Randy Petersen of Flyertalk on social media and frequent flyers – Part 2 of 2

Shashank Nigam — Fri, 01 May 2009 07:13:52 +0000

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Continuing my conversation with Randy Petersen – probably the world’s best known frequent flyer – we chat about the relevance of social media to airlines, the future of Flyertalk and Randy’s predictions for aviation in 2009.

Frequent Flyers + Web 2.0

Traditionally, travelers have picked frequent flyer programs for convenience, not always because they are the best program.

But today, they choose a program because of its merits, because the Internet is open and it breaks down boundaries. “Self-selecting… is the biggest testimony of a good program”, Randy claims.

Randy believes that most of the current business travelers are going to retire soon and will be replaced by the next generation that lives and breathes social media. These customers are going to be totally immersed into it, and airlines need to adopt it sooner than later. Exactly the same point I’ve been trying to make in my recent articles on airline branding and social media.

Flyertalk as the next Web 2.0 powerhouse?

Flyertalk, a community for frequent flyers Randy started 11 years ago is one of the most popular of its kind out there. Though Flyertalk wasn’t started as a social media site, it has actually become that, though in a slightly different way. People go to leading social travel websites like Tripadvisor for choosing where to stay for a couple of days. But people go to Flyertalk to decide who to be loyal to. And that is a much more critical business decision in the long term.

Randy goes on to explain how frequent flyer models will evolve in 2009, given the new economic realities.

He also claims that has the best job in the world, and agrees that Mine is the second best (he said it!).

Randy Petersen of Flyertalk on social media and frequent flyer programs

So, do you think Randy have more followers than Aston Kutcher on Twitter? He probably will come close, given how popular he was at the Freddies! Let’s discuss your thoughts in the comments section, or on Twitter.

Randy Petersen of Flyertalk on airline branding – Part 1 of 2

Shashank Nigam — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 04:17:43 +0000

“True brand loyalists should ideally fly due to a deep emotional connection, not just miles.”

“Your most valuable customer is like your best friend. He’s there with you even in the tough times.”

These are just a couple of gems Randy Petersen shares in his interview with SimpliFlying, Live from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. For those who’re not aware, Randy is the man behind InsideFlyer and Flyertalk.com. He is the champion of frequent fliers around the world, and the organizer of the Freddies.

Randy and I met on the sidelines of the 21st annual Freddies and the FTMA Conference. At the conference itself, Randy led the panel discussion with me, after my keynote on airline branding and Web 2.0. It was an honor to be on the stage with the aviation industry stalwart and interview him for SimpliFlying afterwards.

Is a frequent flier a loyal customer? Nope.

Randy feels that the current miles as an incentive system only shows you frequency of travel, but doesn’t show you recommendation, it doesn’t show you passion. And hence it doesn’t even prove loyalty.

Lessons from Apple and Nike about branding?

If there were no frequent flier miles, which airline would people fly? That’s the true test of brand loyalty. Randy only wears Nike shoes and buys Apple Macs (he has 50 of them!!). And he does this without Apple or Nike giving him any rewards for his loyalty. Randy explains one of the reasons he likes Apple because it is the beacon of simplicity. His advice for airlines? Why not make frequent flier reward programs very-very simple to understand?

The “most valuable customer”?

At the FTMA conference, there was a healthy debate about who’s the most valuable customer for an airline. Randy feels that the most valuable customer is not just one who flies you when it’s most convenient for them, but also when it isn’t as convenient for them. A customer becomes more valuable when he goes out of their way to fly you.

Without revealing much more of the wisdom Randy shares, I’d like to invite you to hear it from the man himself. Just click play on the video below. Part 2 of this interview will be published tomorrow, where Randy speaks about social media for airline branding, and the future of Flyertalk.com