A Brief Delta Air Lines History That Matters

 Before Delta Air Lines became the largest flight passenger service in the world (based on revenue), it was Huff Daland Dusters, Inc. In 1925, Huff Daland founded the world’s first aerial crop-dusting company and the largest privately-owned fleet in the world, operating 18 planes. Three years later, it was purchased by their chief entomologist, C.E. Woolman, who then becomes the first president of Delta Airlines Service.

Delta Faces Difficulty

In 1929, Delta operated their first passenger flight, carrying only five passengers. Then a year later, Delta loses a bid to take airmail over the same route they spearheaded. Who do they lose the bid to? Aviation Corp., which would later be known as American Airlines. This forces Delta Airlines Service to suspend all passenger service and Aviation Corps. subsequently purchases their resources.

Delta Survives The Great Depression

It’s 1930, and The Great Depression is still in full effect. How does Delta survive? They go back to their roots by purchasing crop-dusting assets from Southern Air Fast Express (which is also a subsidiary of Aviation Corp.). Delta also provided aerial survey services, managed the Selman Army Airfield, operated a flight school, and did aircraft repair services. During this time, they incorporated under the name Delta Air Corporation. In 1934, Delta started their mail and passenger service, and then in 1945, they rename Delta Air Lines.

Delta and American Airlines Rivalry

There appears to be healthy competition between Delta and American Airlines for almost 100 years. So to be fair, I should note that revenue isn’t the only factor to consider an airline’s ranking. When it comes to fleet size, passengers carried, holding groups, and number of destinations, Delta is second or third to American Airlines. While the financials and statistical comparisons for first place can be entirely subjective, the point is that Delta is considered a top brand. And as of 2019, Delta’s brand value places them above American for the #1 spot. I believe their tagline makes this brand value positioning.

The Ingredients of a Sticky Tagline

A few indicators of strong brand identity is when the tagline is:

1. Evergreen: Aligns with your brand mission and values
2. Customer-centric: Highlights the desire of the customer
3. Story-oriented: Considers the customer to be the hero
4. Mentor-driven: Empowers the customer by being the mentor
5. Concise: Is 2–4 words
6. A Call to Action: Challenges the customer to achieve their more deep-seated desire

To establish Delta as a legitimate reference, we’ll compare its tagline characteristics with a few other top brands: Nike, Apple, and Coca-Cola:

• Nike: Just do it.
• Apple: Think different.
• Coca-Cola: Taste the feeling.
• Delta: Keep climbing.

Do you see the pattern? Their taglines are only two to three words. The only brand that hasn’t changed its slogan over time was Nike. Apple’s 1986 motto, “The Power to Be Your Best,” was headed in the right direction, and eventually, they got it right with 1997’s “Think Different.” Coca-Cola’s 2009 tagline was Open Happiness. It changed in 2016 to Taste the Feeling. I think Open Happiness was more magical. I chose to focus on Delta because they’ve done a phenomenal job archiving their tagline and brand history. Through their historical lens, it becomes much easier to see how top companies evolve their slogan from focusing on the product to concentrating on the person.

Here are the six ingredients that make a tagline sticky, that is, long-lasting, inspiring, and memorable.

1. A Sticky Tagline Is Evergreen

Sound bytes are seasonal and last for the duration of a marketing campaign. Taglines are evergreen and used alongside any marketing purpose. They are flexible, versatile, and withstand the test of time as long as the company’s brand values and mission are the same. Except for Coca-Cola, all the slogans below are at least ten years active.

• Nike: Just do it (1987 — Present) — 33 Years
• Apple: Think different (1997 — Present) — 23 Years
• Coca-Cola: Taste the Feeling (2016 — Present) — 4 Years
• Delta: Keep climbing (2010 — Present) — 10 Years

Create an evergreen tagline by aligning it with your brand values and company mission. Your vision is about what you want your company to become in the distant future. A long-term vision helps to develop a long-term growth strategy. Your mission is the daily actions you’ll execute to fulfill that vision. Your brand values shape the style of those daily actions. Here’s Delta’s vision, mission, and values:

Delta’s Vision Statement:
To be the World’s Most Trusted Airline.

Delta’s Mission Statement:
We — Delta’s employees, customers, and community partners together form a force for positive local and global change, dedicated to bettering standards of living and the environment where we and our customers live and work.

Delta’s Values:

• Honesty: always tell the truth
• Integrity: always keep your deals
• Respect: don’t hurt anyone
• Perseverance: never give up
• Servant Leadership: care for everyone

Delta’s Tagline:
Climb higher.

Now, imagine after reading their inspirational vision, mission, and values, that the next line you see is “Delta Is Ready When You Are” (1984) or “The Airline with the Big Jets” (1959) instead of “Climb higher.” What emotion did that evoke within you? These older taglines are counterintuitive to communicating the partnership between Delta and customers for positive change in the world found in their mission statement. It denotes a condescending tone, as if Delta’s always ready to change the world, but also perpetually waiting on the customer to participate in such a worthy cause. The “Big Jets” tagline communicates an ego-centric tone that obliterates the customer’s interests.

“Evergreen” Takeaway: Review your vision, mission, and values, then consider focusing on the strongest part of the mission or value that can be summarized in 3 words.

2. A Sticky Tagline Is Customer-Centric

With all the raucous marketing clanging about on the Internet, TV, radio, billboards, bus benches, and flyers, will the average consumer remember a neat feature about your company? Or is it easier to remember a more profound desire within themselves? Designing good value proposition accounts for the pains, gains, and goals of a customer. But your tagline is not the place to try and cram every value point into one sentence. You can only use three words! Instead, focus on the customer’s desire. What do they want to happen — not with your product, but in their daily routine, job, life as a parent, or traveler?

Delta has used a total of 22 taglines over the last 80+ years. Only one of those taglines was user-centered. And that user-centered tagline is the one they use today. It took 80 years for Delta to get it right. Interestingly enough, the year their slogan changed (2016) was also the year of record-breaking financial, operational, and customer service performance. I doubt this is a coincidence. The year Apple’s tagline changed (1997) was also the year Steve Jobs returned as CEO. It’s a pattern worth noting.

Do not bloat your tagline with your unique value proposition and cool product features. You are already using your mission or core values as a tagline framework. Take that framework and ask the customer-centric question that pushes beyond your offering: “How will this help my customer achieve what they really want in (choose one): life, business, health, relationships, etc.?”. And don’t conjure up an answer in the suffocating vacuum of your conference room or innovation silo. Get out of the building and conduct user research to find out.

“Customer-Centric” Takeaway: Ask the question, “How will this help my customer achieve what they really want in (choose one): life, business, health, relationships, etc.?”

3. A Sticky Tagline Is Hero-Oriented

New York Times bestselling author Amie Kaufman says, “Every story needs its hero. And its Villain. And its monster.” After you’ve discovered what your user wants, it’s tempting to personify your brand as the hero and the customer as a “damsel in distress.” You are not the hero. And they are not the damsel.

When you perceive your brand as the hero, your company will become ego-centric, and your tagline might also reflect this shortcoming. Remember Delta’s “Big Jets”? It exudes an overtly masculine, brawny image where the muscle-bound airline carries helpless customers on its broad, strapping shoulders to their domestic destination.

Once you understand your customer’s deeper desire, your brand’s job is to help them see that they are the hero of their own story. They are the protagonist. The customer is, for all intents and purposes of a Matrix Trilogy reference, “The One.” If the customer is the hero, then the Villain is the persona that actively works against them, achieving their goal to fulfill their desire. And often, the plot thickens with a monster that was awakened in the forest, inadvertently provoked by the customer hero, or sent by the Villain himself.

Let’s take a look at what I call the Hero, Deep Desire, Villain, Monster framework in our selected top brands:

Nike

Hero: Customer
Deep Desire: To achieve athletic excellence
Villain: Your willpower
Monster: An upcoming triathlon event

Coca-Cola

Hero: Customer
Deep Desire: To find a refreshing feeling
Villain: Thirst
Monster: A myriad of product/service options

Apple

Hero: Customer
Deep desire: To express your creative self
Villain: Self-doubt
Monster: Those who doubt and ridicule you

Delta Air Lines

Hero: Customer
Deep Desire: ??
Villain: ???
Monster: ????

I now see why it took Delta so long to get it right. And I commend them for eventually crafting a mission and tagline that empowers their customers to be the hero. The competition in the transportation industry boils down to four factors: Price, speed, safety, and comfort. Delta’s very first tagline in 1929 was, in fact, “Speed, Comfort and Safety.” It’s challenging to find a Villain or Monster within the transportation industry that isn’t time, safety, ease, and luxury. In 1929, Delta crafted a solid tagline. But we have to dig deeper. After all, Delta did end up differentiating themselves.

If I reflect on how I felt when I would fly Delta, I’d have to say I always felt like I was on a critical mission, even if it was visiting home from college or waiting on a connecting flight. The logo, customer service, brand colors, SkyMiles rewards program with Medallion Tiers, and Comfort+ seating option, were all differentiating factors. They combined speed, comfort, and safety with just a hint of prestige — even if flying coach. So let’s try the Hero, Villain, Monster framework for Delta again:

Delta Air Lines

Hero: Me
Deep Desire: To feel important while traveling
Villain: My self-esteem
Monster: Legroom

The Leg Room Monster thickens the plot just a bit. If I feel cramped while flying, it can diminish my feeling of status. And that “status trigger” is pulled by the Villain. Therefore, if I defeat the Villain, I no longer worry about the prestige of flying (or something to that effect).

“Story-Oriented” Takeaway: The customer is the hero, not your company. Consider them as the protagonist who will take ownership of attaining their deep desire.

4. A Sticky Tagline Is Mentor-Driven

If the customer is the hero, then your company is their mentor. You are the Morpheus to their Neo; the Obi-Wan Kenobi to their Luke Skywalker. Your role is to empower your customers to defeat their villains and monsters for themselves. Morpheus says, to Neo, “Free your mind.” Obi-Wan reminds Luke to “Use the force.” These notable quotes are sticky taglines!

At some point, the mentors were more masterful than the budding protagonist. But at no point did they withhold the full impact of their training for fear that the hero would best them. That was the whole point! The mentors knew their role and stayed in their lane. Mentors who try to become heroes turn into villains — the active persona that works against the true hero from fulfilling their mission.

Your company might fear that if you help your customers realize their full potential and power as the hero, they will no longer need you. However, the opposite tends to happen. The Hero’s Journey is cyclical, and you have just completed a full cycle of brand loyalty to take root. There will always be another villain and more monsters. And most customers remember the mentors who helped them win their first victory. You must also accept the fact that your product or service isn’t for every hero at every stage. Yoda eventually took the place of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Neo no longer needed Morpheus. Let’s take a look at the Hero, Desire, Villain, Monster framework again but this time add on the brand’s tagline:

Nike

Hero: Customer
Deep Desire: To achieve athletic excellence
Villain: Your willpower
Monster: An upcoming triathlon event
Tagline: Just do it

Coca-Cola

Hero: Customer
Deep Desire: To find a refreshing feeling
Villain: Thirst
Monster: A myriad of product/service options
Tagline: Taste the feeling

Apple

Hero: Customer
Deep desire: To express your creative self
Villain: Self-doubt
Monster: Those who doubt and ridicule you
Tagline: Think different

Delta Air Lines

Hero: Me
Deep Desire: To feel important while traveling
Villain: My self-esteem
Monster: Legroom
Tagline: Climb higher

I interpret “Climb higher” to mean “Achieve your best work where not even your self-esteem can self-sabotage your world-changing mission.

“Mentor-Driven” Takeaway: Your company’s role is the mentor to the hero customer. Empower them as the protagonist who will defeat the villain and win the prize.

5. A Sticky Tagline Is Concise

Have you ever had a friend who keeps coming to you with the same problem they’re trying to overcome? You eventually understand the ins and outs of their situation and roadblocks, preventing them from winning. And over time, your response to their plight becomes shorter and shorter. You almost express your answer with a shoulder shrug of love or a faint micro-head nod with a long blink, as if to permit them — yet again — to use those three words to change their lives. You aren’t necessarily annoyed or tired of them, but you eventually know what the issue is and the simplicity of their success. And you can summarize it in two words.

Once you know your customer well enough and can recite their pain points, frustrations, desires, jobs to be done — the entire empathy map — then and only then will you have the most potent and concise tagline for your company. Perhaps this is why Nike’s slogan has never changed. Founded in 1964, Nike didn’t create its tagline until 1988. They had 24 years of customer insight before empowering them with those three famous words. There is wisdom in waiting to reveal a well-crafted, marinated tagline even if it takes 20 years.

“Concise” Takeaway: The deeper you understand your user, the shorter your tagline will get. Use 2–4 words, max.

6. A Sticky Tagline Is a Call to Action

A sticky tagline almost always challenges the customer hero to do something. And that action is not to buy your product or service. The call to action must transcend your tangible offer. It must invite the customer to do something greater after they’ve left the store, received the online package, or approved your service deliverables. In The Hero’s Journey, this is The Call to Adventure.

Nike’s shoes don’t make you run faster. A Diet Coke doesn’t make you happy. Apple won’t “automagically” turn you into a creative genius. Delta doesn’t enhance my status as a human being. All of these services and tools are simply brand gifts to help unlock or improve what we already possess. Nike helps inspire willpower for personal excellence. Coca-Cola sends a reminiscent invitation to find your “happy place” by sharing a moment with someone else. Apple provokes the outliers (the “crazy ones”) to create something world-changing. And Delta encourages to keep aspiring to greater heights of important achievement.

“Call-to-Action” Takeaway: Go do it.