Executive Summary

Southwest Airlines Co. - Strategic Audit Report

Introduction Overview

James Goggans

MGMT 436, Strategic Management

Prof. Robert E. Rue

11 July 2021

Southwest Airlines Co. - Strategic Audit Report

Introduction Overview

The organization selected for the strategic audit report is Southwest Airlines Co. The Airline was established jointly by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King in 1967 (Southwest Airlines Co., 2021). It is pertinent to note that the founders of the Airline aimed at targeting the domestic air travel demand in the United States and initially focused only on air routes connecting Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. The company’s main competitive edge over other airlines in the industry has always been its exceptional customer service, which has helped the company grow its business substantially within the United States over the years (Southwest Airlines Co., 2021).

The services of Southwest Airlines Co. mainly comprise the scheduled air transportation through its point-to-point service in the United States and other neighboring international markets (Reuters, 2021). Apart from these scheduled air services, Southwest Airlines Co. also provides additional services, such as pets transportation, unaccompanied minors transportation, and EarlyBird check-in services to its customers. The ticketing and reservation services are available through an online platform on the company’s website (Reuters, 2021).

As far as the target customer base is concerned, it is important to note that although the Airline operates internationally, it only serves the near-international markets. However, the main target market of the company remains within the United States. In addition, the Airline has traditionally positioned itself as a low-cost carrier within the United States, and hence it mainly focuses on middle-class families, small businesses, and young travelers in its marketing and promotional campaigns (Marketing School, 2020). In other words, Southwest Airlines Co. makes use of niche marketing to target specific population groups, as discussed above.

References Marketing School. (2020, November 28). Targeted Marketing. Retrieved from Marketing School: https://www.marketing-schools.org/types-of-marketing/targeted-marketing/ Reuters. (2021). Southwest Airlines Co. Retrieved from Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/companies/LUV Southwest Airlines Co. (2021). About Southwest. Retrieved from Southwest Airlines Co.: https://www.southwest.com/html/about-southwest/index.html#:~:text=In%201967%2C%20Herb%20Kelleher%20and,%2C%20Houston%2C%20and%20San%20Antonio.