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SURVEY: Would You Like To See An Official EK Rep/Lurker On The Forum?

Old Aug 21, 2017, 9:34 am
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Last edit by: Saltire74
Fellow Flyertalkers

We have piqued the interest of Emirates in joining our forum on an official capacity.

They have asked our contributors to answer a short survey (questions not set by EK) to see what sort of engagement we would be interested in.


The Moderator & Ambassador Team would be grateful if you could spend a few moments and complete the questions below using the same format in a normal post.

If there is an interest from Flyertalk Members in having an Official Emirates representation on the forum and they agree to come onboard, this information will allow them to make sure their role is beneficial to the forum and its members.

If EK take up the invitation, the role may develop over time and to ensure that both the Flyertalk Community and EK benefit from their involvement, the community are asked to follow any guidelines posted in the future if our invitation is accepted.

Thanks

Q1:
Would you like to see an Official EK Representative on Flyertalk? (If NO, could you please give your reasons as this will also be assessed in the feedback).

Q2:
If Emirates were to join the forum in an official capacity, what contributions would you like to see from them?

Q3:
Which online resource do you go to most when looking for information about flying Emirates or their Frequent Flyer Programme, Skywards? Emirates Website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flyertalk or other Social Media/Online site? List sites in order of usage.


Any other comments:


Thanks for taking the time to answer this short survey.

Saltire74
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SURVEY: Would You Like To See An Official EK Rep/Lurker On The Forum?

Old Aug 27, 2017, 3:16 pm
  #31  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
Originally Posted by Saltire74
We have not set a timeline at present, but once there are enough responses, we will pass these on to EKHQ for them to digest.

We we will continue to have discussions with the PR Department via back channels until a decision is made.

The reason for the survey is to gauge interest and so that EK can make an informed decision on whether they come on board or not. If the interest is there and EK can see an added value both for themselves and the forum, they want to know what we would like to see so that they get it right and not to become anything like some other forum airline reps.

They can see the potential and want to be a positive contributor if resources allow and if members would like their contributions.

We will have to wait and see what responses we get and what decisions are made so would be grateful for further contributions and some patience.

S
^^^ Very happy about this initiative, was asking just to gauge whether the decisive factor was a point in time (e.g. 31 August), a certain amount of reponses (and if so maybe an idea of how many more, and encourage regulars to encourage others to complete the survey through references in other threads?) or just a general gut feel, or whether it's continuous feedback, open-ended. The fear being that otherwise it kind of just fades away with no set measurable KPI to move to the next step (EK evaluating responses)
skywardhunter is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 3:19 pm
  #32  
Moderator, Emirates
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Where My Heart Is
Programs: BAEC Silver, FB Platinum, KQ Asante Gold, Shebamiles Blue, Emirates Blue
Posts: 3,380
Originally Posted by skywardhunter
^^^ Very happy about this initiative, was asking just to gauge whether the decisive factor was a point in time (e.g. 31 August), a certain amount of reponses (and if so maybe an idea of how many more, and encourage regulars to encourage others to complete the survey through references in other threads?) or just a general gut feel, or whether it's continuous feedback, open-ended. The fear being that otherwise it kind of just fades away with no set measurable KPI to move to the next step (EK evaluating responses)
Keeping a close eye on the thread and having put in a lot of work myself on this along with fellow ambassadors and mod, have no intention of letting it fade into the never never.

It's a work in progress and progress is always a good thing

S
Saltire74 is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 4:21 pm
  #33  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
Q1 : No

Because I can't see what an EK rep can bring to us.

There is no such thing as an off-the-record info in the web. If there is any exclusive info initially intended to FTer, you can be sure that media / competitors will jump on it. Therefore no EK rep will veer from the official PR talk.


Because FT should remain a free speech space.

By "free", I mean "no hidden agenda".
As someone recalled, a flyer complained about a 45 min delay. In many's opinion (and also mine), it is totally abusive. BUT, this guy didn't think so, and this is perfectly all right.
We'd put EK in an awkward situation but forcing EK to react more than what customer relations did.

Some time ago, we had a good laugh with the hand-lotion-gate. (No harm intended to you-know-who ) The thread would have had a different taste if EK was officially represented ...

The presence of an EK rep will indeed attract professional claimers of all sort, and this would spoil the pleasant ambiance of the forum.
Moreover, it will change the behavior of all of us - like it or not -, and our disappointment will probably be as high as our expectations.

So, better keep it as it is. Infos and opinions provided here by fellow FTer are very helpful, and some are already extremely knowledgeable.
ioto1902 is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 4:38 pm
  #34  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
Originally Posted by ioto1902
Q1 : No

Because I can't see what an EK rep can bring to us.

There is no such thing as an off-the-record info in the web. If there is any exclusive info initially intended to FTer, you can be sure that media / competitors will jump on it. Therefore no EK rep will veer from the official PR talk.


Because FT should remain a free speech space.

By "free", I mean "no hidden agenda".
As someone recalled, a flyer complained about a 45 min delay. In many's opinion (and also mine), it is totally abusive. BUT, this guy didn't think so, and this is perfectly all right.
We'd put EK in an awkward situation but forcing EK to react more than what customer relations did.

Some time ago, we had a good laugh with the hand-lotion-gate. (No harm intended to you-know-who ) The thread would have had a different taste if EK was officially represented ...

The presence of an EK rep will indeed attract professional claimers of all sort, and this would spoil the pleasant ambiance of the forum.
Moreover, it will change the behavior of all of us - like it or not -, and our disappointment will probably be as high as our expectations.

So, better keep it as it is. Infos and opinions provided here by fellow FTer are very helpful, and some are already extremely knowledgeable.
You make some valid points, of course everything will have to be accepted as public, expecting any inside detail with regards to product changes that aren't intended to be public would be unrealistic. But there is scope for additional and technical detail which EK is willing to share but doesn't fit into the scope and context of a release to the general public, or wasn't thought of in such a release. It would likely be handled very similarly to Twitter, but I think transactional conversations related to individual issues should be discouraged on public threads.

As for the change of behaviour, we need to be realistic in knowing that once we disclose our real names and/or Skywards numbers and/or any booking reference and/or flight numbers (hopefully in private messages not public!) EK will record that association and all past and future posts are liable to be linked to our real-world customer profile on EK's systems (even if manually by it just being a note of our username). So once we do that of course it will change our posting behaviour, the obvious solution is to never disclose that, or not let that affect your behaviour. If we look at other sub-fora with official reps I think of BA, where I wonder how official they actually are (Can I Help You, seems official yet also genuinely engaged). I think personality from the EK rep and casual participatory remarks, not necessarily full of contextual answers, are important. Perhaps best solution would be to have just one person at EK dedicated, and posting here with a unique name (not their own if they don't like), so we can refer to EK Tom or something, and make the representation more than just a generic handle.
skywardhunter is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 6:31 pm
  #35  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: MT, USA
Programs: Ex-5C club, Skymiles Gold
Posts: 454
I have been slow to respond to this survey as this is indeed a very serious question that required deep thought. Having an official EK lurker here has many potential ramifications to what is my favorite forum on Flyertalk. The posters here tend to be fairly small in number and somewhat tightly knit compared to most of the other fora. The group is, in my own opinion, diverse and filled with extremely knowledgable flyers who tend toward being even tempered, fun (and champagne) loving, and sometimes fiercely loyal to the Emirates brand. With that said here is my input:

Q1: Yes, with some qualifications

Q2: I would very much like to see an official lurker who is empowered by Emirates to answer tough and sometimes complicated policy questions regarding their company's operations as well as to help explain the details in new policy rollouts. I do not believe this forum would be a good location for EK to help sort out individual flyer's issues but rather to qualify policy and exceptions in broad strokes. A lurker could potentially bring information to the table that would be useful for all of us in the forum but I also understand the hesiation of some who feel they might only regurgitate the website language and be a mouthpiece for the company. For this reason, I think that Emirates would need to understand that we are a very serious group of individuals who have a very high level of understanding about their company policies, hard and soft product. If Emirates feels they can add to our knowlege base and be willing to not sculpt threads to fit their own PR goals, then I would gladly welcome them into this space.

Q3: Best resources for me have been Flyertalk, EK website, EK mobile app, an occasional google search and Experflyer in that order. I am also a believer that social media is not useful to me when I am searching for serious answers.

Other notes:
I understand fully the fear that some here have that a lurker could change the feel of this forum and that people wouldn't want to give enough personal information to be identified by the company for fear of retribution, etc. I believe Emirates knows quite well who their good customers are and will continue to reward and respect them. However, I think having a specific location for them to act would be beneficial to everyone. It has been mentioned before but I definitely agree that having a sticky such as "Ask the EK Lurker" would define everyone's spaces and allow for free speech elsewhere while still gaining the potential benefits of their knowledge and connection to the company. I applaud Emirates in considering spending the resources to help the members of the Flyertalk community. I just hope that if it happens it is set up in a way which offers every one of us something without taking anything away. This is a big task but I believe our mods our up to meet the challenge!
Flaneurs is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 7:53 pm
  #36  
 
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Dubai
Programs: EK Gold, FB Silver
Posts: 318
In theory, yes, I think it'd be great to see an EK lurker/ rep on this website, IF they have added value. Most of the topics here seem to go about opups, flight irregularities, destination wishes, general hand lotion banter, etc. Communication and openness not being EK's strong point, I don't think an EK rep could give any additional comments. Do you think they'll say point blank what their opup strategy is, and how you can select the best seat in Y?

The only added value could be information, background info, etc. about the company's strategy. But why would the company do that on this forum rather than through a press release.

Like I said: it'd be great, but I don't see it happening in the current EK PR culture.
gorbatzjov is offline  
Old Aug 27, 2017, 10:45 pm
  #37  
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: London, Dubai, Hong Kong
Programs: EK Platinum, BA/SQ Gold, HHonors Diamond, IHG Spire, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 139
Q1 Yes

Q2 Informative information on EK relating to future changes, features or new information. Avoiding the inevitable requests to sort things out. I hope I'm in line with most of the other thinking I really don't want it to turn into a complaints room.

Q3 Flyertalk and EK site
Seat54 is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2017, 2:30 am
  #38  
Moderator, Hilton Honors
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: on a short leash
Programs: some
Posts: 71,419
Q1: Would you like to see an Official EK Representative on Flyertalk?

YES, assuming a reasonable effort is made. (There are some programme representatives on FlyerTalk that are either inactive/unresponsive or treat FT as a resource without providing much in return.)

Q2: If Emirates were to join the forum in an official capacity, what contributions would you like to see from them?

I agree with comments previously made that engagement on news (e.g. routes, cabins, changes to FFP) and seeking feedback from frequent flyers is welcome. Possibly also a resource for problem solving by private message. Hand-holding for information that is readily available on EK website is not needed, neither is load factors or upgrade requests for our flights.

Q3: Which online resource do you go to most when looking for information about flying Emirates or their Frequent Flyer Programme, Skywards? Emirates Website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flyertalk or other Social Media/Online site? List sites in order of usage.

FlyerTalk
Emirates.com
Google
Kiwi Flyer is offline  
Old Aug 28, 2017, 4:10 pm
  #39  
Ambassador: Emirates
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Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: UK/AU
Programs: QF P1 + LTS, EK Gold, BAEC Gold, QR Gold, IHG Ambassador
Posts: 1,120
Thanks for replies. I'm just going to bump this to keep the ball rolling. We'd love to hear from as many as possible.
sydtogla is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2017, 3:03 pm
  #40  
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Programs: Skywards
Posts: 556
Q1:
Would you like to see an Official EK Representative on Flyertalk? -

YES

Q2:
If Emirates were to join the forum in an official capacity, what contributions would you like to see from them? -

Support for those with Silver, Blue, Gold and Plat cards.

Q3:
Which online resource do you go to most when looking for information about flying Emirates or their Frequent Flyer Programme, Skywards? Emirates Website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flyertalk or other Social Media/Online site? List sites in order of usage.

Flyertalk
Twitter
Emirates.com
S c 0 TT y is offline  
Old Aug 29, 2017, 3:18 pm
  #41  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Europe
Programs: EK plat, ex-FB gold, Accor plat
Posts: 1,076
Originally Posted by S c 0 TT y
Q1:
Would you like to see an Official EK Representative on Flyertalk? -

YES

Q2:
If Emirates were to join the forum in an official capacity, what contributions would you like to see from them? -

Support for those with Silver, Blue, Gold and Plat cards.

Q3:
Which online resource do you go to most when looking for information about flying Emirates or their Frequent Flyer Programme, Skywards? Emirates Website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Flyertalk or other Social Media/Online site? List sites in order of usage.

Flyertalk
Twitter
Emirates.com
What exactly do you mean by "support" ?
ioto1902 is offline  
Old Aug 30, 2017, 5:32 am
  #42  
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Programs: Skywards
Posts: 556
Originally Posted by ioto1902
What exactly do you mean by "support" ?
My bad.

I mean complaints, skywards general enquiries etc as I understand they refer you to the website now if you enquire in the DXB lounge.
S c 0 TT y is offline  
Old Sep 1, 2017, 4:54 am
  #43  
Moderator, Emirates
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Where My Heart Is
Programs: BAEC Silver, FB Platinum, KQ Asante Gold, Shebamiles Blue, Emirates Blue
Posts: 3,380
Bump.

Your comments are gratefully appreciated. Please read the wiki for questions and format.

Thanks

S
Saltire74 is offline  
Old Sep 4, 2017, 3:17 am
  #44  
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Dubai
Programs: Emirates Platinum
Posts: 372
I've just received the email below from EK. Perhaps it's already been covered. I'm very wary of the ramifications.

"Have you ever wanted to have more of a say in the products and services Emirates offers customers like you? Well now you can!

Emirates has created an exclusive online community for Skywards members called Emirates Hub where you can interact with other Emirates flyers, have your opinions heard by Emirates and act as advisors to their business.

If you take part, you can even win Skywards miles every month as a thank you for your help!

Intrigued? Want to become a member?
To see if Emirates Hub might be for you, just click the link below to complete our short survey and start having your voice heard by Emirates."
ghostwrita is offline  
Old Sep 4, 2017, 3:20 am
  #45  
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: Economy, mostly :(
Programs: Skywards Gold
Posts: 7,801
Originally Posted by ghostwrita2
I've just received the email below from EK. Perhaps it's already been covered. I'm very wary of the ramifications.

"Have you ever wanted to have more of a say in the products and services Emirates offers customers like you? Well now you can!

Emirates has created an exclusive online community for Skywards members called Emirates Hub where you can interact with other Emirates flyers, have your opinions heard by Emirates and act as advisors to their business.

If you take part, you can even win Skywards miles every month as a thank you for your help!

Intrigued? Want to become a member?
To see if Emirates Hub might be for you, just click the link below to complete our short survey and start having your voice heard by Emirates."
Google is your friend:

Emirates Hub

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/emira...rates-hub.html
skywardhunter is offline  

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