Have you seen The Customer Experience Factbook?

In this 180+ page report, you'll find all the information and support you need to build a profitable, effective CX Improvement Program that spans every part of your business. You'll be able to implement and manage meaningful and profitable change, and grow your bottom line despite a slowing economy.

Get it on Amazon (Kindle/Print)

Loyalty in the air: Beyond the standard FFP

Airlines are increasingly facing criticism for being loyal to only one thing: the airline, and not the customer. Just recently, Christopher Elliot (author of the book 'Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles and Shady Deals') wrote a rebuke of airline loyalty programmes in the Huffington Post. Considering Kobie's work with Hawaiian Airlines and other travel and hospitality brands, Hechtkopf was naturally perturbed by Elliot's conclusions and felt that others may be incorrectly persuaded by the book's arguments.

In the book, Elliot discusses how airline loyalty programmes are only loyal to one thing ("the airline and not the customer"). He mainly criticizes airlines for turning features that were once considered standard (e.g., a certain level of seat comfort) into perks that only frequent fliers can access. He also points out that loyalty programmes' fine print gives carriers carte blanche to make any changes they want if they deem a programme "too generous".

"Of course, he's entitled to his opinion, but here's mine," says Hechtkopf. "Frequent flier programmes are very much the precursors of modern loyalty campaigns across multiple industry verticals. They're over 30 years old with cross-brand membership in the millions. Some 99% of business travellers, according to a recent study by Frequent Business Traveller and FlyerTalk, are members of an airline loyalty programme. So if something was grossly amiss, don't you think there would have been a backlash by now? Travellers would have long since cried foul and federal regulators would have stepped in."

The reality is that US businesses spend $50 billion on loyalty programmes, which can generate as much as 20% of their profits, every year.

Loyal to loyalty - and to the airlines
If designed and executed correctly with the right technology and tools operating across multiple channels seamlessly in real time, loyalty programmes remain a popular way for consumers to realise value. More than that, a truly great loyalty programme rises above the points-for-rewards stereotype and delivers experiences. That's something that airlines, like other verticals, are striving to achieve. It isn't always about a discounted flight or extra leg room - although those perks are nice too.

Regarding the "too generous" claim: that's really up for debate. Airlines aren't magicians and loyalty programme benefit changes are a measured response to real economic challenges. There's a reason why so many airlines, legacy carriers and LCCs (low-cost carriers) alike, have merged, filed for bankruptcy, or folded completely during the past decade.

Can an airline's loyalty programme fine print be a transparency nuisance? Well, yes, but that can be true in any industry. It's a topic that Kobie addressed as it related to Citibank when two customers sued the bank alleging that it had employed "deceptive trade practices" by not disclosing that frequent flyer rewards could be taxed. (You can read a post about that from Kobie's President, Michael Hemsey, click here.)

Ultimately, travellers remain loyal to airlines because the airlines are growing more and more customer-aware by the day. New technologies and expanded advantages are pushing the boundaries of what's considered a loyalty programme perk. Such innovations were on display last year at the Mega Event in San Diego. Virgin America, for example, offers priority check-in, security clearance and boarding, free checked bag allowances, digital/social rewards and an expanded purchase window for an eight-seat First Class section, and complimentary best seats in the main cabin.

With expanded offerings like these, it's no wonder that airline loyalty programmes are soaring to new success, based on driving the ultimate passenger experience.

Have you seen The Customer Experience Factbook?

In this 180+ page report, you'll find all the information and support you need to build a profitable, effective CX Improvement Program that spans every part of your business.

You'll be able to implement and manage meaningful and profitable change, and grow your bottom line despite a slowing economy. Grab this goldmine of easily adaptable and up-to-date strategies, walk-throughs, trends, technologies, research, suppliers and partners, plus all the supporting arguments you need to build a solid CX strategy.

While most marketers could list maybe a dozen key points for improving their brand's Customer Experience (CX), the researchers and writers at The Marketing Factbook have identified FORTY main 'CX Keys' which will help you drive your customers to new levels of delight, loyalty, advocacy and profitability.

The areas in which customers have direct contact with your organization are perhaps the most obvious places in which CX improvements can be made, and this report addresses all 24 of these 'Direct CX Keys', applicable to offline and online businesses alike.

At the same time there are many other areas that indirectly affect CX (such as the supply chain, policies and processes) in which every business can make simple but far-reaching improvements. This report guides you through the problems and solutions for all 16 of these 'Indirect CX Keys', many of which are often forgotten or under-played even in the best CX strategies.

Get it on Amazon (Kindle/Print)