Surprise! You've turned Gold!

[JerseyVics]

According to Twitter:

VirginBlue

Friday the 13th strikes! Some members have been advised of an upgrade that they are ineligible for. We regret any inconvenience caused.

Touche!

 

[mannej]

Is that all DJ are going to do to retract this.

I think that this could lead to some very bad PR for them.

I am sure it gives many no reason to fly them.

FWIW I still can not access my Velocity account.

Poor form DJ...poor form.

 

[gilby08]

What are people's thoughts on the fallout of all this?

 

[sampson]

Darn. As gold my 2 trips to LA a year would earn me 42,000 velocity points. I sure hope I'm not yanked off gold.

 

[Sprucegoose]

It seems that several people in the office, including myself, just got upgraded to Gold...

Nice! Though strangely I wasn't even close to retaining Silver.

well done Steve, you must be feeling quite proud...........???

What do you get for GOLD???
Is it a cheap throwaway from DJ??

Cheers

SPRUCE

 

[kamchatsky]

Another option for them to get out of the mess, is to immediately devalue all status, and create new status:

Diamond: old gold
Platinum: old silver
Gold: Nothing

Any genuine Silver and Gold members immediately promoted to these new levels. Problem solved.

 

[samh004]

I am sure it gives many no reason to fly them.

What are people's thoughts on the fallout of all this?

If they'd been nice and given a lounge pass as some had suggested, I perhaps would have flown them again, even soon.

However I can't see that happening now, having sent me such a nice email, and then taking it away so fast.

What do you get for GOLD???
Is it a cheap throwaway from DJ??

You get free lounge access and the most free luggage given. It's basically QF SG.

 

[superchris]

Just got my retraction email!
Such is life.....I have only flown DJ once and will probably not use them again.

 

[straitman]

Perhaps this will be the "Oops" promotion for 2009, following Amex winning the title in 2008.

Do we start taking bets upon who makes the monumental (stuff up) in 2010 :?:

 

[Skoogle]

Just got my retraction email!

My too.

I just wonder if that is the end of their legal requirements.

 

[samh004]

My too.

I just wonder if that is the end of their legal requirements.

Well all they did was advise you they were going to upgrade you, then they didn't. You were never actually given Gold, and had you been able to log into your account you would have seen this.

 

[straitman]

Another option for them to get out of the mess, is to immediately devalue all status, and create new status:

Diamond: old gold
Platinum: old silver
Gold: Nothing

Any genuine Silver and Gold members immediately promoted to these new levels. Problem solved.

Please do not give them ideas for 'enhancements' :!:

 

[drron]

Mrsdrron got the email first.As she is just 25SCs from WP I immediately thought there was a DJ plant at QFF.Then I got mine and felt it was a bit much.Just logged in here and :shock:.Someone is going to be .And I thought I was so for about 5 minutes.Now I just have to .

 

[Mal]

I feel very late to the party !

Saw the retraction first, followed by the awarding of my fake gold 'status'.

Great laugh for a Friday morning, and as said earlier in this thread - definitely Virgin Blue/Velocity win the "Promotions Stuff-up of 2009" prize. (Of course Amex was the champion for last year).

I got a laugh out of it and feel sorry for whoever sent the email out. Still, I'm not worried about it - mistakes happen, and it was corrected quickly.

All this talk of legal nonsense is just that methinks.

 

[mannej]

Just got the email.

I knew it was too good to be true, but I think alot of people will still be alienated from the Velocity Program after this.

Still cant log into my Velocity account. That is my excitement for the week

 

[MattinCBR]

... I immediately thought there was a DJ plant at QFF.

Must admit, my first thought was that DJ had "obtained" a list from QF.

I guess the whole "Friday the 13th" reference confirms in my mind many of the things I had thought about DJ. Nothing really lost for me, I will continue to spend my dollars on QF/OW and enjoy my (properly earned) status there.

I guess thats the problem for DJ here though there are four groups here in play:

1. People who had earnt gold on DJ the "hard way" who would be horrified if you just let the whole database become top tier (and pretty rightly so - i would be pretty #$^$% if the QF F Lounge was full of interlopers who had been gifted status by mistake).

2. People who were close to gold who may have genuinely believed the email.

3. People who travel once or twice a year who might be a little bit annoyed but will continue to fly entirely based on fare.

and

4. People (many of them probably lurking around here) who have SG or WP status on QF who may have had a somewhat negative impression of DJ but might have been tempted by the gold offer (and prepared to give DJ/VA a go).

I would have thought that for those people it is VA that stood the most to gain from the error.

Just my thoughts...

 

[ksthommo]

Got the surprise gold email myself, only flown Virgin 3 times this year.
Thought it was odd, now it is.

 

[savydog]

Quite busy this afternoon, so checking my emails after closing I found the message, had a quick read and clicked on the link for more information, saw the Banner "Friday the 13th Strikes" and "Ooops" what a joke they are. A sincere message would have been more palatable. ....Just got my email retraction, seems more like a marketing trick, did someone design the Friday the 13th banner, is this the new april's fools. LOL going for a beer and forget about Virgin.

 

[Cyclogenesis]

hehehehe... love the retraction email:
"Velocity. Rewards you faster."

hehehehe.

 

[Cyclogenesis]

Must admit, my first thought was that DJ had "obtained" a list from QF.
........

4. People (many of them probably lurking around here) who have SG or WP status on QF who may have had a somewhat negative impression of DJ but might have been tempted by the gold offer (and prepared to give DJ/VA a go).

Those two statements sum me up.... (except lounge access via AA)

Goodness, no, it could not be a marketing stunt!!! I would be really really interested to know what snafu caused it!