Airline loyalty schemes
They've all got them: BA and their Executive Club, Air France with Flying Blue and Emirates has Skywards. All the airlines of the world try to keep you loyal to their brand by enticing you with special offers for points earned as you fly, plus special privileges if you fly enough to reach the higher tiers.
I confess I am a member of all the above mentioned schemes, I joined them all this year and that's mainly because I've flown so much over the last 10 months.
Anyway, the purpose of this post... not sure really, but it was prompted when my Emirates Skywards package arrived this morning. Part of the deal with these things is how special the airline makes the customer feel as that, along with the actual flying experience, will be a driving factor in keeping you flying with them. They need to make you feel like a valued customer, the competition is just too great these days. So here is a run down of what I have received from each of the 3 airlines mentioned.
BA was the first to arrive, a card stuck to a letter. The card is very nicely designed and all that, but it didn't really feel very special and, as I am not made of money and therefore will only ever book the cheapest economy tickets, I will never reach silver or above status - you only get tier points for flexible, business and first class tickets. That leaves me with a sort of Air Miles thing.
Air France Flying Blue was the next scheme I joined. Their record has been truly appalling this year - booked on 8 flights, only 4 completed. And I have yet to actually add any points to my card (which therefore hasn't arrived yet) despite flying to South Africa with them at no small cost. (Well technically, flying home from South Africa... as they didn't manage to get me there).
Finally, Emirates. A lovely little package arrived this morning with my card and 2 personalised luggage tags complete with natty little leatheresque straps, plus a well drafted letter and a little booklet on how it all works. Yes it's marketing, yes it's gimmicky, but it prompted a little smile this morning - someone had actually put some thought into it. Also, I actually stand a chance of getting to silver level as you get tier points for all flights. Which is good, because no one likes being told they're too tight/poor/sensible to benefit. That smacks of corporate snobbery.
References:
British Airways
Air France
Emirates
I confess I am a member of all the above mentioned schemes, I joined them all this year and that's mainly because I've flown so much over the last 10 months.
Anyway, the purpose of this post... not sure really, but it was prompted when my Emirates Skywards package arrived this morning. Part of the deal with these things is how special the airline makes the customer feel as that, along with the actual flying experience, will be a driving factor in keeping you flying with them. They need to make you feel like a valued customer, the competition is just too great these days. So here is a run down of what I have received from each of the 3 airlines mentioned.
BA was the first to arrive, a card stuck to a letter. The card is very nicely designed and all that, but it didn't really feel very special and, as I am not made of money and therefore will only ever book the cheapest economy tickets, I will never reach silver or above status - you only get tier points for flexible, business and first class tickets. That leaves me with a sort of Air Miles thing.
Air France Flying Blue was the next scheme I joined. Their record has been truly appalling this year - booked on 8 flights, only 4 completed. And I have yet to actually add any points to my card (which therefore hasn't arrived yet) despite flying to South Africa with them at no small cost. (Well technically, flying home from South Africa... as they didn't manage to get me there).
Finally, Emirates. A lovely little package arrived this morning with my card and 2 personalised luggage tags complete with natty little leatheresque straps, plus a well drafted letter and a little booklet on how it all works. Yes it's marketing, yes it's gimmicky, but it prompted a little smile this morning - someone had actually put some thought into it. Also, I actually stand a chance of getting to silver level as you get tier points for all flights. Which is good, because no one likes being told they're too tight/poor/sensible to benefit. That smacks of corporate snobbery.
References:
British Airways
Air France
Emirates
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