Guest Editorial: American, Etihad, Qantas and 20 other Airlines offer Wild Rewards


Guest Editorial by Jay Sorensen, President, IdeaWorksCompany

American, Etihad, Qantas and 20 other Airlines offer Wild Rewards

The latest report from IdeaWorksComany is now available.  We recently reviewed the frequent flier programs of 160 airlines around the world to gather examples of alternative rewards such as unique experiences, event tickets, and retail goods.  Beyond the benefit of reducing reward liability, alternative rewards can encourage members to interact more frequently and deeply with the program.  The following are a few examples from the 25 alternative rewards compiled by the report, ranging from the extravagant to everyday comforts:

  • The Justin Timberlake live in New York package for two from American Airlines includes event tickets, hotel accommodations, and a $600 prepaid MasterCard; it produced a high bid of 421,000 miles.  
  • Would-be grooms choosing to pop the big question on an El Al flight can redeem 120 points plus pay $60 for the carrier’s inflight marriage proposal kit.
  • The private sidecar Tour & gourmet lunch of Beijing, with sparkling wine served along the wall of the Forbidden City, can be enjoyed by redeeming 35,500 points with Qantas.
  • Etihad Airways conducts raffles that cost 100 miles per ticket for prizes such as the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix package for 2 with 4 nights at the St. Regis resort, VIP tickets, and roundtrip business class.
  • Low income college students in China can receive a ticket home for the holidays on Hainan Airways when members donates miles to the “Send love home” program.

Airlines Woo Members with Wild, Weird and Wonderful Rewards was released as a free 17-page report and is available here:
www.ideaworkscompany.com/category/current-reports

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