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Virgin Atlantic Debuts ASMR Campaign to Encourage Travelers

A Virgin Atlantic 787-9 departing London Heathrow. (Photo: AirlineGeeks | William Derrickson)

Virgin Atlantic has launched a unique campaign targeting travelers with their favorite sights and sounds of flying.

The advert comes just days after The Mirror reported Brits could begin to book summer holidays. The new advert entices those who are yearning to catch their next flight with a video featuring call bells, seatbelt clicking and the sound of ripping boarding passes.

Virgin Atlantic states that, from a survey of over 1000 British adults, 82% of people missed the sound of a pilot’s announcement and 73% missed the welcome aboard from cabin crew.

Other findings from the report suggest 78% of people missed the sound of the drinks cart, 76% missed inflight entertainment, 72% missed dining inflight, and 57% missed travelators in the airport.

Virgin Atlantic’s video also plays on those missing the experience when on vacation. From the same survey, 94% of Brits said they missed the sound of waves lapping on a beach most.

Corneel Koster, Chief Customer and Operating Officer at Virgin Atlantic, said in a press release, “At Virgin Atlantic, we pride ourselves on offering our customers a brilliantly different experience, so the concept of ASMR and giving people that magical tingly feeling, is the perfect tool to remind our customers of the travel experience that awaits them when they come back to the skies with us.

“Whether it’s the ubiquitous clicking shut of the overhead locker, or the familiar routine of the safety demonstration, it’s the sensory memory of these moments that our customers long for, heading off on their well deserved holidays, starting a fabulous adventure,” continued Koster.

Dr. Giulia Poerio, a Psychology Lecturer at the University of Essex, added, “Scientific research supports claims that ASMR is something that can make people feel relaxed. People with ASMR show significant reductions in their heart rates when watching ASMR videos, reductions comparable to other more well-established stress alleviating techniques such as mindfulness and music therapy.

“ASMR videos allow people to experience the feeling ‘on demand’ and with greater longevity and intensity. This has meant that people use ASMR videos for insomnia, to reduce stress and anxiety and even to provide relief from loneliness. It’s perhaps no surprise then that many have turned to ASMR content so much during the pandemic,” continued Poerio.

It’s also perhaps no surprise that the theme of travel is also attracting so many people. With a brighter light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, more people are looking to fly away somewhere. In February, Jet2 announced a bookings surge of 1000% after the Prime Minister announced a conditional travel restart date.

Where Can People Go?

Last summer, Virgin Atlantic struggled to regain customers over the peak season. Many of the airline’s destinations did not appear on the U.K.’s travel corridor list.

However, from May, a different system will be used for travel to countries from England. A three-tiered traffic light system will be implemented to decide on the restrictions travelers will face, the BBC reports.

The article continues to say that a destination’s tier would be based on its vaccinations, infection rates, presence of variants of concern and testing and sequencing capacity.

While the Government has not yet set out which countries will be green, this has not stopped Brits from dreaming about their next trip. From the above survey, the top destinations where respondents are keen to visit are Barbados and New York, with 39% each. California closely followed with 35%, and Florida took 31%.

However, the U.S. Government’s travel proclamation still overrules any categories set by the U.K. for Brits.

Connor Sadler
Latest posts by Connor Sadler (see all)

Author

  • Connor Sadler

    Connor has been in love with flying since the first time he boarded a plane when he was 5 years old. He loves all things aviation, and he hopes to make that his full time career in the future.

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