Sometimes I wonder why I am so brand loyal. Probably because I buy into programs like Frequent Flyer which have proved to be amazing in the past, I've had a few upgrades on Virgin and a couple of free tickets. Which is why when I was booking a trip recently I decided to pay a premium and book with Virgin Atlantic.
I haven't travelled trans atlantic for a couple of years but knew I had 4 or 5 trips racked up in my frequent flyer rewards program and was keen to top that up.
So here’s the marketing pitch for the much new and improved RED Flying club I had to join when I figured out my old 11 digit flying club number wasn’t working. If you’ve got one too it starts with 00 the new RED flying club numbers are 10 digits and start with 1.
Virgin Atlantic Revamps Flying Club Programme with Enhanced 'Red' Tier for 2024
In a significant upgrade aimed at enhancing customer loyalty and satisfaction, Virgin Atlantic has announced a revamped version of its entry-level tier in the Flying Club, which was rolled out in 2024. The new 'Red' tier introduces several exciting improvements, including the much-applauded feature of no mile expiry, setting it apart from its predecessors in the loyalty scheme.
Old vs. New: A Detailed Comparison
Historically, the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club has offered three tiers: Red, Silver, and Gold, each providing incremental benefits. The original Red tier, while offering a basic level of benefits such as mile accumulation and some level of priority check-in, was often considered less compelling in terms of perks compared to the higher tiers or loyalty programs offered by other airlines.
The newly announced Red tier for 2024, however, marks a significant shift in Virgin Atlantic's strategy to make their loyalty program more competitive and appealing to a broader audience. Key enhancements include:
No Mile Expiry: Perhaps the most significant change, the new Red tier members will no longer worry about their miles expiring. Previously, miles would expire if there were no account activity for 36 months. This change is a game-changer for infrequent flyers who were often discouraged by the loss of accrued miles.
Increased Accessibility: The entry-level tier is designed to be more accessible, requiring fewer miles to qualify for or maintain than previously. This adjustment means more travelers can enjoy the benefits of the loyalty program without needing to be frequent flyers.
Enhanced Earning Potential: Red tier members will enjoy improved rates for earning miles, not only on flights but also through increased partnerships with hotels, car rental services, and retail options. This holistic approach to mile accumulation makes every pound spent potentially more rewarding.
Additional Benefits: The new Red tier will include additional benefits such as exclusive member offers and early access to sales and promotions, which were previously more limited to higher-tier members.
The Transition and its Impact
The transition to the enhanced Red tier took place in early 2024. Current members of the Flying Club were supposedly automatically transitioned to the new tier system, with their existing miles balance intact and immediately subject to the no-expiry rule. This didn’t happen for me I assume it because of the 36 month cut off, basically travel restrictions during Covid.
This transition is poised to significantly bolster the appeal of Virgin Atlantic's loyalty program. By making it easier and more rewarding for casual flyers to join and benefit from the program, Virgin Atlantic aims to foster a stronger connection and brand loyalty with a wider audience.
It says everywhere you go in the app and online that you can merge your old account with your new one, except what’s the point? Any points collected before 2024 are null and void I discovered following three conversations with Virgin Atlantic. The first was with lovely Sophie after going through a series of AI prompts on the Chat Bot to get to a real person. She was lovely except had to deliver the news all my collected points were lost after I’d just booked with Virgin because of my accrued points. Then I went online to find out more and all I could find was information about points NEVER expiring, the marketing was glossy, powerful and on repeat so this just didn’t make sense. I could not get back to Sophie on the Chat Bot so I found myself speaking to an AI representative on a system in Beta, which told me it thought Sophie had made a mistake because it was correct points NEVER expire. Let’s remember this was not a real person, I was speaking to a computer with an LLM, large language model.
I decided to forget technology and pick up the phone to get the answer I needed and after a few minutes on hold I got put through the sweeter than sweet customer service agent Maz who with the John Christie gentle kindness of a serial killer in 10 Rillington place, answered my query of being told completely opposing pieces of information that in fact both customer service sources were indeed correct.
How can that be I asked? Either the points are lost or they NEVER expire, my common sense telling me it cannot be both. All I wanted to get achieved was my accrued points back in my “new and improved” account.
Ah she said, points accrued before 2024 have indeed expired as told by Sophie, no mistake there. And points accrued after 2024 NEVER expire as told by the AI assistant. The only piece of information incorrect was when the AI assistant told me the human had made a mistake. Maybe that was just marketing to make me feel better too.
The call ended with Maz spinning how annoying it is for her, the expiry of points on other airlines, no shit Sherlock and how Virgin was a much better choice because they don’t do that. It was funny actually how the agent actually believed the script she had to present, even though it was really bad news for me. I finished the call with a comment about comfort of being able the merge old accounts with new and how I didn’t really see the point of offering that facility, merging an old account with no points in it to a new account with no points in it.
Final Thoughts
I like Virgin Atlantic as an airline and have been pretty loyal to the company over 30 years flying transatlantic.
Looks like Virgin Atlantic's overhaul of the Red tier in its Flying Club for 2024 is a strategic move designed to compete more aggressively in the airline loyalty program arena. By removing barriers such as mile expiry and enhancing the benefits available even at the entry level, Virgin Atlantic is setting a new standard for customer-focused travel benefits.
I guess this enhanced offering improves the perceived value proposition for current and potential members but also positions Virgin Atlantic as a forward-thinking airline that values all of its passengers, from the occasional holiday traveler to the frequent business flyer. As the airline industry continues to evolve, particularly in the competitive domain of loyalty programs, Virgin Atlantic’s updated Red tier is a clear signal that they are committed to staying at the forefront of customer satisfaction and engagement.
It’s true frequent flyer programs in the past only really benefited corporate business travellers and not the once or twice a year vacation travellers so this change is probably a good one.
For me having collected a bunch of points pre 2024 it was just disappointing to learn I was back to square one and I’d have preferred the agent to empathise instead of thickly sugar coating the benefits of the new program with blarney that didn’t change the fact I had just slipped down a very long Virgin Atlantic snake.
Looking forward to my trip though. And would probably still have booked with Virgin even if I’d known my points were gone ahead of time. And the reality is due to COVID I have not travelled with Virgin for 36 months so my points would have expired anyway on the old scheme.
I think my issue was just the slippery, smiley way the bad news was delivered with serial killer “breath deeply dear” spin when most customers would just prefer to hear it straight, some where I think marketing and corporate script writing experts get it wrong.