Did the hotel status match make sense for Royal Jordanian?

[PeteM]

So I’m genuinely struggling to see how this made sense for RJ? Bar potentially earning someone a bonus because they massively grew the programme on paper?

* It’s pretty unlikely to drive much actual new business to them.
* Most people will still credit miles and TPs to their usual OW FF programme and not RJ.
* It will cost them quite a bit of money on lounge charges from other airlines for a year.
* It’s likely annoyed other OW airlines who’re losing out on seat and luggage charges, but I suppose making a bit on lounge access fees? Judging by posts on here it’s also led to a massive increase in many OW airlines’ customer centre contacts.
* Unlikely the $149 application fee (minus whatever Status Match charged them) offset these?
* You haven’t really attracted particularly heavy-spending customers and are unlikely to generate longer term loyalty.

Am I missing something?

[memesweeper]

Your second and last points are key.

I can see lots of new sign ups crediting OneWorld to RJ. Perhaps they aren’t canny enough to switch, or don’t care about miles/status points, or now genuinely want to maintain RJ status.

Some people will end up “sticky” on RJ. With AA gone revenue based and IAG heading that way, and RJ requiring no flights with them to acquire and maintain status, it could be attractive. What proportion will stick around is the 64,000 dollar question.

[PeteM]

All fair and interesting points @memesweeper, a bit of a gamble I guess.

I was also thinking that if I was another OW airline I’d be fairly unhappy about RJ effectively devaluing Sapphire by handing it out this way.

[BA Flyer IHG Stayer]

What’s got me is the number of people who spent money on this without having a clue over what it actually means and the consequences of doing the wrong thing.

[bungalow]

No idea what RJ will get out of it, but it’s already paid off for me!
I just booked Economy return flights to Germany for December, connecting in LHR, but was immediately able to book FREE exit row seats for 2 on all 4 legs, plus I will have access to the lounges in BHD, LHR and MUC.
I also saved over £700 on the Business fares… RJ Status match cost me £115.
No Brainer

[PeteM]

bungalow wrote:

No idea what RJ will get out of it, but it’s already paid off for me!
I just booked Economy return flights to Germany for December, connecting in LHR, but was immediately able to book FREE exit row seats for 2 on all 4 legs, plus I will have access to the lounges in BHD, LHR and MUC.
I also saved over £700 on the Business fares… RJ Status match cost me £115.
No Brainer

As much as I am delighted for you, as a commercial person at RJ or OW I’d be tearing my hair out! 🙂

[bungalow]

Well on the flip side, it would have been cheaper for us to fly with O’Leary or Easyjet, so BA got custom they otherwise wouldn’t have had

[PeteM]

That’s another interesting point!

[memesweeper]

PeteM wrote:

bungalow wrote:

No idea what RJ will get out of it, but it’s already paid off for me!
I just booked Economy return flights to Germany for December, connecting in LHR, but was immediately able to book FREE exit row seats for 2 on all 4 legs, plus I will have access to the lounges in BHD, LHR and MUC.
I also saved over £700 on the Business fares… RJ Status match cost me £115.
No Brainer

As much as I am delighted for you, as a commercial person at RJ or OW I’d be tearing my hair out! 🙂

Unlike lounge access, I doubt that cost RJ a bean.

[PeteM]

All the lounges did!

[John]

Doesn’t the operating airline pay lounge fees

[LondonTravels]

John wrote:

Doesn’t the operating airline pay lounge fees

I think you are right about that. So, RJ are not paying for seat selection or lounge access by their newly minted elites, so is their only cost (ignoring the overheads of adding lots of users to their own scheme) whatever money changes hands for the allocation/use of airmiles when their members actually fly with oneworld on a revenue ticket?

If that’s the case it very well might make good sense for RJ.

[PeteM]

Don’t think that’s quite true?

https://mainlymiles.com/2024/01/03/whos-paying-for-airport-lounge-access/#:~:text=If%20you%20gain%20access%20to,the%20lounge%20operator%20for%20access.

See the note on that page too.

[John]

PeteM wrote:

Don’t think that’s quite true?

https://mainlymiles.com/2024/01/03/whos-paying-for-airport-lounge-access/#:~:text=If%20you%20gain%20access%20to,the%20lounge%20operator%20for%20access.

See the note on that page too.

People have been claiming both sides on blogs and forums for the past 20 years with no evidence (not that evidence would be publishable in the first place), but if it were true it really wouldn’t make sense for RJ lose money on anyone flying more than 3 or 4 times in Y or W

[Londonsteve]

It would make sense for the operating airline to be covering your lounge entry costs as they’ve derived the economic benefit of the booking! Without the perks you might not have booked with a OW carrier so it’s driving business the way of the alliance, the main question is how much of this spend would have anyway ended up with OW without the inducement of RJ status. If lounge access was being paid by the airline the FF scheme belongs to, RJ would be shelling out untold sums for their sparrows to enter OW lounges despite these pax potentially never spending a penny with RJ during the life of the membership making zero economic sense.