Over the past two years, Delta has cultivated a brand-owned Facebook Group of 48K SkyMiles Members called SkyMiles Life – a community that, above all else, values the experiences that travel can open your world to. Recognizing the group’s desire to connect more to the brand and other members, we had an opportunity to transcend the online group and begin fostering genuine relationships IRL. As an extension of our 2023 Cultural Moments campaign (celebrating communities of people and culture throughout the year), we sought to bring Delta’s social communities into values-led brand experiences, ultimately driving powerful stories and advocacy in the social niche audiences where they will resonate the most.
With that in mind, we set out to do the following:
To bring this initiative to life, we partnered with our Community Engagement team and identified two major Pride events Delta sponsors in cities with large customer and employee bases: New York City Pride and Atlanta Pride. To test organic interest within the SkyMiles Life (SML) Facebook Group, we did a drop of 25 ‘Pride In Flight’ t-shirts, identifying SkyMiles Members that the Pride events would resonate with and ensuring we had a broad reach on who we could impact.
Seeing the t-shirt recipients’ reaction posts prompted group members to share how they saw Delta show up in their communities’ Pride events - from a throwback of Delta in West Hollywood's 2018 Pride Parade to 2023 sightings of our participation in D.C., Salt Lake City, and LA Pride Parades. The ‘Pride In Flight’ t-shirt drop increased Pride-related social conversations and showed that there was ample customer interest.
Through these Facebook Group mentions, we identified people to invite to NYC Pride - Adeel and Anthony, a Diamond Medallion (Delta’s highest loyalty status) couple based in Tampa whose love for Delta and their family had often been shared. Knowing their relationship with the brand, it was natural to invite them as our #SMLBesties.
From invitation to their NYC arrival, our Social Audience Engagement team became their personal liaisons to the brand by coordinating their travel, accommodations, meet-and-greet prior to the parade and connecting them to our employees at the event. Adeel and Anthony got to be one of Delta’s first customers that marched at the brand’s NYC Pride Parade activation, even helping lead the pack by holding Delta’s ‘Be You With Us’ banner.
Why was this moment so special? For Adeel and Anthony, it was a chance to not only participate in the parade but also show their toddlers the city where their love story began. They were deeply moved by the experience. During a time when they were seeing other brands step back from supporting the LGBTQ+ community, Delta was “stepping up.”
With Pride top of mind for our SkyMiles Life Facebook Group, we extended another invitation for Members to attend Atlanta Pride. Because it was in October, the gesture helped reinforce that Delta’s commitment goes far beyond any one month.
Sourced from the group, we scaled and brought 5 customers to join over 800 employees for ATL Pride. Among them, Samantha, Silver Medallion, and her child, Saige, who their mom lovingly calls her “Pride In Flight Teen”, joined us all the way from Connecticut. This was one of Saige’s first Pride events and allowed them to connect to the LGBTQ+ community in Atlanta as they explored places to attend college in the future. As with NYC, the Social Audience Engagement team became their liaisons for the event. With every interaction, the group not only connected more to the brand but also to Delta employees and each other.
For many of the Members, these activations reinforced that Delta’s values are Delta’s difference. And why they choose to fly with us.
This physical extension of our 2023 Cultural Moments campaign in relation to Pride became the framework for how we bring our social community into brand values-led experiences. It not only impacted the individuals we had join us IRL but fulfilled our key objectives through increased, authentic conversation around our Community Engagement efforts through:
“We extend our sincerest thanks to the entire [Delta Air Lines] team for championing the LGBTQ+ community and for recognizing the importance of visibility, acceptance, and support. Your commitment to equality inspires us, and we are honored to be part of your journey.” - Adeel
Bringing Members to Delta activations at Pride not only carried our online community into real-life experiences but also authentically reinforced Delta's commitment to fostering a culture of inclusivity and belonging for all.
