The passenger side of aviation is well-known for its social media campaigns, rallying followers to share vacation photos in exchange for tickets and communicating with the public during crises.
But the cargo side still has a ways to go.
It remains unclear how many companies dealing in airfreight use social media, what people in the industry think of it and its usefulness in a business-to-business (B2B) environment.
Air Cargo World sent a survey to its readers, asking questions about social media in the air cargo industry, and 265 people — those with airlines, forwarders, airports, shippers and others — responded. The graphs are throughout this story.
Air Cargo World sent a survey to its readers asking for their take on social media in the airfreight industry, and 265 people – those with airlines, freight forwarders, airports, shippers and others – responded. Nearly 70 percent reported having 11 or more years of experience in airfreight logistics.
Having a social media presence is no longer a choice, says Silvia Cappelli, Swiss WorldCargo senior public relations and online communication executive.
“It is not any more an exception, but it has become the norm when it comes to communicating,” Cappelli says. “It cannot just be a nice-to-have but it’s really crucial in the communication mix because we have realized that communication is not one-way anymore, but it has become a two-way street.”
Nick Smith, investment director at Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP), deals with logistics warehouses at major UK airports, including London Heathrow Airport. Smith says he can only see social media use – such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – growing in the airfreight industry.
“Wherever anybody is located globally, then it’s a great way of getting great market penetration and engagement,” he says. “Certainly being based in Edinburgh, that’s not necessarily the pinnacle of the air cargo world or anything, but through social media, we’re able to communicate with a very broad base of customers.”
Social media also can facilitate a global conversation, says Michael Sanfey, business development manager at Aer Lingus Cargo, Ireland’s flag carrier.
“We have a lot of things that we share in common, and both customers and suppliers in the different countries are facing the same issues, so certainly I think social media can allow people in different parts of the world to share those conversations and learn from each other’s mistakes, and things that have worked in one country will probably work in another country,” Sanfey says. “It’s a useful forum for people to engage with each other across long distances.”
Right now, passenger airlines use social media to a greater extent than their cargo counterparts.
“Some people have a different audience and a different customer base than we do, so you’re going to see them react more like AirAsia, where they’re dealing with more of a consumer population that is totally social media-driven,” explains Jennifer S. Torlone, Amerijet senior director, technology and information services. “Then there are some that are just business-to-business, and they’re going to be posting things that are somewhat different, more like newsfeeds.”
Airlines manage their cargo and passenger social media in different ways. Some cargo carriers, such as Swiss WorldCargo, have their own social media accounts.
“The air cargo business is completely different,” Cappelli says. “It has a different target group.”
On the other hand, American Airlines, which used to have dedicated AA Cargo social media channels, decided in summer 2013 to merge AA Cargo with American Airlines on social media.
The airline did that because, as many in the industry lament, people generally aren’t aware of airfreight.
“We determined that the best strategy for us was to really look at building general cargo awareness among all of American’s customers utilizing all of our social media channels,” Matt Maynard, senior media relations representative at AA Cargo, says. “It’s a fun way to make it known that cargo exists and build that general awareness.”
In fact, some of AA’s cargo posts have ranked as the most popular, Maynard says.
Alfredo Roussos, business development manager at Leadership Freight Group in Sao Paulo, gives his reason for why companies aren’t using social media much.
“Maybe they don’t know how to do it or what kind of information would be interesting for the customers,” Roussos says.
Whitney Starling, AA social media analyst, says avgeeks (a term for “aviation geeks”) make up much of the airline’s social media community, so they like to read little-publicized cargo information.
“I’m really trying to think of what would be particularly interesting to our audience and what would they find kind of special and unique for them to learn about,” Starling says.
Aer Lingus Cargo recently got its own LinkedIn presence separate from the passenger airline.
“I think part of our challenge is being able to create some meaningful content that people will want to come and look at and share,” Sanfey says.
Companies are still grasping how to use social media, which have traditionally been business-to-consumer, in a B2B environment such as airfreight.
“It’s a great way of promoting information, communicating extremely quickly,” Smith of SWIP says. “Certainly most industries now, in particular air cargo, are looking for innovation and quick communication and information.”
A survey respondent from a marketing company in Europe doubts the utility of social media.
“In a business-to-business environment, social media has little function – the cue is in the name ‘social’ media,” the respondent writes.
Sanfey says Aer Lingus has used social media to help find buyers and influencers in new markets and untapped customers in existing markets.
Maynard also says AA’s cargo social media have a sales aspect to it.
“We never know who’s out there. It could be a potential customer who grows fruit or is looking for a freight forwarder that can help them try to get their cargo across the world,” he says. “We want them to think, ‘Hey, have you guys ever thought about American?’”
Maynard and Starling also say social media help in problem resolution for customers and damage control. If AA must issue a “controversial message,” the social media and cargo teams work together to create reactive talking points, Starling says.
“If someone has a question or is maybe upset at the information we’re sharing, we know how to properly respond and mitigate that issue and kind of give them the correct information and lessen their concern,” she says.
Cappelli says social media helps share knowledge in real time about industry news and organizations’ latest developments.
Torlone says Amerijet is still not as mature in its social media presence.
“Maybe it’s just the strategy that we have at the moment – but we found that social media isn’t really driving shipments at this moment,” she says. “We’re not seeing shipments come from social media yet, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t and that doesn’t mean we can’t get out there and make a bigger presence. It’s just that we’re maturing in that space.”
She theorizes that social media aren’t as important for Amerijet’s prime markets: the Caribbean and Latin America.
As for which social media networks rank as the most popular in the air cargo community, the biggest share of survey respondents – 26 percent – reported that their company uses LinkedIn. A quarter reported using Facebook, while 18 percent use Twitter.
About one in 10 said their company isn’t on any social media sites.
Swiss WorldCargo works with Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Cappelli says the airline realized that one platform is not better than the other.
“The same community member – talking about the air logistics community – could use all the different social media for different purposes or with different expectations,” she says.
Cappelli and Starling of AA say LinkedIn tends to be the most suitable platform for B2B communication. On LinkedIn, users can create industry and discussion groups.
“You’re taking a step further than just a comment or retweet,” Starling says. “You really have the ability to network and engage with people on a large scale.”
Maynard says LinkedIn allows people to participate in air cargo discussions that remained inaccessible before.
“Their voice is equally just as important and impactful through social media, more so than it might be in person,” he says.
Amerijet has started using Yammer, a social media platform for internal communications. If necessary, the airline can invite customers and shippers into its Yammer feed to ask questions and conduct focus groups, Torlone says.
Eric Pouille, Air France-KLM-Martinair Cargo project manager external communication and public relations, says popular social media sites aren’t a good fit for the carrier.
“We need a little bit more sole interaction with the customer rather than having something out in the open” such as on Facebook, he says.
Smith believes social media can help airfreight through challenging times because companies can promote positive news, he says.
“That can help build up the success and build up the positive atmosphere within our market,” Smith says. “Social media, if handled correctly, can help that process. It’s about trying to promote information very quickly and very efficiently.”
Torlone says air cargo companies should internally develop social media universities or classes, perhaps as part of employee orientation. Amerijet is working on having a class by the end of 2014 that could teach employees the rules of engagement and how to respond on social media on the company’s behalf.
“All of our employees would become ambassadors,” she says. “I think there’s companies out there in the social media universe that have done this very well, and those people have personal or company accounts, and they’re able to respond to anything that they see, positive or negative sentiment, and really become a brand ambassador.”
Smith says companies must take care in what information they promote.
“What that audience that receives it can do, depending upon the security requirements or arrangements within the social media setup, is that can then be forwarded on,” he says. “There’s very little that a promoter can do if something goes viral.”
Social media are as just another tool in a company’s marketing arsenal, Pouille says. Fifteen years ago, when email first took off, people probably asked how it would affect the air cargo industry, he says. Now, with email so widespread, this question is no longer asked.
“I think in the next few years, yes, interactions through social platforms will probably be another asset in the communication that we have with our customers,” Pouille says.
A survey respondent from an airport in Europe has a similar sentiment.
“Social media are nothing more than additional channels in the marketing communication mix. Their use isn’t a strategy in itself, but should be in support of realizing the company’s or department’s objectives,” the respondent writes.
Cappelli warns that though social media in air cargo is gaining importance, it is complementary to other communication strategies, especially because she says air cargo is a more complicated business than the passenger side.
“We cannot really forget about the traditional way of getting together in the industry. I mean face-to-face encounters are still very important,” she says. “Getting together at industry trade shows and conferences is still more important than meeting up and connecting on social media.”
AA Cargo has found that the different players in the industry stand at different stages in social media implementation.
“We’re kind of looking at the industry and seeing where things are going, watching the trends,” Maynard says.
One seems to be Google+, which Cappelli calls an important platform for the future. Eleven percent of respondents reported that their companies use Google+, Google’s social networking service, making it the fourth most popular social network for the survey. Starling says Google+ is a useful channel for B2B markets.
In general, social media make information and people more accessible, Maynard says – something the air cargo industry will continue to see.
“It’s just figuring out how it will work and using it to our advantage,” he says.
Interviewees agree that social media are a fact of the future.
“We know we cannot go against this tide,” Roussos says.
Even if a company tries to stay off social media, customers and employees will talk anyway, Torlone says.
“People can form positive or negative opinions about companies through social media,” she says. “I think that’s really where everyone has to work and understand that even if you don’t have a social media strategy, there are people out there talking about you.”
Social media are not a science. Each company must find out what approach works for it. Cappelli says companies need to explore social media and see what happens.
“Communication is the success of air cargo,” a respondent from a North American software company writes. “You can’t talk to each other, you can’t transport to each other.”
The passenger side of aviation is well-known for its social media campaigns, rallying followers to share vacation photos in exchange for tickets and communicating with the public during crises.
But the cargo side still has a ways to go.
It remains unclear how many companies dealing in airfreight use social media, what people in the industry think of it and its usefulness in a business-to-business (B2B) environment.
Air Cargo World sent a survey to its readers, asking questions about social media in the air cargo industry, and 265 people — those with airlines, forwarders, airports, shippers and others — responded. The graphs are throughout this story.
Air Cargo World sent a survey to its readers asking for their take on social media in the airfreight industry, and 265 people – those with airlines, freight forwarders, airports, shippers and others – responded. Nearly 70 percent reported having 11 or more years of experience in airfreight logistics.
Having a social media presence is no longer a choice, says Silvia Cappelli, Swiss WorldCargo senior public relations and online communication executive.
“It is not any more an exception, but it has become the norm when it comes to communicating,” Cappelli says. “It cannot just be a nice-to-have but it’s really crucial in the communication mix because we have realized that communication is not one-way anymore, but it has become a two-way street.”
Nick Smith, investment director at Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP), deals with logistics warehouses at major UK airports, including London Heathrow Airport. Smith says he can only see social media use – such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – growing in the airfreight industry.
“Wherever anybody is located globally, then it’s a great way of getting great market penetration and engagement,” he says. “Certainly being based in Edinburgh, that’s not necessarily the pinnacle of the air cargo world or anything, but through social media, we’re able to communicate with a very broad base of customers.”
Social media also can facilitate a global conversation, says Michael Sanfey, business development manager at Aer Lingus Cargo, Ireland’s flag carrier.
“We have a lot of things that we share in common, and both customers and suppliers in the different countries are facing the same issues, so certainly I think social media can allow people in different parts of the world to share those conversations and learn from each other’s mistakes, and things that have worked in one country will probably work in another country,” Sanfey says. “It’s a useful forum for people to engage with each other across long distances.”
Right now, passenger airlines use social media to a greater extent than their cargo counterparts.
“Some people have a different audience and a different customer base than we do, so you’re going to see them react more like AirAsia, where they’re dealing with more of a consumer population that is totally social media-driven,” explains Jennifer S. Torlone, Amerijet senior director, technology and information services. “Then there are some that are just business-to-business, and they’re going to be posting things that are somewhat different, more like newsfeeds.”
Airlines manage their cargo and passenger social media in different ways. Some cargo carriers, such as Swiss WorldCargo, have their own social media accounts.
“The air cargo business is completely different,” Cappelli says. “It has a different target group.”
On the other hand, American Airlines, which used to have dedicated AA Cargo social media channels, decided in summer 2013 to merge AA Cargo with American Airlines on social media.
The airline did that because, as many in the industry lament, people generally aren’t aware of airfreight.
“We determined that the best strategy for us was to really look at building general cargo awareness among all of American’s customers utilizing all of our social media channels,” Matt Maynard, senior media relations representative at AA Cargo, says. “It’s a fun way to make it known that cargo exists and build that general awareness.”
In fact, some of AA’s cargo posts have ranked as the most popular, Maynard says.
Alfredo Roussos, business development manager at Leadership Freight Group in Sao Paulo, gives his reason for why companies aren’t using social media much.
“Maybe they don’t know how to do it or what kind of information would be interesting for the customers,” Roussos says.
Whitney Starling, AA social media analyst, says avgeeks (a term for “aviation geeks”) make up much of the airline’s social media community, so they like to read little-publicized cargo information.
“I’m really trying to think of what would be particularly interesting to our audience and what would they find kind of special and unique for them to learn about,” Starling says.
Aer Lingus Cargo recently got its own LinkedIn presence separate from the passenger airline.
“I think part of our challenge is being able to create some meaningful content that people will want to come and look at and share,” Sanfey says.
Companies are still grasping how to use social media, which have traditionally been business-to-consumer, in a B2B environment such as airfreight.
“It’s a great way of promoting information, communicating extremely quickly,” Smith of SWIP says. “Certainly most industries now, in particular air cargo, are looking for innovation and quick communication and information.”
A survey respondent from a marketing company in Europe doubts the utility of social media.
“In a business-to-business environment, social media has little function – the cue is in the name ‘social’ media,” the respondent writes.
Sanfey says Aer Lingus has used social media to help find buyers and influencers in new markets and untapped customers in existing markets.
Maynard also says AA’s cargo social media have a sales aspect to it.
“We never know who’s out there. It could be a potential customer who grows fruit or is looking for a freight forwarder that can help them try to get their cargo across the world,” he says. “We want them to think, ‘Hey, have you guys ever thought about American?’”
Maynard and Starling also say social media help in problem resolution for customers and damage control. If AA must issue a “controversial message,” the social media and cargo teams work together to create reactive talking points, Starling says.
“If someone has a question or is maybe upset at the information we’re sharing, we know how to properly respond and mitigate that issue and kind of give them the correct information and lessen their concern,” she says.
Cappelli says social media helps share knowledge in real time about industry news and organizations’ latest developments.
Torlone says Amerijet is still not as mature in its social media presence.
“Maybe it’s just the strategy that we have at the moment – but we found that social media isn’t really driving shipments at this moment,” she says. “We’re not seeing shipments come from social media yet, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t and that doesn’t mean we can’t get out there and make a bigger presence. It’s just that we’re maturing in that space.”
She theorizes that social media aren’t as important for Amerijet’s prime markets: the Caribbean and Latin America.
As for which social media networks rank as the most popular in the air cargo community, the biggest share of survey respondents – 26 percent – reported that their company uses LinkedIn. A quarter reported using Facebook, while 18 percent use Twitter.
About one in 10 said their company isn’t on any social media sites.
Swiss WorldCargo works with Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Cappelli says the airline realized that one platform is not better than the other.
“The same community member – talking about the air logistics community – could use all the different social media for different purposes or with different expectations,” she says.
Cappelli and Starling of AA say LinkedIn tends to be the most suitable platform for B2B communication. On LinkedIn, users can create industry and discussion groups.
“You’re taking a step further than just a comment or retweet,” Starling says. “You really have the ability to network and engage with people on a large scale.”
Maynard says LinkedIn allows people to participate in air cargo discussions that remained inaccessible before.
“Their voice is equally just as important and impactful through social media, more so than it might be in person,” he says.
Amerijet has started using Yammer, a social media platform for internal communications. If necessary, the airline can invite customers and shippers into its Yammer feed to ask questions and conduct focus groups, Torlone says.
Eric Pouille, Air France-KLM-Martinair Cargo project manager external communication and public relations, says popular social media sites aren’t a good fit for the carrier.
“We need a little bit more sole interaction with the customer rather than having something out in the open” such as on Facebook, he says.
Smith believes social media can help airfreight through challenging times because companies can promote positive news, he says.
“That can help build up the success and build up the positive atmosphere within our market,” Smith says. “Social media, if handled correctly, can help that process. It’s about trying to promote information very quickly and very efficiently.”
Torlone says air cargo companies should internally develop social media universities or classes, perhaps as part of employee orientation. Amerijet is working on having a class by the end of 2014 that could teach employees the rules of engagement and how to respond on social media on the company’s behalf.
“All of our employees would become ambassadors,” she says. “I think there’s companies out there in the social media universe that have done this very well, and those people have personal or company accounts, and they’re able to respond to anything that they see, positive or negative sentiment, and really become a brand ambassador.”
Smith says companies must take care in what information they promote.
“What that audience that receives it can do, depending upon the security requirements or arrangements within the social media setup, is that can then be forwarded on,” he says. “There’s very little that a promoter can do if something goes viral.”
Social media are as just another tool in a company’s marketing arsenal, Pouille says. Fifteen years ago, when email first took off, people probably asked how it would affect the air cargo industry, he says. Now, with email so widespread, this question is no longer asked.
“I think in the next few years, yes, interactions through social platforms will probably be another asset in the communication that we have with our customers,” Pouille says.
A survey respondent from an airport in Europe has a similar sentiment.
“Social media are nothing more than additional channels in the marketing communication mix. Their use isn’t a strategy in itself, but should be in support of realizing the company’s or department’s objectives,” the respondent writes.
Cappelli warns that though social media in air cargo is gaining importance, it is complementary to other communication strategies, especially because she says air cargo is a more complicated business than the passenger side.
“We cannot really forget about the traditional way of getting together in the industry. I mean face-to-face encounters are still very important,” she says. “Getting together at industry trade shows and conferences is still more important than meeting up and connecting on social media.”
AA Cargo has found that the different players in the industry stand at different stages in social media implementation.
“We’re kind of looking at the industry and seeing where things are going, watching the trends,” Maynard says.
One seems to be Google+, which Cappelli calls an important platform for the future. Eleven percent of respondents reported that their companies use Google+, Google’s social networking service, making it the fourth most popular social network for the survey. Starling says Google+ is a useful channel for B2B markets.
In general, social media make information and people more accessible, Maynard says – something the air cargo industry will continue to see.
“It’s just figuring out how it will work and using it to our advantage,” he says.
Interviewees agree that social media are a fact of the future.
“We know we cannot go against this tide,” Roussos says.
Even if a company tries to stay off social media, customers and employees will talk anyway, Torlone says.
“People can form positive or negative opinions about companies through social media,” she says. “I think that’s really where everyone has to work and understand that even if you don’t have a social media strategy, there are people out there talking about you.”
Social media are not a science. Each company must find out what approach works for it. Cappelli says companies need to explore social media and see what happens.
“Communication is the success of air cargo,” a respondent from a North American software company writes. “You can’t talk to each other, you can’t transport to each other.”