Frequent Flier Credit Cards: Fly High And Reap Dividends

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

In the old days when the connectivity with the flights to various destinations was still evolving the flight operating companies had a snooty approach to the customer. But the things have now undergone total transformation. Now with multitude of airlines vying for the attention of the customers, the customer has become the king. The king is being pampered with the frequent flier credit cards; more you fly more rewards you get. The concept has its genesis in building up a loyal customer base for the frequent fliers. There is a very fundamental difference between a journey by the train and that by the rail.

In case of plane, once it has taken off, the seat which is vacant cannot be filled, but not so with the train. Therefore, to fill up as many seats as possible some kinds of incentives have to be given, and these incentives were in the form of frequent flier credit cards. The frequent flier credit cards are a form of co-branded cards, which are issued by the airlines, the concerned bank that is issuing the card and one of the card institutes like Visa or Master. The objective is to develop a band of loyal fliers, more so the fliers who make more than five-six trips on a monthly basis for the business purposes.

Every time a frequent flier credit card is used, it is converted into certain tangible and intangible benefits to the user. The first benefit for a frequent flier credit card user is that he can tele-check in by quoting his frequent flier number. For a business traveler to be able to confirm his boarding on the flight is a big boon, as you might be held up to the last moment and on landing at the airport it might be difficult to check in, in the flight. The flip side of this is the fact that you may be able to extend your meeting till the last moment, as you know that you have confirmed your arrival to the concerned airlines.

The frequent flier credit card user also has the advantage to get his seat confirmed once tele-check in has been done. You just have to land at the airport, collect the boarding pass, and off you are to the destination, it is that simple. The frequent flier credit card also provides benefit of access to concierge lounges, especially when you are traveling outside. The access to concierge lounges, without having to pay for it is a big boon as one can easily pass away the intermittent time between catching one flight and the other by passing the time at the lounge. Every tele-check in also provides some bonus points to the holder of the frequent flier credit card. The first reward to a frequent flier credit card holder is the up gradation from the economy class to the business class, or even first class without paying anything for the differential.

It is a reward so to say for using a particular flight to travel. The second advantage that comes to a frequent flier credit card holder is the complimentary travel vouchers that you can claim when you are a frequent flier. This complimentary travel voucher is a gift with which you can also impress your wife who otherwise would be peeved at your frequent disappearance. It seems the issuers of frequent flier credit cards understand this and that is why the complimentary cards that they issue also extends the benefit of choosing that particular airlines to the wife as well.