In the fight over Denver International Airport, size apparently does matter. First Southwest Airlines claimed to be the “most-flown” airline in Denver, Now United Airlines says it is the top carrier in Denver. Both ads were not wrong, though one has some fine print the other does not.
United Airlines + Southwest Airlines Both Claim They Bigger In Denver In Dueling Ads
If you fly through Denver, you will notice a new ad campaign from United Airlines that highlights that it is the most-flown airline in Denver. You will notice this on bigger banners displayed throughout the airport:
And in your TSA security checkpoint bins, which will have this message:
The “fine print” is quite clear:
This is our legal disclaimer. Yes, we know it’s ginormous, but we aren’t trying to hide anything in the fine print. Based on U.S. DOT O&D Summary reports and ASQP reporting for 2022, United has carried more passengers into and out of Denver, with more on-time arrivals, than any other airline.
But we need more context to understand this ad.
If your IP address is in the Colorado area, you might see an ad like this:
And if traveling through Denver, Southwest Airlines has its own ads up:
In the battle of advertising jabs to assert themselves as DEN’s hometown airline, Southwest ads have been going up saying they’re the most flown airline in DEN. pic.twitter.com/Ru7EyiwCMN
— 🇺🇦 JonNYC 🇺🇦 (@xJonNYC) April 10, 2023
So who is right?
Note the fine print on the Southwest ad:
Based on U.S. DOT Summary Reports, for each year from 2011 through 2021, in total for such year, Southwest has carried more Passengers into/out of Denver than any other airline.
Southwest has never made the claim that is has carried more passengers out of Denver than United. THat would be farcical considering what an important connecting hub DEN is for United. But Southwest is claiming that is carries more local passengers than United. And that was apparently true…at least until 2022.
But beyond the meltdown last December, United continues to grow in Denver and I expect United to continue to outpace Southwest in Denver.
Finally, I love this exchange. Competition is great for consumers and Southwest and United both growing in Denver keep the other accountable to keep fares in check. That’s something we should celebrate.
CONCLUSION
United Airlines and Southwest Airlines make similar claims in dueling ads in Denver. The Southwest ad, while technically correct, is misleading. Since 2022, United carries more local traffic and a lot more connecting traffic in Denver. But the most important takeaway is that both carriers continue to invest and compete in Denver, which is good news for both local and connecting passengers.
I find it sad that they are resorting to battling like two children over who is the biggest instead of focusing on who offers the best product. However, I guess that leads to the fact that neither of them offer a product to be proud of. With that, they just focus on size. A great advertising study case because they both left themselves vulnerable to a third carrier claiming quite effectively, “We don’t try to be the biggest in Denver. We just focus on being the best.”
Imagine Frontier of all airlines coming up with that 3rd ad you suggested
Hush up, boy!
D:
@Jan George Santos will be writing the copy for Frontier
I agree, but it’s Southwest who not only brought up information not only irrelevant to most customers but also severely out of date. United would not have brought this up if they didn’t have to correct Southwest.
In the old days, United would have let it go, which is probably why Southwest tried to get away with it. Nice to see UA push back.
I disagree – this isn’t battling like two children. This is defending your turf. DEN is UA’s turf, WN is an intruder. Now they’re trying to use misleading numbers to prop themselves up, I am glad UA called them out. On twitter UA replied directly to a post about the WN ad calling them out.
Defending turf? It sounds like a schoolboy brawl in a playground. To me, the outsider who provides real leadership and grows the atmosphere of the playground into becoming a better place is the real leader. Not the ones who scream, “I’m bigger!”
To me, real leadership is led by example in quality, not in bragging as to being the largest. Ya know, I may not be large, but I do know how to please. And all that stuff.
I respectfully disagree. They are implying that they don’t have to tell you they have the best service, which is subjective, because their larger customer base is evidence of who is better. Other passengers have determined that after evaluating the options, just as they do when they rate hotels, restaurants, etc. You take it all with a grain of salt. Bigger isn’t always better, but it may be one factor in determining who you give your business to.
Given that some of the marketing minds from Spirit’s more shall we say interesting advertising days are now at Frontier, I could see a “Size doesn’t matter, it’s what you do with it” ad.
Southwest will never be DEN’s airline, and just needs to accept that reality. Frankly I’m embarrassed to have such a bad airline have such a big presence at my home airport. Haven’t flown them in over a decade and hope to never fly them the rest of my life.
Understandable but also good to have competition
This a strange take to me… I view AA as being on the same level as spirit and I go out of my way to avoid them, but I’m glad they have a hub at ORD to keep United honest with fares