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A screenshot of Derrie-Air's site
Fake Airline Ad Draws Clicks and Controversy
June 11, 2008 06:45 AM
by
Liz Colville
The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News ran ads for a fake airline in their print and online editions, prompting a debate over journalistic integrity.
30-Second Summary
Intended to compare the reach of print with online advertising, the ads were for a fictional, environmentally-friendly airline called Derrie-Air that based its fares on passengers’ weight. According to Editor & Publisher, the online version of the ads received a 1.25 percent click-through rate, much higher than the national average of 0.05 percent.
Bob Steele of the Poynter Institute called the ads “deception.” He told Editor & Publisher magazine, “I can’t imagine the Inquirer and Daily News would run fake ads from other companies.”
Other journalism experts believe the ads could “spark distrust” in regular readers, but the newspapers appeared to think of the move as a lighthearted form of “market research,” which they performed in conjunction with the ad agency Gyro. The ads came just days after media speculation that desperate airlines could, indeed, start charging passengers by weight.
The Derrie-Air Web site explains the airline’s joking mission: “[N]ot only will we do our part to protect the environment, we will expect you, our passengers, to do your part as well. The magic comes from our one of a kind ‘Sliding Scale’—the more you weigh, the more you’ll pay.”
Bob Steele of the Poynter Institute called the ads “deception.” He told Editor & Publisher magazine, “I can’t imagine the Inquirer and Daily News would run fake ads from other companies.”
Other journalism experts believe the ads could “spark distrust” in regular readers, but the newspapers appeared to think of the move as a lighthearted form of “market research,” which they performed in conjunction with the ad agency Gyro. The ads came just days after media speculation that desperate airlines could, indeed, start charging passengers by weight.
The Derrie-Air Web site explains the airline’s joking mission: “[N]ot only will we do our part to protect the environment, we will expect you, our passengers, to do your part as well. The magic comes from our one of a kind ‘Sliding Scale’—the more you weigh, the more you’ll pay.”
Headline Link: ‘Philly False Airline Ads Draw High Responses, Ethics Concerns’
Editor & Publisher notes that while the newspapers did not fully disclose the nature of the ads on the newspapers’ sites or in the print editions, there was a disclaimer on the Web site created for the fake airline: “The Derrie-Air campaign is a fictitious advertising campaign created by Philadelphia Media Holdings to test the results of advertising in our print and online products and to stimulate discussion on a timely environmental topic of interest to all citizens.”
Source: Editor & Publisher
Reaction: Philadelphia Media Holdings Stresses Ads’ Humor Value
Jay Devine, a spokesman for the company that owns the two Philadelphia newspapers, told the Associated Press that the goal of the Derrie-Air ads was to “demonstrate the power of our brands in generating awareness and generating traffic for our advertisers, and put a smile on people’s faces.”
Source: Philly.com [Associated Press]
In an interview with a Philadelpha-area affiliate of NBC News, Devine insisted that the fallout from the ad campaign has been minimal and that people are “having a good time with it.”
Source: NBC10.com
Related Topics: New Airline Fees and Viral Marketing Campaigns
Charging Airline Passengers by Weight
Just prior to the Derrie-Air ads’ launch, Bloomberg reported on the idea of charging air travelers by weight. “With fuel costs almost tripling since 2000… airlines are cutting costs and raising revenue in ways that once were unthinkable.” Airlines have resorted to measures like limiting the amount of water on planes, flying at slower speeds, using lighter crockery and asking passengers to buy a second seat if they cannot fit into one with the arm rests down.
Source: Bloomberg
Viral Marketing Successes and Flops
In “Remembering ‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” findingDulcinea explores the role of viral marketing in modern product promotion. Many recent campaigns for TV shows and movies blur the line between fiction and reality to capture viewers’ attention. Some, like a recent Burger King campaign, use tricks that end up “peeving,” rather than intriguing, consumers.
Source: findingDulcinea
Reference: The “Official” Derrie-Air Web Site
The Web site for Derrie-Air remains online, along with an amusing story of the airline’s founder, Dick Derrie. The written material on the site leaves the reader with little doubt that the airline is not real.
Source: Derrie-Air
© 2009 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
