When it comes to loyalty programs, the airline industries truly establish themselves as pioneers in creating strategies to keep travelers flying in their planes. From Frequent Flyer programs to highly customized luxury flying experiences, many airlines have developed almost “secret societies” to battle one another for most creative and appealing customer perks. As recently reported in The Wall Street Journal, these loyalty programs have the potential to marginalize customers across the board, begging the question: Are loyalty programs truly designed to breed true brand connection, or do they simply become a way to create varying costs and tiers resulting in retention through inertia?
