It’s true that North American airlines have been leading the return to the skies,1 and that’s thanks in part to a robust loyalty currency ecosystem. Namely, Loyalty Currency Retailing, which allows members to purchase points/miles, leading to increased revenue and engagement, among a host of other benefits. Many programs utilize Loyalty Currency Retailing today and it’s a major driver of revenue.2
But here’s the thing: This is not merely a North American phenomenon. Member appetite for buying points/miles knows no borders. APAC members want to buy miles, and when they can, the sky’s the limit.
Did you know that loyalty members in APAC buy more miles than anyone else?2
One of our international airline partners wasn’t new to the business of selling their loyalty currency to members. In fact, this APAC airline already had a currency retailing product of their own. But they were ready to enhance their existing solution—wanting to increase their ancillary revenue and grow both high-value member segments and overall member engagement.
Recognizing the value that a more robust solution could bring, Points was recruited to replace their existing Buy miles product and provide our loyalty intelligence, analytical might, and marketing muscle to transform their loyalty currency retailing offering from a practical afterthought to a promotional powerhouse.
Integrating our APAC airline partner into the Points product suite enhanced their Buy miles solution with more personalization and flexibility.
In a region with over 50 currencies, and 2,300 languages, curating a member experience in their preferred language and currency cannot be understated. Here, we were able to personalize the Buy miles storefront down to a particular currency and region, providing this airline’s member base with a frictionless purchase process and improved UX. A win-win for the partner and their members, but personalization doesn’t stop at payments or languages.
Product integration ready and regulatory requirements met, we launched their first Buy miles promotion to create buzz and reintroduce the product to their members. Marketing analytics and aggregated industry data were used to personalize each member’s offer and push this airline’s revenue and engagement even further.
Find the Right Member & Serve the Right Offer
Thanks to a unique vantage point on loyalty behaviour and our wealth of ever-evolving loyalty insights, we designed a tiered bonus model with segmented member groups to incentivize large purchases. Within each offer, these member segments were analyzed to determine the proper mix of channels and accompanying messaging and language that would best resonate and drive conversions. Following this: a strategic look at reaching these members.
One of the first tenets of marketing is of course to find members where they are. For APAC members, this meant we needed to meet their expectations as primarily mobile users. We leveraged mobile apps like WeChat and Line among others to drive engagement and reach. Localization of both the content and the channel is key to curating messaging that feels as relevant as it does authentic to members across APAC.
Putting it all together, targeting members with predetermined offers and price points; alongside tailored messaging, and channels create a super-powered personalized promotion.
Within the first ten months of integrating the Points Buy miles product, the partner had exceeded their record annual revenue.4
But this is only the beginning for this APAC partner. Future growth plans include expanded reach of Buy miles promotions through media demand generation; and continued optimization, targeting and personalization with data modelling and analytics.
The success and learnings from this partner are a win for their airline and loyalty program, but also for the Asia market at large, confirming that there is significant revenue and engagement opportunity to be made.
With Buy miles, APAC airlines can secure ancillary revenue faster than a speeding bullet, build a member base more powerful than a locomotive, and leap large strategic goals in a single bound. Like they say in the Loyalty Superverse, with great loyalty currency retailing power, comes great revenue opportunities.
Points provides best-in-class loyalty solutions and marketing expertise to nearly 60 of the world's most well-known loyalty programs. Learn more about how Points can help loyalty programs unlock their full potential.
Sources
1. https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Airline-News/ForwardKeys-data-air-travel-recovery
2 .https://www.forbes.com/advisor/travel-rewards/12-fascinating-facts-revealed-about-american-airlines-aadvantage-program/
3. Data from Points’ International Airline Partners, 2021-2022.
4. Data from Points’ APAC Partner, 2022.
5. Data from Points’ APAC Partner, 2022.