Being a triple fudge-diamond MVP executive elite was a part a person's existence, fiber and Twitter bio. Go Isles!
An elite status allows you to live life up in the air, or crash onto a hotel bed, and the program acts as a comfort blanket that provides security and familiarity, even when you're traveling to unknown or unfamiliar places.
This belief is that you've made a commitment to yourself and are now able to make informed travel decisions. You do everything possible to keep your loyalty and expect them to treat you as such.
Many people feel that these days are gone and programs are to blame.
Loyalty programs are under threat
Let's not forget that loyalty programs are very sound and logical ideas designed to extract unsound and illogical behavior. It is more difficult to get off the hamster wheel the faster it spins. People will spend more money if the wheel spins faster.
You might choose to fly with longer connections and shorter departure times in order to be first boarding. Or, you may pick a hotel on the wrong side for their great elite breakfast.
These are designed to make you spend money you didn't intend or to force you to choose a better option with your competitors to unlock some type of benefit. Every additional purchase is another win for loyalty.
Many people feel disengaged from their elite status and are now unsure if they will ever be able to travel again after more than a decade of not being able to maintain pre-pandemic levels.
Many people realized that the hamster wheel had stopped and they were not in control of their travel. This is sound and logical thinking for a change.
This makes things even more complicated. Once-restrictive hotel benefit programs were made more public. A la carte services, which allow you to add perks to your will, rather than earning them, are becoming more popular with airlines.
GSTP Premium members get access to hotel booking benefits that trump most mid-tier elite status perks without the need to be loyal or go through any hoops. These benefits are comparable to what a top-tier guest would get, provided that they book the right way. Don't go out of your way for enough nights.
Marketing is no longer good enough for people
This status comes with 8 suite nights. A status of elite is only as valuable as the benefits you get from it. If your main benefit is a free checked luggage, but you don't check it, that's a problem. If suite upgrades are the main benefit, but you don't have them when you need them, it is a problem.
Delivering real and quantifiable results in a data-driven world is the future of loyalty. This will mean that airlines and hotels will have to stop marketing and focus on the benefits customers can enjoy. People love to find out the secrets of things, much like videogames.
You shouldn't wrap an upgrade in red tape. It is important to make sure that everyone who gets an upgrade has the opportunity to use it without any restrictions.
They have unlocked it, and they are eager to start having fun with it.
Loyalty programs were not able to provide more benefits when times were good. Instead, the emphasis was on protecting benefits. While they sounded wonderful in theory, they weren't always as practical in practice.
People aren't interested in signing up for perks or points, despite the fact that there is an abundance of them. While airlines and hotels have done everything possible to get people back in their loyalty programs, performance metrics still lag.
This is why hotels and airlines continue to offer elite status extensions. If these people are not engaged, the feeling of having something to unlock it will be more difficult than it is now.
To be clear, I still care about my status. I am a top-tier elite member of two major airlines, and a top-tier member of a global hotel group. If not extended, at least one of these will be lost, if any, it will disappear this year.
I won't jump through hoops to get them back if they aren't. I am focusing on the easy wins and that is what is creating them right now. I don't have to lose what I win from others. I can just buy them a la carte.
There is a way out for everyone
Because I think logically, I enjoy the game of loyalty. I don't go out of my way to get something. I only do it if it leads to an unlock or win that is worth more than the effort.
In these situations, both sides usually win.
They made me spend more or ignore a competitor. The thing I consider a win that is worth achieving is almost always a sunk expense for them. They are paying far less than I think they will get in return for the value that I perceive. It doesn't matter if they spend more money to unlock an upgrade.
Loyalty programs should be simple and easy to understand, but also present the benefits in a fun, personal, and gamified manner. It will be much harder to resist than an email telling you hey, earn double points. I'm at home, chillin with my wine.
This is where we are now, and it's not enough. Loyalty programs must reach members like you in places they already are and make it easy for them to gain benefits. You can sign up in one touch and it will last forever.
They must be able to connect with everyday consumer brands, beyond just credit card rewards.
Ironically, this is how loyalty began, but once the power was realized, the bean counters became too powerful. They made loyalty less effective. You are not the only one feeling disenfranchised by loyalty. As any frequent traveler from the glory days of the game will tell you, this game is not as enjoyable as it used to be.
It's actually quite simple and straightforward! I spent far too much time trying to keep my card so that I could queue up at the cracking of sparrows to get a free cup of coffee, when there is an equally decent and good coffee shop next door.
Loyalty programs must offer choices again, and that is the most important thing.
Who needs a drink when they can get one for free?
Lounge access is only good for one member of the family, but not for four members. It's not worth it. You can either get into fights or abandon the perk, or you may have to beg outside a lounge to let the other two in. This is a vacation that should be relaxing. Is that not fun?
You could keep lounge access for both the member and the plus one but also create a game within games for a certain number of buddy passes or trade away perks that you don't like for more. This will allow the entire family to see the benefits of loyalty and can encourage people to get involved.
This is only one example of the million where loyalty cannot be measured in one size.
Technology holds the key to all the great wins ahead. However, airlines and hotels are slow in prioritizing loyalty spending in technology, even though loyalty was what kept the lights on during the pandemic.
What would be great if you could choose from a variety of perks for each stay based on your status?
Realistically, hotels and airlines are in existential crisis. Many loyalty programs were mortgaged to raise funds for larger businesses during the pandemic. In many cases, the loyalty programs were worth multiples of the business.
One cannot have the other, but one has enormous debts like hotels or planes and large staff numbers. The other makes money by taking people on incredible journeys to earn rewards. Hotels and airlines are changing the way they operate, so loyalty programs are the best option.
If the people who bought the mortgages don't want them to go under, they should do more to get people like yourself (reading this) back on board.
Many travelers will not return to the status quo and instead become proverbial snipers if it is maintained. They will find the best solution for each trip based on cost, convenience, or location and leave all other things aside. No loyalty, no problem. With the help of the internet, I can buy exactly what I need.
It's never too late to make things right
The hotels added outrageous destination fees and devalued points tables. Everything was about price. They are not surprised that people will abandon loyalty in order to get a better deal on a hotel or airline.
Lounge access is a status perk. But who cares if you can get it free of charge by flying business class with a deal. Building more value for members is the only way to win them back, and not just the businesses that depend on loyalty.
What do you think about loyalty programs after the big pause?
