Originally Posted by
whisperjetL1011
Advantage account since 1984 [...] I am interested to see the impact as loyalty programs have evolved. Miles will continue to devalue. [...] Are millennials and gen X customers airline card focused or bank point focused? [...] I think very few people have the means to cc spend their way to EP
An OG!
With devaluation, I'm admittedly curious what the effective value of AA miles was, say, 10-20 years ago, before my time as an avid traveler. My last few award redemptions have been at 2-4 cents per mile. Was it really much better than that back in the day? Earning at 11 miles per dollar on airfare I feel like that's a pretty solid return, plus whatever additional value I'm getting if that airfare is on Card XYZ with an additional redemption path (Amex -> Air Canada for a Lufthansa flight, or to ANA, or what have you).
As for millennial trends with spending, I can only speak for myself, but it's a mix. One way or another it gets spread into different programs with different transfer and redemption options.
Originally Posted by
samthemanct
AA and other airlines relally only care about high spenders, and it shows.
Well, why wouldn't they? 🙂 Reward their best customers - sure! While there's certainly a cool factor to people who have a ton of BIS miles, flying the longest distance costs an airline the most money but does not necessarily bring in the most revenue.
Ultimately, life and circumstances change. Whether you're flying for work every week or you're retired, if you're at a hub or some smaller market, whatever. Go with whatever suits ya best at the moment.