During a recent trip to Dallas, I was surprised and disappointed with the latest edition of AmericanWay, the American Airlines in-flight magazine.

The cover features Will Ferrell and some acting buddies dressed in team uniforms with a basketball. The cover story is not about Ferrell nor his latest movie “Semi-Pro,” but about the NBA Entertainment League. Yes, that’s right, the National Basketball Association has a league of sixteen teams comprised mostly of entertainment professionals who play basketball games in some undisclosed Santa Monica high school gym.

In past issues, the bi-monthly magazine that sports the tagline “Trends for the Modern Traveler” has used celebrities to promote cities where American Airlines can take you, such as this issue

where Greg Kinnear discusses his love for Savannah, Georgia. And why not? Everyone loves celebrities. So, getting them to talk their favorite destinations makes perfect sense.

But in this issue, American Airlines is promoting an invitation-only league of celebrity amateur basketball players, which the general public is not allowed to attend. What does a private basketball league of privileged celebrities have to do with the average American traveler? Forgetting who you are and who’s your target audience is a great way lose your brand’s connection to your customer.

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Filed under: Branding, Marketing Trends