Waiting for Referral Credit, Phallic Denver Airport, 50% Discount on a Grand Hyatt (Bits ‘n Pieces for March 4, 2014)

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About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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  1. I’m amused by Elliott calling frequent flyer programs “cynical marketing programs masquerading as corporate good will.” If you think about it that way, isn’t EVERYTHING a business does to attract customers a “cynical marketing program.” I mean, when I walk into a bakery and they’re offering my a sample of their cookies, it’s not out of the goodness of their hearts. They want me to taste the deliciousness and open up my wallet to buy the freakin’ cookies. Are airlines really being more evil than that by having frequent flyer programs? I don’t think so.

  2. It will be interesting to see if Southwest keeps the 50,000 offer even after they pull the referral links. That’s what happened last fall IIRC – the referral links left in October but you could still go directly to the Chase / Southwest page.

    Still, better safe than sorry (I signed up for the business card yesterday)

  3. I actually would have picked Chris Elliott as the Co-prophet of the End Times, but that’s just me…

  4. @iahphx Well said. Elliott frequently holds the airlines to standards that don’t apply elsewhere in the economy. He’s certainly not knowledgeable on frequent flyer programs. He does write for a mass audience,99% of whom are not knowledgeable either, and that condition won’t change by reading him. Read Elliott if you want to whine a lot; read VFTW if you want to take great trips to great places.

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