steadman

Those three girls that had the plane to themselves were probably high on the list of the most valuable to BA in recent months. The positive press they received made them far more powerful than any single flyer, with very few exceptions maybe.

That's what you need to aim for if you want to be "loved" by BA!

fiona

Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves.
You may be only a penny but if BA loses a lot of pennies then surely it will be in trouble?

Often1

Everybody has some value and some cost. The question is whether a given customer's costs outweigh their value.

People who book online, do OLCI, don't check bags and don't otherwise impinge on expensive services which require human intervention, are quite profitable even if they do not have very heavy spends.

The issue on FT is that people believe that all of this ought to translate into extensive personal service, lounges, multiple choice meals on short-haul flights and the like. That it won't. BA knows that this may mean a few passengers lost to someone else, but perhaps not.

In the long run, BA can't fill it's aircraft with corporate contract passengers. But, on the other hand, the days of pampering most people and providing indivual service on the phone and the like, are simply over.

That doesn't directly answer the "valuable" question, but everything is relative.

ottone

Isn't the correct question: "Is BA valuable to me ?" ?

Light Travellers

Maybe this isn't the place for my first comment but this conversation reminded me of the old saying at BA. When I worked there in the old days they used to remind everyone that Economy passengers were BA's bread and butter. Business was the jam and First class was the cream. In the bad times the bread and butter keeps you going.
So yes, how ever many trips you make you should be important.

golfmad

I think it's a great place for your first post Light Travellers and it sums up the situation pretty well. Please do continue to post in the forum. I'm sure you have a wealth of experience to share with us all.

HIDDY

As a consumer it's most certainly what should be uppermost on your mind when purchasing a product, not just an airline ticket.
If the product is seen to continually disappoint then I would have thought you'd have to be crazy to keep going back for more. Yet evidence shows people do.

T8191

Just so, HIDDY. I migrated from Windows PCs to Apple* for the same reason


... and to AAnother AAirline

Banana4321

If you're the CEO and they let you land the plane, then you're probably valuable

World Traveller Fuss

I find this quite amusing - to my own calculation I'm "worth" about $1900 to BA.

A pittance.

rockflyertalk

In an ideal corporate culture, every customer is valuable to BA. Every bum on their seats could well be an opportunity to turn that into a even better valued customer. However that's clearly not the case and extremely challenging to achieve in such a large business.

But as a CEO that would be my message to staff across the business. So the optmist in me would say yes to your question, however the cynical, realist understands that you're very much a drop in an ocean sadly. I like the bread & butter analogy mentioned above.

I only fly as much as you suggest and would like to see that increase soon as I do love BA (pre-BOB) therefore I would like to continue flying with them in the future. Hopefully the staff will continue to make us feel as valued as they currently do and as much as the can under circumstances. They do a great job.

Surely that value matters more than BA/IAG/Shareholders if that's who you were referring to?!!