Southwest Airlines' nutty stuff

America Airline Southwest has since its conception in 1971 always been an innovative runner up, challenging the big brands. It was one of the first discount airlines and is also the inventor of the frequent flyer plans now copied by most airlines.

Considered to be the friendliest airline in the skies, Southwest lives up to its logo of a heart (which has been a symbol ever since the start of the company) and spreads “LUV” in every step of its way. It does so by telling sympathetic stories, and make those attractive as sharable content.

Southwest is actively engaged in spreading various news and sharable content on its blog Nuts About Southwest. The content focuses mainly on building a community with fun news, such as the world’s first dog with a 3D printed cart or paper airplanes in space, categorized under ‘Nutty stuff’.

But it doesn’t stop there. Members can earn a ‘Nut badge’, profess their love to the airline in the ‘Luv Mail’, and of course share it on their favorite social media channel. On Facebook Southwest has more than 4 million likes and 1,8 million followers on Twitter, significantly outdoing other major airlines in the U.S. like United or American. The blog has earned several awards for being an online marketing and word of mouth marketing hero.The airline is known for its laissez-faire approach to customers and their ideas, for example, supporting and hosting various initiatives while in the sky.

You might think this approach will have been copied by competitors, just like the loyalty plan. But it hardly has. Check this out: search for Southwest on e.g. Youtube and see what's featured there. Compare it to, let's say, Air France and notice the difference. What story do you want people to share about your company?