Bangkok Airways To Launch ‘ Flyerbonus’ Program

[george]

Bangkok Airways to launch ‘FlyerBonus’ program

BANGKOK: -- Bangkok Airways has announced that it would launch its first-time-ever loyalty program called ‘FlyerBonus’ on December 1st. The announcement was made at the press conference amongst media and several corporate partners including hotels, credit cards, and travel-related businesses.

The airline, dubbed as ‘ASIA’S BOUTIQUE AIRLINE,’ has purposely planned for two launching phases: The soft launch on December 1st, 2005 to create awareness of the program in the market; and the official launch on January 1st, 2006 to coincide with the New Year celebration.

Mr. Prote Setsuwan, Bangkok Airways’ Director of Marketing Strategy, described that this program is the airline’s latest marketing strategy to capture the existing market of the airline’s frequent travelers. Hence, the ‘FlyerBonus’ program would best suit clients who reside in and around Thailand. “This program also covers trips made on Siem Reap Airways International, which is also one of the partners,” said Mr. Prote.

The FlyerBonus provides online services with the trailblazing trend from paperless members' registration to news and updates through the user-friendly web site http://www.bangkokair.com/flyerbonus

Tiers of membership are designed into two levels: Priority members and Premier members. With certain privileges bestowing upon, the membership status will be upgraded to higher tiers by accumulating 200 points within one calendar year.

To redeem award tickets, the program is schemed with 10:1 ratio, or in other words, qualified members will get one free one-way domestic ticket from 10 paid domestic segments flown. Other loyalty programs normally offer at a 15:1 redemption ratio. Qualified members can also be rewarded not only with air tickets, but also with customized rewards according to the member’s preference, such as hotel accommodations or car rental services.

--Bangkok Airways Press release 2005-11-28

[think_too_mut]

It may bring them some extra passengers on BKK-Phuket route, local businessmen who require no connecting flights.

The other routes are either a monopoly (Trat, Samui, Siam Reap) or leisure once-in-lifetime trips that don't repeat in patterns business travel does.

No wonder they could hold back the FF programme as long as they did.

[Ricardo]

Love the soft-launch/hard-launch approach

For a whole year, they get to talk about it, and gain the promotional benefit, before they finally allow you to start actually collecting points - and even more delay before they have to redeem any free flights.

Asia's boutique-airline has never been cheap to fly, and still won't be. TiT