Why am I getting Inside Flyer two months late??
 

Seems like each issue has been VERY late since the dropped issue after 9/11.

Is it the PO or a more serious problem?

Used to value it second only to FT, but it's worthless now with nearly every "tip" expired by the time we read it.

I have noticed the same. The zine is outdated upon arrival. I just consider the subscription cost a donation to Randy to help with the cost of FlyerTalk.

I am in the same situation but I would like to receive the magazine on time. Sometimes you don't have time to read everything online but you can carry a hardcopy and read it somewhere else. I hope that they read this post and begin sending it on time.

With the advent of the internet, particularly FT, I gain far more knowledge than I ever did from Inside Flyer. But as Shinkansen said, I too feel I am making a donation to help Randy maintain FT.


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Where Are My Bonus Miles?

Even if it's a bit out-of-date, I still enjoy reading the paper version. Mine have actually been closer to on-time lately.

There used to be a 1200 starpoint bonus for InsideFlyer subscriptions. The link is still on the Starwood site under regional offers, but the promo page seems to be gone from the Webflyer site.

FTers think alike...atleast to some extent.

I was thinking about this topic over this weekend and was contemplating whether to post it or not. Bang!! another FTer brings it up.

Actually I missed out on some of the promotions in the Feb issue only because I received it on March 2nd and the promotions ended on Feb 28th.

Although its a good read any time, it has so much of time sensitive info that it should be received at least by the 2nd week of a month.

Hope Randy or some one in the circulation dept of Inside Flyer takes note of this thread.

venkat


[This message has been edited by venkat (edited 03-14-2002).]

This is why I stopped getting the subscription about 2 years ago (late arrival in mail).

We've got the note and the thread. Rather than assign a comedy of errors to excuses, let me just say that I am solely responsible. I've taken steps to correct all this and have every reason to believe that the issue will resolve itself with the April issue. Actually Feb and March are gone from our fingetips and we are working on April right now. I do understand there is another delay on delivery for both these issues. I am reminded from time to time that publishing is an exact science and to it i must return. Additional comment is not necessary but some help with self-monitoring your own posts on FlyerTalk will afford me the time to accomplish both goals - a vibrant and helpful resource called FlyerTalk and an ontime and relevant resource called InsideFlyer. Thanks.

The only issue I got so far in 2002 was January. I can't remember getting any issues in the second half of 2001 either. And no letter of apology.

I received the below note in response to an e-mail I sent inquiring about the magazine being late:

Thank you for taking the time to correspond regarding InsideFlyer Magazine.
We apologize for the missing and late issue in the past few months.

InsideFlyer is experiencing production problems that has taken longer to
recover from than originally anticipated. Please know we are working to
resolve our problems and are hoping to have the situation under control by
April. Until we are back on track, please utilize the online version to view
the time-sensitive information at http://www.insideflyer.com. The online
version is free until we are able to provide better service, and this is not
meant to replace your hard copy.

We value your patience and appreciate your patronage. Fee free to correspond
if you have additional questions, or require assistance.

Kind Regards,

Michelle O'Neill
InsideFlyer Magazine


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On the road, In the air,
I enjoy travel, From here to there.

I do not have as much of a problem with the arrival date as the PRINT is so FINE and LIGHT TYPE, that I cannot read it as easily over dinner or elsewhere without a bright light. Have been pointing this out for a few years, since this is the only magazine with this problem.

Incidently, I have good vision and was able to spot pull handles installed on the cabinents today, that were 1/16 of an inch off without a ruler or level. They did confirm it.

The ultimate in a reading exercise or torture was the same fine print against a dark green or blue background.

dhacker,

The promo page for Starwood points was removed because the promotion ended. Stay tuned for a new promotion in the coming weeks.

I'm waiting for a promo so I can renew my sub which had lapsed _waiting for a promotion_.

Jim

Inside Flyer has ALWAYS been soooo late.

I too stopped my subscription. Information was all outdated.

This is not a NEW problem!

My posting above was in error. The issue that I had received was December 2001. The issue for January 2002, full of exciting, but expired, offers arrived today, March 7th. At least it's the same year!

My posting above was in error. The issue that I had received was December 2001. The issue for January 2002, full of exciting, but expired, offers arrived today, March 7th. At least it's the same year!

Thanks, Randy, for the response.

I didn't start this thread as a sounding board for complainers...only wanted to know if I was the only one with a problem. I will continue to subscribe even if you only send the cover!!

But I would rather not be tortured with the knowledge of all the 'tips' I'm late for.

I say "stop the presses" until you know the problem is solved. We'll understand.

Aren't there ads for this from cover to cover? Literally?

Yes, from inside front cover to inside rear cover.

The publication as a whole seems to be about 30-40% ads, which is quite substantial given that the whole magazine is generally less than 50 pages.

Craig6z:

How about locking this thread before the comments get out of hand?

I only inquired about the lateness of delivery and did not mean to open the steam vents for everyone with a problem with the publication.

Let them start thier own thread, or simply stop subscribing.

I don't mind the ads at all in the magazine...in fact I find them informative and interesting. My point was just the the price of subscription shouldn't be construed as support for this board or a generous contribution to a pot 'o resources.

Oh, look! A Diners promotion for IF


InsideFlyer Magazine: Club Rewards® Bonus Points for a new subscription or 750 bonus points for a renewal subscription*



Earn 1,200 Club Rewards Bonus Points for a new InsideFlyer subscription or 750 bonus points for a renewal subscription.


TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Charge your subscription to your Diners Club Card. Call 800-767-8896 and mention code #DCP00.

Jim

Just to add some clarification. In the publishing business among travel magazines, the goal of ads to editorial is 60-70% (30-40% being editorial). You can see that easily by looking at Conde Naste Traveler as a comparison mark. Same is true of National Geographic Traveler and Travel + Leisure. The truth is that IF runs somewhere about half of that number, meaning that we provide a higher editorial to ads than others in the category.

dbaker - I'm not aware of any industry study that considers 30-40% to be substantial. Could you share your resources with me, I'd be interested since I am active with Folio: magazine, an industry guideline for the publishing industry and they indicate somewhat a different story on this.

Anyway, thanks for your interest and I've got to return to wrestling with getting a magazine back on track.

To provide a diverse opinion, I find Inside Flyer to be the only magazine I read cover to cover, with many learning opportunities spread throughout it. When it is used in conjunction with "The FrequentFlier Crier" e-mail update, there is significantly more value than the small subscription fee that is charged. Many thanks, Randy!

[This message has been edited by FFlyCatcher (edited 03-14-2002).]

I'm not in the industry and I never claimed to be. However, from a consumer and reader standpoint, receiving a 35-50 page publication that's ~40% ads offers far less content than most magazines that I receive, which are 200 pages and have a comparable percentage of ads throughout.

It's just the perception as a result of a small publication, that's all.

[This message has been edited by dbaker (edited 03-13-2002).]

dbaker:

This may come as something of a shock to you but 30-40% of a 40 page publication is exatly the same percentage as 30-40% of a 200 page issue. They both leave 60-70% for non-ad content.

I still just want the content to be current, whatever its percentage.

why don't you do an on line mag option?

Actually over the last 5-6 months we've worked pretty diligently on developing the infrastruture for launching a true online addition for the magazine, ala Wall Street Journal, Consumer Reports, etc. Technology for that is fairly expensive (think $200,000 plus for stuff like Vingette or $75,000 for TeamSite) But we've invested in it and now the gang is just waiting for me to getr the time to do a final review, load up all the content we have and launch. The cool thing is that behind this is new content developed just for the Web which we can't seem to fit in the magazine and plenty of interactive polls, reader comments and other research for back up. Included is a new way to distribute 'Partners and Programs' via Web phones and PDAs. Anyway, we are really trying and again, while no excuse, since 9/11, Travelocity, Travel Loyalty and Expedia all folded their magazines and Travel Weekly cut in half their circulation distribution. By April we intend to be back to normal and would love to see your continued support.

As always, if i can assist any reader personally, you can always call me direct 719-572-2735 or email me.

That's really interesting. Try counting the number of pages of content and compare the figures, okay?

I'd be interested in hearing your results!

Either stay on topic or take a time out. This is not a member-to-member thread. It started with a question which most people seem acceptable of the answers. This content to ad ratio crap is nice noice, but not the topic. I counted our January issue - and there are 9.5 pages of ads to the 48 pages of content - equaling only 20% of ads to content. Now, either return to the topic, though i think i've made it easy to contact me personally or take a time out. We will have no member-to-member discussions here, you can do that in the chat area.

Ditto. Even the tardiness of some of the information does not detract from the relevance of the rest. I have subscribed to T+L, Conde Naste and National Geographic. One of the reasons I love IF is the ads...keep 'em coming. Keep 'em coming before they expire would be good too, but I'll keep subscribing either way. When I do, however, I'll not consider it a subsidy of the FT forums but an investment in fetching me some miles!

I'm looking forward to a points earning deal to subscribe to Inside Flyer. You're doing a great job here, Randy, and I'm looking forward to reading "the rest of the story".

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Check out the great buys at www.digitalshopsmart.com

I read every issue in detail and consider it an excellent complement to FT. Articles like the most recent one comparing "best/worst" features of frequent traveller programs are outstanding. It would take me days to pull that information out of Flyer Talk posts. Futhre, I am glad to pay the subscription price which I consider also a reimbursement for using FT free all the time.

Here'e the new deal for 2500 Starpoints (There's also one for CO):

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum74/HTML/003419.html