At 300,000 EQM Choose Your Reward (2 SWU, 40k RDM or gift Plat)
Jul 10, 2018, 12:37 am
#31
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2004
Location: DFW/DAL
Programs: AA Lifetime PLT, AS MVPG, HH Diamond, NCL Platinum Plus, MSC Diamond
Posts: 21,422
Some are going to say, "that only works for phones".......(Not exactly)
Jul 10, 2018, 2:37 am
#32
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 88
I'm a case in point: I flew 400k EQM on AA until 2016, when they stopped providing 2SWU's per 25/50k EQM above 100k. This year I qualified with 100,077 EQM and will not be flying AA again until next year. Loyalty is a two way street; if AA wants that 300k+ of EQM back, they will have to offer me something as valuable as what Delta and United etc offer me to bring my business elsewhere. Nearly every customer who can fly 300k EQM in a year has this option available to them, and for each of them who drop to 100k as I did, AA is losing at least the full revenue equivalent of two EXP's, and probably significantly more (since most 300k EQM flyers are qualifying with international premium tickets).
The 150k/200k SWUs and a 300k "choice" are steps in the right direction, but overall these offerings just don't cut it in my estimation; they aren't competitive.
Jul 10, 2018, 4:45 am
#33
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
The fundamental flaw in this announcement is that the gifts are to your EMPLOYER, not to YOU. And in most cases, the gift recipient (your employer) won't even know that they received a gift.
Explanation: if someone flies 300K miles a year, you can bet the ranch that they're doing it on someone else's dime. Nobody but nobody flies that much for leisure.
I wonder if AA's gift budget would be more wisely spent, if they gave gifts to actual people instead of corporations? People know they received a gift. Corporations (in this case) are usually unaware of the gift they earned.
Explanation: if someone flies 300K miles a year, you can bet the ranch that they're doing it on someone else's dime. Nobody but nobody flies that much for leisure.
I wonder if AA's gift budget would be more wisely spent, if they gave gifts to actual people instead of corporations? People know they received a gift. Corporations (in this case) are usually unaware of the gift they earned.
Jul 10, 2018, 5:20 am
#34
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: PHL
Programs: AA EXP, HH Diamond, Owner of 2,000 TWA shares
Posts: 812
The fundamental flaw in this announcement is that the gifts are to your EMPLOYER, not to YOU. And in most cases, the gift recipient (your employer) won't even know that they received a gift.
Explanation: if someone flies 300K miles a year, you can bet the ranch that they're doing it on someone else's dime. Nobody but nobody flies that much for leisure.
I wonder if AA's gift budget would be more wisely spent, if they gave gifts to actual people instead of corporations? People know they received a gift. Corporations (in this case) are usually unaware of the gift they earned.
Explanation: if someone flies 300K miles a year, you can bet the ranch that they're doing it on someone else's dime. Nobody but nobody flies that much for leisure.
I wonder if AA's gift budget would be more wisely spent, if they gave gifts to actual people instead of corporations? People know they received a gift. Corporations (in this case) are usually unaware of the gift they earned.
Not everyone works for "corporations". Many FFs, such as myself, are independent contractors. Sometimes I pay my way and bill back, other times my client will book direct. Either way, I receive all of the benefits.
Jul 10, 2018, 7:18 am
#35
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: USA & UK -- AA EXP 3.5MM, Hyatt Diamond, SPG Plat, Avis President's Club
Posts: 6,411
Sometimes I pay my way and bill back, other times my client will book direct. Either way, I receive all of the benefits.
The point is, nobody who has the CHOICE would fly 300K on one airline. If you had the choice, you'd become top tier on _two_ airlines. Or (more likely) choose not to fly so often.
You and I are the exceptions. The vast overwhelming majority of 300K flyers are flying with OPM. So the true recipient of the "gift" from AA (i.e. the employer) is totally unaware that a gift was received.
Also, the whole scam is equivalent to AA saying, "If you will put another 100K on AA (instead of going for top tier on a second airline), we'll give you 2 SWUs". No thanks. And for a moment, let's pretend that you can actually find SWU availability when you want it. Even in that far-fetched scenario, no thanks. I'll go for top tier on a second airline instead. The whole promotion is simply lame.
Dec 19, 2018, 12:56 pm
#37
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 208
I flew LAX-HKG roundtrip and earned a paltry 342 EQDs. I think that may be one of the most extreme EQM:EQD ratios. If I did 21 roundtrips, I’d be at 300K EQMs and 7000 EQDs, so I’d get Platinum anyways.
If I fly only on partner airlines, the most extreme EQM:EQD ratio is 10:1, so that’d only require 120K EQMs max to hit EXP.