cessna. These two simple tactics allow Cessna to begin ongoing communication with those who sign up through a very low risk call-to-action.
The Cirrus “I am not that guy” campaign, on the other hand, is an excellent concept but the execution is flawed. The sitelet is nothing more than a repeat of the print ad with options to locate a dealer or schedule a demo ride. For most of us, that’s a high stake call-to-action that requires a certain level of commitment. The sitelet misses the opportunity to catch potential customers who may be in the earlier stages of research.
Cessna currently has the upper hand when comparing sitelets. Although, considering the base price of a Skyhawk, I’d prefer to see 164,250 reasons (why only 43?).
Cirrus certainly has the better concept. “I am not that guy” will resonate extremely well with most pilots. However, instead of repeating the ad, tell us more about why we’re different and provide a more palatable call-to-action.
Overall, both Cirrus and Cessna are on the right track with their usage of sitelets. We hope to see more aviation-related online marketing efforts such as these in the future. Good luck to both!
[tags]Cessna, Cirrus, Skyhawk, SR22, Sitelet[/tags]
Entry Filed under: aviation marketing, aviation website, cessna, cirrus, general aviation, online marketing, sitelet
4 Comments Add your own
1. Aaron Cooper | December 21st, 2005 at 1:49 pm
O.K., so it is now December 21 (over 1 month since your review of these sitelets). As a designer, I was intrigued by your review, so I visited the referenced sitelets. I was surprised to see that Cessna has yet to reach 43 reasons (as of today, only 9 are available). Does this also speak to the lackluster performance of their sitelet? Is the sitelet lacking findability?
As with many sitelets, the Cessna sitelet is not within the first page of Google results when searching for “cessna,”cessna feature,”cessna specs,” etc… If companies are willing to go to the expense of creating a Flash site such as this, wouldn’t it benefit them to make it more widely findable by their primary audience?
You made a great point when you eluded that sitelets (and, primary company sites for that matter) related to consumer goods need to meet the consumer at the right point within the decision-making process. As such, the Cessna “reasons” sitelet would be a great tool for consumers in the early comparison stage.
I also found myself let down by the Cirrus “I am not that guy” sitelet. After reading through a few paragraphs of copy I found that the value proposition was strong (for the right audience), but the subsequent call to action let me asking questions that would need to be answered prior to such time commitments. The sitelet left me asking, “Why couldn’t I solve the problem acted out here by purchasing a plane from a competitor?” I could be “not that guy” by purchasing a plane from Cessna as well – and they’ll even give me a REASON
2. Sport Aviation Marketing &hellip | February 18th, 2006 at 10:27 pm
[...] A while back I wrote a quick analysis of the Cirrus and Cessna sitelets. At that time, it had been over a year since I had flown commercially. Over the last two weeks I have had four commercial flights with another trip scheduled for next week. I like the “I am not that guy” concept even more today than I did back in November. Flying commercially is a nightmare. Put me on the list for an SR22. [...]
3. Sport Aviation Marketing &hellip | February 18th, 2006 at 11:02 pm
[...] Back in November I wrote that the Cessna “43 Reasons” campaign was executed nicely but the concept was lacking. Unfortunately, Cessna created a PR nightmare that makes the campaign nearly tragic. [...]
4. Sport Aviation Marketing &hellip | March 4th, 2006 at 4:49 pm
[...] Are the promotions all good? No. As with the Cirrus sitelet reviewed here and here, the execution of the promotions falls short of the quality one would expect for an airplane priced at $380,000 on the low-end. The flycolumbia.com website, overall, is decent. However, the promotion pages, especially for FlipTheBird123 look more like a children’s game site. As with Cirrus, this baffles me. The idea is the hard part, and Columbia did a great job in that respect. The execution of those ideas should be easy, why skimp? [...]
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