Originally Posted by RollAnotherFatOne

i have to admit that what you wrote sounds strange - i have never heard of people leaving an airline/travel brand not because of the quality, but exclusively because of their perception of other customers and the price that they feel these customers may have or may not have paid for the service. i'm not sure hotels and airlines should delve into dynamic pricing if such concerns are held by the majority of customers. the fact that everyone pays a different price on a plane and likewise at each property must cause you and others great concern - perhaps to the extent that you would do a survey and where you find the biggest variance, you could tell the brand that you're leaving them for this reason? i don't think so somehow. because typically you are more interested in the product and service than the inconsequentials that make little to no difference to your 'experience'.

it is fair to say that people don't want to pay more than they have to and if they see other people getting a freebie then they won't like it. i travel exclusively in business and first and yes, i understand this. american carriers are less popular with me because they give their loyal customers free upgrades. in fact there are often debates about whether economy people should be able to use facilities and i do think they should be pushed back to where they came from - but that's a separate debate.

with regards to your discussion about airline loyalty for error fares, then maybe i'm in the minority in selecting airlines based on my experience. if i got lucky with a cheap fare in business somewhere then in future i'm more likely to fly with that airline than someone i've never been with. similarly, there are now so many youtube, instagram, and other travel blogs that detail experience which provide many people who wouldn't ordinarily consider premium travel. you just need to look at the video views to see that the aspiration is there. for me, depending on the maths i'd pay the extra if i've had good experiences in that premium cabin before. and if i hadn't, i'd take a look on youtube etc. so you can see how the marketing works.. i really don't see premium customers leaving cathay because some people got a few cheap flights.

your discussion is simply you saying that there should be limited sales and prices should be high - that way people who are loyal don't feel disgruntled when they see others getting something for less. and while i can see that, it does just look to me like one side of a coin. marriott is simply not an elite brand and acting in such a way would just drag down its business. it would wait for the customers to arrive and they just wouldn't arrive without being incentivised.