Skift Take
When it comes to airline loyalty, if everyone is "elite" no one is. As Delta rebalances its loyalty program, customers need to remember it is a business in the service of shareholders. I'm surprised it has taken this long for programs to arrive at this revenue-driven conclusion.
On Experience
Colin Nagy, a marketing strategist, writes this opinion column for Skift on hospitality and business travel. On Experience dissects customer-centric experiences and innovation across the luxury sector, hotels, aviation, and beyond. He also covers the convergence of conservation and hospitality.
You can read all of his writing here.
I typically refrain from commenting on ebbs and flows of loyalty and frequent flyer programs. Why? It's somewhat uninteresting. My perspective is there will be a never-ending shift towards optimization, goosing revenue, and a focus on quarterly results by travel companies.
Business travelers have lived under something of an illusion for a while, with free upgrades, generous lounge access, and other creature comforts to ease the rigors of the road. In exchange for accumulating "butt-in-seat" mileage, they've had a favorable arrangement.
Seeing the direction loyalty is heading, I make an effort to be a free agent: I fly various airlines around the world and select the best product, team, and ground experience based on my itinerary. I think this will be the future for others, as well.
A few months ago, as I boarded a