Aiming for Platinum, hoping for Status match

[titfilou]

Currently QFF gold, I'm aiming for Platinum by the end of May. Looking at VA's website, the benefits of Platinum are a lot more appealing!

Is it a reasonable expectation to wait for VA to offer their status match again this year? Or could a nice friendly email requesting a status match work?

 

[markis10]

I don't think it's reasonable for another mass market status match this year, Virgin have stated they look at things on a case a case by case basis so its worth asking!

 

[RBC]

Currently QFF gold, I'm aiming for Platinum by the end of May. Looking at VA's website, the benefits of Platinum are a lot more appealing!

Is it a reasonable expectation to wait for VA to offer their status match again this year? Or could a nice friendly email requesting a status match work?

I can't see them offering to status match again. As the OP says, the platinum benefits are more appealing, and VA know this - they aren't going to devalue this for their elite members when thing like their lounges are nearing capacity at peak hours.

The last status match I believe was part of the 'game change program' and gave opportunity and a 'way out' for QF flyers to jump ship without too much pain to move to VA - and would have captured a high %age of the FF market at that time - regardless of whether they jumped QF or not.
As the renewal dates for those that were originally status matched approaches - and they drop down a level - I can't see VA giving them opportunity to go back up a level through a match when they haven't frequented the airline - otherwise they will end up geared with a high market percentage of infrequent users that actually cost VA money.

 

[Boris spatsky]

Yep, agreed. The horse has bolted on this one. Better to split your flying and get gold on both. DJ gold gives you alot.

 

[Justchecking]

I am always amazed by the number of people who all want to give Virgin a go....IF they status match. It's a bit like me walking into a shop saying 'I'll buy something from you next time if you treat me like your most valuable customer now', Imho not a realistic expectation. From my background in sales I can tell you that those who ask for freebies are rarely if ever a customer worth hanging onto. They tend to just keep expecting more and more free things. I'm a big believer in qualifying a customer by requiring them to purchase without a host of extra incentives to do so.

 

[TonyHancock]

I am always amazed by the number of people who all want to give Virgin a go....IF they status match. It's a bit like me walking into a shop saying 'I'll buy something from you next time if you treat me like your most valuable customer now', Imho not a realistic expectation. From my background in sales I can tell you that those who ask for freebies are rarely if ever a customer worth hanging onto. They tend to just keep expecting more and more free things. I'm a big believer in qualifying a customer by requiring them to purchase without a host of extra incentives to do so.

I don't really disagree with you.......however I wouldn't have tried DJ/VA out without the match. The drop down to no lounge access was too much of a turn off for me. I took the match in the full knowledge that to do so would mean my commitment to maintaining platinum.

 

[Gremlin]

I don't really disagree with you.......however I wouldn't have tried DJ/VA out without the match. The drop down to no lounge access was too much of a turn off for me. I took the match in the full knowledge that to do so would mean my commitment to maintaining platinum.

Which is why a one off status match was the right thing to do. But the OP has chosen to stay with QF in order to chase higher status with QF. What incentive is there for VA to status match them at a time that suits the OP, rather than at a time which suited the OP?

 

[titfilou]

I am always amazed by the number of people who all want to give Virgin a go....IF they status match. It's a bit like me walking into a shop saying 'I'll buy something from you next time if you treat me like your most valuable customer now', Imho not a realistic expectation. From my background in sales I can tell you that those who ask for freebies are rarely if ever a customer worth hanging onto. They tend to just keep expecting more and more free things. I'm a big believer in qualifying a customer by requiring them to purchase without a host of extra incentives to do so.

Well, I understand your point of view, however, VA matching a platinum guest knows that to attain platinum you do need to do a fair bit of flying, therefore they know that by doing so, I would be giving my business to them. Its not really asking for a freebie.... What I'm going to get my platinum card and never fly with them? That wouldnt cost them much either if I did as I would access the lounge.

Matching a platinum guest could only guaranty them an extra 40 return domestic flight from me.

 

[JohnK]

I am always amazed by the number of people who all want to give Virgin a go....IF they status match. It's a bit like me walking into a shop saying 'I'll buy something from you next time if you treat me like your most valuable customer now', Imho not a realistic expectation. From my background in sales I can tell you that those who ask for freebies are rarely if ever a customer worth hanging onto. They tend to just keep expecting more and more free things. I'm a big believer in qualifying a customer by requiring them to purchase without a host of extra incentives to do so.

That may be one way to look at it but why would I switch any extra flights to Virgin when I already have a healthy baggage allowance, preferential seating, lounge access with Qantas? And believe it or not most times SYD-BNE on a Sunday night and BNE-SYD on a Friday you will find Qantas is cheaper.

But maybe you expect the answer to your question should be "No problem. I will switch all my flights to Virgin, without lounge access, preferential seats, pay $12 to get 23kgs baggage allowance and most times spend more on flights. And if I like what I see then I can go for some sort of status on Virgin."

Sorry that is not how it works. I keep trying Virgin and I do not see anything special that other people seem to be seeing. Same old flights, same old service and the only thing that has improved is I have gone from 7C or 9C or 11C to 3C or 4C.

Some people call me one-eyed but I simply call it as I see it....

 

[MichaelD]

It's a bit like me walking into a shop saying 'I'll buy something from you next time if you treat me like your most valuable customer now'

Disagree.

It's more like walking into a shop and saying (with proof) "I buy 6 cartons of Pepsi from your competitor next door every month and they give me a 30% discount. If you give me a 30% discount I might try Coke."

There are plenty of examples here of status matched flyers that have now earned their status. Personally, I hadn't been on a Virgin flight in years, and requalified Platinum within 3 months of the status match. This would *never* have happened without a status match.

 

[TonyHancock]

And that is exactly the reason why I dont think they should status match. They give someone who's never flown them status over all their other pax, that person flies once, says 'meh' and goes back to flying the competitor. So what have they bought? Absolutely nothing, except a lot of ill feeling amoung their earned status pax. While it may not cost a lot to issue a plastic card and let one more lounge entry through it does devalue the status because it creates an expectation that status is free. If I know I can get status comped on Virgin I might as well earn it in QF and get 2 for the price of one. Especially if I'm not too fussed about flying Virgin anyway I wont be bothering to renew my status, just coast on the soft landings until its worth nothing. The people who wanted to jump ship already have.

...but it also gives VA/DJ the passenger who hasn't flow with them before who says "mmmm not bad at all I'll have me some more of this". I didn't take the first status match because I knew I would not be able to retain the status. I took the second and re-qualified in 7 months with more travel booked. I wouldn't have tried VA/DJ without the match.

I think the management team at VA/DJ had a good think about the match and ultimately knew they had to do it to attract the QF FF's. I think it is hard on those that earned status the hard way but VA/DJ had to so it.

IMHO It would make sense for VA/DJ to review any further status match requests on a case by case basis.