Braniff Airways  

The Marketing Problem: Braniff Airways had a different look from its competitors (Lois and Pitts, 1991, p.61-62). It painted all its airplanes in different colors and dressed their stewardesses in Pucci's. Besides its stylish flair, the company had made several innovations: leather seated airplanes, new computer system, and new routes. There was, however, no clear understanding of how the firm should positioned itself.

The Big Idea: A new campaign was done by Lois for Braniff in 1967. It built upon the chic look of the airline by declaring, "If you got it, flaunt it" (Lois and Pitts, 1977, p.138-139). The sassy, bold campaign featured odd celebrity couples, each trying to outflaunt the other with sophisticated talk (Lois and Pitts, 1991, p.62). A few of the celebrities paired together were Yankee pitcher Whitey Ford with artist Salvador Dali, actor Dean Martin with basketball star Satchel Paige, and artist Andy Warhol with boxer with Sonny Liston (Lois and Pitts, 1991, p.62). The last celebrity duo is pictured here above. The dialogue between each pair fitted nicely with theme of the campaign. And at the end of each television advertisement, a reference was made about the style of Braniff Airways (Lois and Pitts, 1991, p.62).

This campaign was applauded for being smart, charming, and humorous (Lois and Pitts, 1991, p.62). It helped position Braniff as a different airline and even boosted its business. The tag line, "When you got it, flaunt it" even became part of everyday language, helping to transform popular culture. Again, this is one of the ultimate goals of a Big Idea. When used appropriately, humor can also be effective in helping to introduce a new product to the market.  

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