Over the past two years –  airlines, hotels and travel companies extended complimentary status for elites because, Covid. These elite status extensions were mainly justified under the premise of ‘goodwill’ – the idea that elites couldn’t requalify for status based on the published program criteria through no fault of their own. Often due to their […]

The post Will airlines & hotels ever end the unlimited free elite status extensions? appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

Some of the brightest people in the travel sector have hung up their boots and are beginning new careers in other industries – and good for them. It can take real courage to shift industries. [side note: A great story on Qantas pilots becoming bus drivers here] These same travel companies are lining up for […]

The post Airlines – Wakeup and Smell the Money appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

Something is absent from airline marketing messages in 2020. Something that airlines have spent the better part of the last century branding customers with. That something is love. Let’s rewind back to 2019. You’re about to jump on a plane to visit friends in Las Vegas for the weekend. Even though you’re crammed into that […]

The post Love is the answer for the travel industry appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

The airline industry is on its knees and at the mercy of Governments, Shareholders and cashed-up billionaire investors who’ve always wanted to be millionaires. With limited signs of recovery, and an 18-month outlook that looks at best, dire – many airlines will simply run out of cash and round upon the heap with the likes […]

The post The 4 Keys to Running a Future Successful Airline appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

Can airlines and hotel loyalty programs have too many elite members? What happens to the core business when programs are top-heavy on elites? Does the core business generate more revenue, or is there a drop-off in status attractiveness? These are some of the questions I asked two of smartest minds in the airline loyalty industry […]

The post Leadership Interview: Can Airlines Have Too Many Elite Members? appeared first on Travel Data Daily by David Feldman

According to research by Loyalty Data Co, up to 60% of all Status Match submissions are fraudulent. With no way to know how many times a cardholder has requested matches with competing Loyalty Programs, and no way to verify the cardholders existing status is real – why do Loyalty Programs continue beating down the same […]

The post Loyalty Status Matching – What’s the Future? appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

How airline loyalty programs use big data to drive new revenue The past few years have seen a wave of travel companies member accounts compromised which have rocked the industry. Cathay Pacific had 9.4M accounts compromised. British Airways had 380,000 card payments breached. Raddison hotels had up to 10% loyalty program accounts compromised. Hyatt twice […]

The post How airline loyalty programs use big data to drive new revenue appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith

Some companies continue to chase millennials. Instead, using data to drive marketing could have much more effective results while reducing costs. It is amazing how many large companies talk about how they are boosting their efforts to capture the attention of millennials. “We need to tap into the millennials” and “How can we improve our […]

The post Stop Chasing Millennials. Instead, use data to drive marketing appeared first on Travel Data Daily by Mark Ross-Smith