A personal touch makes all the difference

[Neil]

Originally posted by Darren Wheeler
The one thing that puzzles me is, why VS giving away Gold as a promo?

I'm not sure its a promo as such but as Sarah said a benefit of having a US Cent card. It is quite a high level card so it's not like anyone can get one (and even afford too with the cost of the thing!). I agree it undervalues the whole Au thing for those pax who earn Au through flying but I guess the Cent card holders need some sort of incentives and perks for holding (paying for) the card and VS obviously think they are potential big spenders and worthy of the Au card.

Originally posted by Darren Wheeler
The one thing that puzzles me is, why VS giving away Gold as a promo? Surely that degrades the whole point of Gold - something you earn through loyalty and (lots of) repeat custom. To just give it away like a Red seems a bit of a slap to those who earn it.

Sadly that's business, the key is finding the right deomgraphic to target.

In late 2004/2005 I wasn't so bothered about hotel loyalty schemes but was well on the way with the airline's versions. A BA/Hilton promotion gave me HHonors Gold status and I thought I'd give it a try on a few didn't-really-care-where-I-was stays. Was suitably impressed with the decent room upgrades, lounge access, free breakfasts, general treatment and whatnot. Now unless I'm using Amex FHR or some such I'll actively try and stay at Hilton Family properties. Hilton threw me a bone, I liked the experience and threw about $15k worth of business their way. Everybody wins.

Back to the OP the personal touch is a very haphazard event on Virgin but one that should be provided and is valued when received. I don't know how many tens of £ks I and my team have put VS's way in the past year, but I feel it is certainly worth some effort on their part over and above a Au card, clubhouse access etc. Rarely am I greeted as a Au card holder, a little word from the FSM happens occasionally, the delivery of a glass of champagne when flying PE is as far as I am concerned an urban myth, the use of a name is free and effective but happens inconsistently - in fact all of the small personal touches that cost nothing are highly valued. It builds greater loyalty.

Here, currently at the Royalton in New York I have a hand written card with a note welcoming me back, saying that an extra power transformer has been put in my room, and specific extra toiletries that I asked for previously have been supplied. This is why I keep coming back (and it's funky of course).

In late 2004/2005 I wasn't so bothered about hotel loyalty schemes but was well on the way with the airline's versions. A BA/Hilton promotion gave me HHonors Gold status and I thought I'd give it a try on a few didn't-really-care-where-I-was stays. Was suitably impressed with the decent room upgrades, lounge access, free breakfasts, general treatment and whatnot. Now unless I'm using Amex FHR or some such I'll actively try and stay at Hilton Family properties. Hilton threw me a bone, I liked the experience and threw about $15k worth of business their way. Everybody wins.

Just a shame they have such an aeful daughter - it puts me right off [:#]

Edited to fix quote - honey lamb

[RichardMannion]

I'm only paying for the seat and food? That's a wind-up right?

I think Virgin marketing and management may severely disagree with you there. I think the £6m spent on the current 'Limo to Lounge' campaign may show that its a damn sight more than seat and food. We are paying for a premium service.

If I saw the crew (including FSM) rushed off their feet for the entire duration of the flight then you'd have my sympathy, but the reality is that GalleyFM is active on pretty much all the flights. I'll be blunt and say I'm not interested in the logisitics of your paperwork, that is a behind the scenes exercise. However your front of house performance is what attracts and retains the very-lucrative business/premium traveller. VS makes great efforts in PR and marketing to try and demonstrate how their W & J products are different to the rest. Addressing any Upper passenger by their name (let alone Golds) is expected - it cost nothing apart from the crew reading the manifest first. Any other decent carrier manages it, so I expect VS to do it.

Originally posted by RichardMannion
I'm only paying for the seat and food? That's a wind-up right?

I think Virgin marketing and management may severely disagree with you there. I think the £6m spent on the current 'Limo to Lounge' campaign may show that its a damn sight more than seat and food. We are paying for a premium service.

If I saw the crew (including FSM) rushed off their feet for the entire duration of the flight then you'd have my sympathy, but the reality is that GalleyFM is active on pretty much all the flights. I'll be blunt and say I'm not interested in the logisitics of your paperwork

You have taken that comment the wrong way. Its hard to take someones tone over a written message. What I am trying to say is that at the end of the day you have bought yourself FOR SURE a seat at the front of the plane, a meal, and the priority boarding, clubhouse, etc. The extra things that make some of the people on this forum feel special are not promised in the price of the ticket, but something that a good crew should deliver anyway. What I mean by that is that we do not advertise greeting you by name and so on. However, a good crew (prompted by a good FSM/CSS) will greet you by name and do their best to make you feel valued.

As for the paperwork, you don't have to care about it. But at the end of the day if its not taken care of then we are not going anywhere. Delays, delays, delays. It's just something that has to be done and it does eat into the FSM's time. Usually when we are waiting to close the doors to the A/C its because we are waiting on some form of paperwork.


Side Note: Alot of Upper Class passengers miss out on being greeted by name at the door because they have the mentality that 'I know where my seat is and I want to get straight to it without making eye contact with you' when you ask for their boarding pass. They tend to keep walking and not let go of the ticket. Given a second to look at the seat number and name, we do try and say 'Welcome onboard Mr/Mrs/Ms XYZ.' I actually don't think many people on this forum would fall into that category, but it's just something to note next time you fly!

[Darren Wheeler]

Originally posted by Galley Guy
Side Note: Alot of Upper Class passengers miss out on being greeted by name at the door because they have the mentality that 'I know where my seat is and I want to get straight to it without making eye contact with you' when you ask for their boarding pass. They tend to keep walking and not let go of the ticket. Given a second to look at the seat number and name, we do try and say 'Welcome onboard Mr/Mrs/Ms XYZ.' I actually don't think many people on this forum would fall into that category, but it's just something to note next time you fly!

Usually because you have 300+ people bearing down on your back. Stand still too long and you'll get flattened.[:0]

Originally posted by Galley Guy

Originally posted by RichardMannion
I'm only paying for the seat and food? That's a wind-up right?

I think Virgin marketing and management may severely disagree with you there. I think the £6m spent on the current 'Limo to Lounge' campaign may show that its a damn sight more than seat and food. We are paying for a premium service.

If I saw the crew (including FSM) rushed off their feet for the entire duration of the flight then you'd have my sympathy, but the reality is that GalleyFM is active on pretty much all the flights. I'll be blunt and say I'm not interested in the logisitics of your paperwork

You have taken that comment the wrong way. Its hard to take someones tone over a written message. What I am trying to say is that at the end of the day you have bought yourself FOR SURE a seat at the front of the plane, a meal, and the priority boarding, clubhouse, etc. The extra things that make some of the people on this forum feel special are not promised in the price of the ticket, but something that a good crew should deliver anyway. What I mean by that is that we do not advertise greeting you by name and so on. However, a good crew (prompted by a good FSM/CSS) will greet you by name and do their best to make you feel valued.

As for the paperwork, you don't have to care about it. But at the end of the day if its not taken care of then we are not going anywhere. Delays, delays, delays. It's just something that has to be done and it does eat into the FSM's time. Usually when we are waiting to close the doors to the A/C its because we are waiting on some form of paperwork.


Side Note: Alot of Upper Class passengers miss out on being greeted by name at the door because they have the mentality that 'I know where my seat is and I want to get straight to it without making eye contact with you' when you ask for their boarding pass. They tend to keep walking and not let go of the ticket. Given a second to look at the seat number and name, we do try and say 'Welcome onboard Mr/Mrs/Ms XYZ.' I actually don't think many people on this forum would fall into that category, but it's just something to note next time you fly!

I'am really REALLY trying hard to convince myself that using VS again is a good idea! [:?]

Originally posted by Decker
Air New Zealand make a point of addressing you by name on intro and coming round thanking you for flying with them (again by name) if flying in Business Premier (their UC). So far (8 legs in three months) I _think_ it has been consistent.

I'm a *A Au (as well as a VS Au), and even when travelling in PE on ANZ, I was specifically singled out by the ANZ FSM on NZ1/NZ2 and addressed by name - it was done in a very casual way, the FSM was distributing immigration paperwork, but in both directions I got something along the lines of 'Hello Mr Mike-Smashing, I'm in charge of the cabin on today's flight, I hope X and Y (the upper deck crew members) are doing a great job looking after you, do let us know if there's anything you need. Do you know which paperwork you need?'

On the outbound, my neighbour was addressed by name, but not quite such a 'gushing spiel', on the return my neighbour was a dodgy 'mates' rates upgrade' (was even served a Y meal setup, but got a spare BP/PE main dish), and the FSM pretended they didn't exist!

I noticed the FSM spent *a lot* of time with each Business Premier pax in both directions, and this also echoes my experiences of NZ Business Premier.

As for SQ, well, need I say more? All the flights I've done with SQ in J, I've been addressed by name through out the flight by all the crew working the front of the plane, even when wandering to the galley to get a drink because I felt bored (and not because SQ service was inattentive). They've even remembered to call me 'Mike' rather than 'Mr Mike-Smashing' when I've asked them to!

Even scrubbly old United can get this right, time and time again, despite the plane seeming a bit old fashioned and tired on the inside, their Pursers always seek out premium pax and make time to speak with them, and thank them for flying (even 'sticking with') UA. I've even been on UA flights where all UA Premier Execs (like me) and 1Ks have received personally addressed and signed business cards or postcards (usually of the type of plane we're flying on) from the Captain.

Is it any wonder we scratch our head and wonder why VS can't manage this?

Mike

A difficult question, but do we know on average, the amount of au's on a flight. It will probably vary dramatically route to route, but if its only a few, surely the whole process can't be that difficult or time consuming ?

Is it below 5, 5 to 10 or more ?

David

[Decker]

Depends on route...

I am very quick to moan but I was on VS08 yesterday and was greeted by named as well as being welcomed back and addressed by name throughout the flight.

It's been a while but it made a huge difference.

[Decker]

Result by that FSM then! *applause*

I agree 100% with the OP. All Upper Class guests should be addressed by name. The presence of silver and gold card members needs to be acknowledged irrespective of which cabin they are travelling in. Here at Virgin Blue we greet our guests by name during boarding and always look out for our Velocity members so we can welcome them back. A simple gesture that costs nothing, goes a long way and is appreciated.

It is crystal clear from this thread and others that a personal greeting and small details that show that their return custom is appreciated produces very positive results in terms of brand loyalty. So I am bemused that at a time when competition is stronger than ever, these important details are being ignored.

As a side note to this.

I arrived back from New York this morning on VS46 in Y - right at the back 63G - although I had four seats to myself. About an hour in and for the first time in years the FSM came all the way to the back to seek me out with a small tray of champagne glasses and a some chocolates. She 'asked' if she could take a seat and then thanked me as a frequent flyer for flying with VS and asked if I needed anything.

It has been a long time since this has happened and having a rare trip in Y it was especially welcome.

On a (further) side note it is now around 30 flights and well over two years since I last had an Opup - I know they should not be expected but this seems a rather long run of poor luck.

FM

[honey lamb]

Originally posted by FamilyMan
As a side note to this.

I arrived back from New York this morning on VS46 in Y - right at the back 63G - although I had four seats to myself. About an hour in and for the first time in years the FSM came all the way to the back to seek me out with a small tray of champagne glasses and a some chocolates. She 'asked' if she could take a seat and then thanked me as a frequent flyer for flying with VS and asked if I needed anything.

FM

I wonder if is the same FSM I had on my flight to DXB last Monday even though it does seem to be a very short time after her return back to LHR. This particular FSM called to me about 40 minutes before landing and asked if she might sit down and chatted for quite a bit even though it was getting near time for landing

In my experience the personal touch in Virgin is entirely down to the individual FSM. Some of them are interested, some of them not. However in my humble opinion, this should not matter an iota.
I have had the pleasure of flying BA First on a couple of occassions. Without fail their FSM would greet each First passenger with a handshake and a very sincere 'welcome (back) mr/mrs....', and with the manifest sticking out of their back pocket. So they memorise the names - so what?! Not many people notice, and most feel very important.

I also flew Jet airways Delhi to Mumbai in economy, and was served my meal with my name mentioned. Was I impressed? offcourse I was - was it an effort? None what so ever - she had the manifest on the trolley in front of her.

As an old holiday rep I can guarantee you that the easiest points to make are the ones where you pretend to recognise people. If you are wrong, well hey - you made a mistake, but if you are right....then you have scored a lot of points.

My point - it aint difficult to make the difference, the crew just have to show the rigth attitude, they dont have to do any work, but I dont think many of them realise.

Actually it's not as simple as just the crew having the right attitude, it's down to the crew having the information!!

I agree names should be used, personal intos etc..they are actually the small things that make the difference, however majority of the time it is not the fault of the crew member...we just hear about it as we are front line for want of a better phrase.

Many a flight we have gone without a manifest to save delays and recently they are a bonus if we even get them on the inbound!!

Personally as an IFBT i have to do my introductions before take-off...before the manifest is even onboard, so although i may seem ignorant in having to ask your name we have absolutly no choice...well we do have one choice and that would have been to wait to give our intro after take-off which would probably make the amount of treatments i could do per flight 5/6 less than normal.

Greeting the entire cabin seems OTT - it workds in a 14 sea F cabin but not when there are 48 in UC. Just too many people. I do agree that Gold should get a personal word, but not Silver.

CX used to be especially good at this (even as a BA Gold flying with them), the ISM would make a point of introducing her/himself, thanking your for choosing them again and ensuring you let her know if there is anything you need. Takes 30 seconds, generates genuine affection to the brand and has helpe net CX many, many GBP10,000 of revenue over the last few years from me. It doesn't happen so often now...and along with some other product changes that have disapppointed I don't fly them as often. Dragonair still do this, and guess I choose to TPE over CX?

On VS, I have seen meal lists taped to the galley walls showing name, meal choice and also status. I was surprised how low the numbers of Golds to HKG is - no more than 25% of the cabin. On BA it is more like 60%, despite being a more difficult tier to achieve.

It is so easy to become gold (only 3 return flights per year) its kind of unreasonable to expect such personal service. There are a fair number of gold members on every flight so i think its quite onerous to have crew thank every one. SOme of us fly 10 times that amount in a year so I think its all about understanding that gold is quite low in the overall scheme of things.

[Decker]

Welcome to the board.

You need 4 return UC flights to become Gold not 3. You need 3 to retain. For a Leisure traveller paying for their own flights this is a signficant hurdle. The median UK salary is around £25K. 4 return UC flights would cost around £7.5K if booked at discounted rates. So spending approximately a third of gross UK median salary to attain.

Unless of course one's company has a route deal that provides full Js at less than mortals pay for Zs but not everybody is that fortunate.

And yes several people on this forum are unfortunate enough to have to fly UC that frequently so you are in good company.