Virgin Atlantic wanted to take customers on a unique and personal journey through Upper Class, from the dedicated drive-thru check in to the Clubhouse, to being on-board, through night and daytime. Like others in the sector, Virgin Atlantic B2B trade events relied on brochures, cabin mock-ups and video. Virgin Atlantic wanted to overhaul this traditional approach.

The idea was to use a digital application that could be shared with customers worldwide, bridging the physical and digital worlds.

Other airlines have experimented with virtual reality, but none have incorporated storytelling and sensory cues. At best, industry practice is to simply feature destinations, or a 360? view of still photography.

“Virgin Atlantic is an experiential brand. It’s what our customers remember,” says Reuben Arnold, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Customer Experience. “It’s not just about the hard product, it’s about those magic touches. Being able to bring that to life is crucial.”

Through a Windows 10 universal app, the team created a 360?, immersive guided tour of Virgin Atlantic Upper Class from the viewer’s perspective. It incorporates the first use of wearables in a mobile immersive reality experience.

The narrative allows viewers to dwell, but encourages them to move through the story via audio and sensory triggers on the Microsoft Band they wear. As the journey unfolds, the Band captures insightful biometric intelligence about the customer’s experience of Ida. Additional sensory layers, sounds and scents, help enhance the customer experience.

The Windows 10 app design also features trade brochures, cabin videos and a data capture platform to enable lead generation.

Ida is scalable and can be deployed at large key trade events or small-scale client meetings. It launched in November 2015 at Microsoft’s Future Decoded in London, with Virgin Atlantic CEO Craig Kreeger on stage with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

Ida has since starred on the Microsoft stand at the National Retail Federation show in New York. Across the two events, more than 500 people experienced Ida in person, and their anonymous biometric data was captured. Their responses to various scents introduced along the Ida journey are now informing possible pre-flight and on-board choices.

To February 2016, estimated media value from online, broadcast and social media is around £415k. Over three days at the NRF event, there were 79m impressions over digital and physical media, and 1,780 social media posts.

“We believe that experiential engagement will win customers,” says Reuben Arnold. “Ida encourages trial, brings the experience to life and helps potential customers explore our product and service. Short of flying with us, it’s the ideal demonstration of how we design our experiences to stimulate the customer.”

Ida is being rolled out at Virgin Atlantic sales events from March 2016.