Mediapost reported last week that American Airlines has launched a new marketing tool disguised as a Facebook widget.
The widget, called Travel Bag, lets Facebook friends share personal tips and experiences American Airlines is hoping that the widget will help them learn more about what consumers want.

“We want to understand how consumers interact with one another,” said Billy Sanez, American Airlines director of advertising, promotions and corporate communications, who admits the widget has become a “bit of an experiment.” Sanez, 34, who has been tinkering with Facebook apps for the past eight months, said: “There’s no controlling a widget. You just put it out there and hope it spreads virally.”

This is an interesting move by American Airlines. I am torn between whether this is smart marketing or spyware! AA says that if someone shares with friends a list of places to see in Barcelona, Spain, for example, the carrier might send both the customer and friend information on services and flights to the city, along with a 10% discount coupon.

Sanez said American Airlines won’t bombard consumers with traditional advertising on Facebook because it defeats the purpose to create community and negatively affects the brand. The airline knows that information on trips to Paris, Rome or London must remain informative, not intrusive, if the carrier wants to reach consumers in the online world.

I am not sure how they are not intrusive if I look at a friend’s holiday itinerary and suddenly a AA coupon ends up in my mailbox.

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