A thread for extraordinary blog posts with original content
#16
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 69,211
If your purpose is to show various award point levels that DL may charge, then it is incomplete. And not of much use. What I want, and I think most users want, is to have a way to know what the lowest level of points DL will charge so they can pursue that level. When the tool shows that, it will be invaluable.
#17
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
There has been plenty of (understandable) kvetching among the blogs about Delta's ongoing award pricing BS. But I don't recall having seen any blog looking at this particular angle that could work against DL:
Dynamic Pricing of Award Tickets - Can It Bite the Airlines As Well As Benefit Them?
The Gate is one of the few really good blogs on BA with consistently good content and great writing quality, IMHO.
Dynamic Pricing of Award Tickets - Can It Bite the Airlines As Well As Benefit Them?
The Gate is one of the few really good blogs on BA with consistently good content and great writing quality, IMHO.
#18
FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: London
Programs: BA, VS, HH, IHG, MB, MR
Posts: 26,693
There has been plenty of (understandable) kvetching among the blogs about Delta's ongoing award pricing BS. But I don't recall having seen any blog looking at this particular angle that could work against DL:
Dynamic Pricing of Award Tickets - Can It Bite the Airlines As Well As Benefit Them?
The Gate is one of the few really good blogs on BA with consistently good content and great writing quality, IMHO.
Dynamic Pricing of Award Tickets - Can It Bite the Airlines As Well As Benefit Them?
The Gate is one of the few really good blogs on BA with consistently good content and great writing quality, IMHO.
It really is very simple. When Delta is offering a fixed 1c per mile for redemptions, any sane person will move across to cashback credit cards. Even earning from flights, it becomes easy to see what the miles are worth and factor that into a price comparison. This is all bad for Delta.
Meanwhile, those J seats fly empty (no-one is paying 800,000 miles for them) and SkyMiles members are livid. Way to go.
When you take away the aspirational awards of J/F, the scheme has no sizzle. There are good reasons why there are no FT-size forums dedicated to grocery or department store loyalty schemes.
#20
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: NYC
Posts: 69,211
And yet there are communities around coupon clipping and they are every bit as passionate as this one is. :-:
#21
FlyerTalk Evangelist

Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: London
Programs: BA, VS, HH, IHG, MB, MR
Posts: 26,693
Isn't much of online coupon clipping debate 'gamification' though? Much of it seems to be based around when you can use multiple coupons on the same product, get a coupon accepted for a different product to the one bought etc.
I know how much traction the UK Nectar scheme has online (virtually none, despite being the currency of the 2nd biggest supermarket chain) and that is down to its '0.5p per point' redemption rate.
I know how much traction the UK Nectar scheme has online (virtually none, despite being the currency of the 2nd biggest supermarket chain) and that is down to its '0.5p per point' redemption rate.
#22
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
Right idea, wrong content, in my view.
It really is very simple. When Delta is offering a fixed 1c per mile for redemptions, any sane person will move across to cashback credit cards. Even earning from flights, it becomes easy to see what the miles are worth and factor that into a price comparison. This is all bad for Delta.
Meanwhile, those J seats fly empty (no-one is paying 800,000 miles for them) and SkyMiles members are livid. Way to go.
When you take away the aspirational awards of J/F, the scheme has no sizzle. There are good reasons why there are no FT-size forums dedicated to grocery or department store loyalty schemes.
It really is very simple. When Delta is offering a fixed 1c per mile for redemptions, any sane person will move across to cashback credit cards. Even earning from flights, it becomes easy to see what the miles are worth and factor that into a price comparison. This is all bad for Delta.
Meanwhile, those J seats fly empty (no-one is paying 800,000 miles for them) and SkyMiles members are livid. Way to go.
When you take away the aspirational awards of J/F, the scheme has no sizzle. There are good reasons why there are no FT-size forums dedicated to grocery or department store loyalty schemes.
In any case, it was nice to see something fresh on the subject.
#23
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Charlotte, NC, USA | CLT, formerly LHR & AMS
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hilton Diamond, BonVoy Titanium, Caesars 7*, Wynn Black, Momentum SOAR, Genting "The Ace"
Posts: 8,098
But, in any event, I still believe and the data-points seem to point to the fact that the vast majority of folks want to redeem "cheap" domestic award tickets. As long as Delta still offers some of those (perhaps via sales, even if pegged towards 1cent per mile) the 99% of the population will be happy.
Just booked this yesterday, for a week from now.

If Delta, can find away to keep "throwing bones," like above. The general public hardly care, IMHO.

#24
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
Frequent Miler has some really good credit card rankings and assessments recently. As he notes still a work in progress in some areas but I found it all very useful...
http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...k-in-progress/
http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...airline-cards/
http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...k-in-progress/
http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...airline-cards/
#25
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP, mid-tier with pretty much everyone else
Posts: 872
Just hate that this topic has fallen off the front page. I've been in Asia on business so I haven't been able to read as many other blogs as I typically do, just wanted to get this topic back on the front page.
#26
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
Programs: Airline Free Agent, Fairmont Lifetime Platinum, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton Honors Diamond
Posts: 3,016
This is the tagline of my blog:
An eclectic journey through the Travel Miles/Points blogosphere
Hope Travel Is Free gets back into it soon...
An eclectic journey through the Travel Miles/Points blogosphere
Hope Travel Is Free gets back into it soon...
#27
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP, mid-tier with pretty much everyone else
Posts: 872
Enjoyed this post by PFD sticking up for MMS a bit: https://saverocity.com/pfdigest/in-p...-mile-secrets/