SICCI and Meta ‘Influen-shell’ Campaign Partners with Solomon Airlines

Keeping communities connected during the pandemic

As the country’s national carrier, Solomon Airlines needs little introduction. The company started out some 60 years ago as a small charter business, Megapode Airlines. Over the decades that followed, the government invested significantly in the company and after a rebranding in 1984, ‘Solomon Airlines’ was born.

A symbol of national pride and a key enabler of the Solomon Islands’ domestic and global connectivity, the airline makes an important contribution to the nation’s tourism sector and economic development. Today, the airline has a team of 228 staff – which over 90% are based locally – and provides passenger travel, cargo, and charter services across its domestic network spanning 23 local destinations, its international hub in Brisbane, and other Pacific routes including Nadi, Port Moresby, Port Vila, and Tarawa.

Image Credit: SICCI

The company provided a cargo incentive initiative to domestic exporters, which aims to help support local businesses to grow and thrive. Solomon Airlines also donates domestic flights to support fundraisers such as the Honiara Rotary Club and collaborates to raise awareness for causes such as World Heart Day and the World Ocean Day clean-up.

But like most national carriers around the globe, the impact of Covid has been profound and Solomon Airlines has had to revisit its business model to stay afloat. As international borders closed, the company was forced to scale down its international flight schedule and quickly shift gears to focus on domestic tourism.

The airline has also responded to the increase in demand for charter flights in the absence of regular international flight traffic, transporting Covid vaccines and construction workers from overseas into the country, or flying seasonal workers out to Australia to commence their employment.

The company has used social media to help boost domestic travel and tourism. They have had an active Facebook presence since 2011 and post regularly, showcasing the stunning beauty of the Hapi Isles and promoting holiday packages and deals for their 48,000-plus followers.

As part of their Covid strategy, Solomon Airlines partnered with the government to establish ‘Iumi Tugeda Holidays’ to boost the domestic tourism market. It is the largest domestic tourism initiative in Solomon Islands’ history, traversing 9 provinces and involving more than 50 local tourism operators. It offers significant accommodation and airfare savings and has contributed to a notable rise in domestic travel over the past year.

Image credit: SICCI

Introducing Jenny Lobo, Market Research Officer

Sharing her expertise as the airline’s Market Research Officer, Jenny Lobo, has also helped to introduce social media to provincial tourism operators.

“The most memorable moment for me was when the airline bought the new Airbus. I was fortunate to be part of the team that brought in the new aircraft and share in the new experience with our people. Before Covid, our main destination was Australia. Now, with the international borders closed, we have to change how we do marketing, which is now [focused on] the domestic market." Jenny said.

Image credit: SICCI

"We post at least four times in a week during the main peak window from 6.00-7.00pm in the evening, as that’s the time where we have a high number of people visiting Facebook. We are careful to not over-bombard with our domestic content and to ensure that we keep our international viewers as well so that we don’t lose them.

"I’m really happy that through what I learned with Solomon Airlines regarding social media; I can share it with others too. When I see that our customers are satisfied and happy with our services, I am happy. When I visited one of our Iumi Tugeda Holidays partners during one of our outreaches in the province, I helped him to create his Facebook page for his business and build his content. He didn’t know that Facebook was a platform that can help his business to grow. He thought it was just a platform for communicating.

"We help local domestic markets that usually produce goods for export. We give them cheaper rates that can help them to send their goods and expand their local market. We have a good number coming on board with this initiative.

By giving back to the community, we show them how much we care,” she added.

Image credit: SICCI

What makes our airline Influenshell

The ‘Influen-shell’ social media campaign promoting local businesses, including Solomon Airlines was developed in partnership between Meta (formerly Facebook) and the Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The campaign aimed to promote local businesses in the Solomon Islands through the sharing of intimate stories of growth, resilience, and connectedness, particularly with their use of digital technology. It celebrated the Solomon Islands local enterprises and their employees and showcased their diversity, adaptability, and innovation.

Over the five weeks from 15th November to 24th December 2021, the campaign highlighted 15 Solomon Islands businesses on social media, sharing inspiring stories, vivid images, and short videos from large, well-established organisations, through to small businesses that are just at the start of their journey. Many of the businesses that participated in the campaign noted a significant and positive increase in their customer base and brand awareness.

Natalina Hong, SICCI’s Chief Executive Officer remarked that “We have received encouraging feedback from the businesses who have attested that the campaign has brought their services more recognition. It was also great to see such positive and motivating comments from the general public on the business stories that were published on the Influen-shell Facebook page.”

The campaign ran on both Facebook and Instagram.