Growth brand Innovation
Using Innovation to Build Brands
and Strengthen Reputation:
Creating Value
for Employees, Customers,
and Shareholders
INNOVATION AT WORK
Brand: A Revenue and Growth Driver for Airlines
What does "brand" mean for an airline, and how does a brand drive revenue growth and resilience? Hear more on the Aviadev Africa podcast.
Laying the Foundation for Revenue Growth
Communications programs that measurably increase brand awareness and consideration in U.S. and international markets
Strategic design and execution of communications and marketing initiatives that address business and reputation underperformance
Reinvention of corporate partnership strategy to address evolved business priorities
Development of high-performance, globally based teams
Thought leadership on communications, marketing, community-investment, talent, and business-growth topics
Leadership of a Multinational Team
Manage with cultural intelligence
Led communicators and agency teams in 20+ countries across six continents
Applied traditional marketing principles – such as audience targeting and social media amplification – to elevate communications effectiveness
Reinventing Marketing Partnerships: From Hospitality to Community Growth
Business Challenge
The airline’s sponsorship portfolio primarily served high-spending customers but did little to build long-term brand affinity beyond that small segment.
Resolution
Rahsaan led a three-year transformation involving internal teams, agencies, and partners to redirect millions in sponsorship and activation budgets toward community-facing initiatives. These programs engaged consumers outside of elite circles and contributed to measurable lifts in brand favorability and media visibility.
(Click the photo to read about United's partnership with the New Jersey Devils and the hockey rink built at Phillips Academy in Newark, N.J.)
"Change the Future of Air Travel": Repositioning a Legacy Airline for the Tech Generation
Business Challenge
Despite market leadership at San Francisco International Airport, the airline lagged in brand preference, especially among Millennial travelers.
Resolution
Rahsaan identified the opportunity to reposition the brand with tech-forward audiences through a two-year sponsorship of TechCrunch Disrupt. The activation strategy included two high-visibility booths where attendees, including tech founders and VCs, pitched 75-second ideas to improve air travel.
(Click to learn about United's participation in the TechCrunch Disrupt hackathon.)
Reinventing Marketing Partnerships: Creating Newsworthy Moments that Inspire and Sell
Tied sponsorship activations to moments of cultural relevance and community pride
Strategically timed news hooks to drive amplification across local, national, and social media
Turned traditional sponsorship moments into powerful brand storytelling opportunities
(Click to hear the story from WBBM Newsradio.)
"...United Airlines has been revolutionizing its business class... ensuring it can compete with the best of the best." – CNN
Business Challenge
By mid-2015, the airline had spent three years developing a bespoke international business class product and anticipated launching within a year
Resolution
During a fall 2015 flight for a different CNN Business Traveller segment, Rahsaan pitched to CNN’s Richard Quest that he cover the final year of preparation of the launch of the new business class product.
After Rahsaan gained CEO and CMO agreement, CNN captured exclusive, immersive behind-the-scenes content, filming product development and training, culminating in a widely viewed broadcast on CNN International.
Changing the Narrative: Telling Great Stories in Tough Times
Business Challenge
During a multi-year merger integration, the airline routinely ranked near the bottom of U.S. operational and customer satisfaction metrics.
Resolution
Despite real operational challenges, Rahsaan and his team worked with objective national and local media to tell nuanced, human-centered stories.
Exclusive features in CNN, USA Today, Fox News, and the New York Times showed the airline’s progress and highlighted employee dedication, loyalty program investments, and tech improvements to balance public sentiment.
(Click to read the story on NBCNews.com.)
"Fly the Friendly Skies": Guiding a Bold Campaign to Positive Headlines
Business Challenge
In summer 2013, the airline planned to resurrect the iconic Fly the Friendly Skies tagline, but its operational and service performance lagged.
Resolution
Rather than launching the campaign organically (i.e. without shaping the narrative around it), Rahsaan proposed pitching the campaign as an exclusive to a respected veteran New York Times reporter who, coincidentally, covered airlines and advertising. The neutral-to-positive article helped set the tone for subsequent media and social coverage, softening skepticism and fueling campaign credibility.
(Click to read the story on NYTimes.com.)
Thought Leadership in Action: Amplifying Impact Beyond the Brand
Keynote: Team USA partner forum (Washington, 2018)
(Click to read a USAToday.com story about United's sendoff event for Olympic athletes flying United to Rio de Janeiro in 2016.)
Thought Leadership in Action
Brand Innovators: Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, 2025
Podcast Engagements: Innovation in Corporate Sponsorships & Brand Partnerships
(Click to listen to the Ticket Manager All Access Series podcast episode.)