WestJet

Richard BartremDirector of Marketing & Communications

WestJet Outdoor Advertising – An Evolution

OMAC Canada

October 18, 2006

Fun Facts About WestJet

» Total # of Employees: 5,000+

» Front-line Employees: 4,300

» Total Resumes received per week: 1,000

» ESP Participation: 87%

» 2005 average salary contribution: 12%

» Primary reason WestJetters join WestJet:– People & the Culture

» Guest Feedback is primarily about: – Our people & the experience vs. functional attributes

Fun Facts About WestJet

» Total Sponsorship Requests: 100 / week

» Total Donations Requests: 60 / week

» Coldest day for TAC agents: -54 degrees

» Fastest aircraft turn time (112 guests) 6 minutes

» Average weight of bags carried / day 434,800 lbs

» Number of marriage proposals on-board: 432

WestJet Snapshot

» 10th year anniversary February 2006

» Over 300 flights departing everyday

» Almost ¼ million passengers every week

» 1996 revenues of $37 million– 2005 revenues of $1.395 billion

» 62 aircraft flying to 32 destinations not including charters

» North America’s newest fleet of aircraft– Average age 2.3 years

The Challenge in Advertising WestJet» A careful blend of brand and retail advertising is required in the

airline industry– WestJet needs increased awareness in the East but needs to sell seats at the

same time

» Every time the aircraft door closes inventory expires and can not be resold

– This happens 300 times a day– Revenue, load factor and yield to budget is tracked every 8 minutes

» The pricing changes several times a day, seven days a week

» All within the context of an industry with a 97% failure rate– The only airline in Canada not to have been in receivership or bankrupt

» Target is 25-54– Over 65% of bookings – business and leisure – are made by women

Advertising WestJet

»WestJet is consistent with low-cost carriers around the world– Marketing spend ~2% of revenue

» Mix of brand and retail messaging– Retail messaging is the bread and butter that puts “bums in seats”

» Always looking to determine how traditional brand media can be made more “retail”

– Internet– TV– Radio– Outdoor

» Can these mediums that are typically brand or longer lead be adapted to our short-term retail needs?

Owners Brand Campaign

Objective

» Owners Campaign launched September 2005– One of 2 creative directions that were available as a brand

» Second wave ran in Spring 2006

» Fall 2006 campaign started September 12 for 8 weeks– Key objective was greater integration of messages across media

• Clearer connection of Owners messaging to all aspects of the campaign• Stronger retail integration to Owners

– TV, radio, outdoor, ENN, cinema

» Introduction of “Because Owners Care” as campaign tagline

» Currently over 470 OOH boards up across the country

Fall Brand Campaign: Overview

Outdoor Works for WestJet

» On a per dollar basis there is no better media for looking big– Helps give campaigns a “bigger feel” through increased reach

»With outdoor, the consumer perception of the size of campaign is greater than the spend

»Works particularly well in the East where our awareness is lower– Legitimacy to the airline

» In smaller towns, outdoor helps us feel connected at the local level

Outdoor Works for WestJet

» Outdoor has been an important component of the Owners campaign since launch

» Message integration has been the key deliverable for this fall

» Market Specific Outdoor– Increase in production costs – Are there new cost saving measures available to continue doing this?

» On the hunt for variable or flexible messaging opportunities– Digital video boards, ENN

» Outdoor has been more tightly integrated with retail message in other media

WestJet Outdoor

Fall Campaign Examples

Future of Outdoor for WestJet

Future of Outdoor for WestJet

» Our media strategy is working– Load factors are increasing as we increase capacity

» Outdoor advertising has helped contribute against our stated campaign objectives

» Delivers the required reach and frequency– Key for WestJet is integration of retail messaging– Pricing can change hourly

» Any opportunity that allows us to combine the reach and frequency in outdoor together with a retail call to action will help us win the day

Our Outdoor Wish List

» Even better integration opportunities

» Mix of brand and retail works well for our industry

» As a low cost operator, any opportunity to save on production costs as we customize messages is beneficial

Book Now!

1-888-WestJet

westjet.com