Today, most customer-oriented airlines offer bonus programs that can be used by all passengers, not just frequent travelers. By joining the program, passengers can obtain airline tickets not only at discounted prices but even for free.
Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) has been actively running the AZAL Miles program for years, providing various benefits to its users and supporting travel enthusiasts in discovering new countries and cities. Recently, there was news about the complete renewal and rebranding of this program. Considering the significant interest from users regarding the innovations, APA-Economics reached out to Araz Aliyev, the Head of AZAL's Loyalty Department, to learn more details.
- What is the necessity behind the renewal of the AZAL Miles loyalty program?
- As you know, AZAL is implementing several innovations and changes in various areas of its operations today. Our focus is based on customer satisfaction and digitalization projects, to offer more affordable and quality products and services to passengers in the face of increasing market competition. We have repeatedly emphasized that the customer satisfaction index holds special importance in AZAL's strategy. It is also worth noting that passenger airlines are encountering serious competition in the global market today. In this regard, a well-designed loyalty program is a crucial tool for attracting passengers and turning them into loyal customers. Technological advancements worldwide, as well as rapid changes and innovations in various businesses, are also influencing customer behavior. Taking this into account, we decided to renew our loyalty program based on new trends and behaviors. Through it, we will continue to offer additional opportunities to our passengers based on the miles earned with each flight. All aspects of the program have been redesigned to align with modern digital standards. Our new motto – More miles, more skies – emphasizes that the system is focused on the needs of travelers.
- What are the advantages and main changes of the program?
- Our renewed program, in terms of privileges, discounts, and functionality, is now in a competitive position with the loyalty programs of the world’s leading airlines. I can confidently say this based on numerous studies, consultations with representatives of other airlines, and consultations with local and international experts in this field.
As for the main features, I can mention the completely updated personal account, new digital functionalities, account and miles management, the number of statuses, and the rules for calculating status miles. We have also removed the limits applied to flight tickets purchased with miles. Additionally, participants will now be able to earn miles through the Co-Brand card for daily purchases and other expenses.
The AZAL Miles program now includes five status types instead of three: Classic, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Elite. This makes it easier for customers to upgrade to a new status. To upgrade status and enjoy more benefits, more status miles need to be accumulated. The Classic status is unlimited, while the others will remain valid for at least two years from the date of the status upgrade.
Moreover, the miles tariff has been updated and is now generally more affordable than the previous tariffs. Status miles are now calculated based on the amount spent on the ticket, rather than a single rate. To clarify, let me explain with an example: for instance, previously, a passenger flying from Baku to Barcelona in economy class would earn 500 status miles regardless of the ticket fare, but now, passengers who pay more for the ticket will earn more status miles accordingly.
In addition to the existing benefits associated with statuses, new ones have been added. These include free seat selection, priority baggage handling, free class upgrades, penalty-free rebooking of award flights, and priority check-in and boarding, among others.
- What do you mean by new functionalities?
- In the Personal Account section, participants can perform online operations such as purchasing airline tickets with miles, paying taxes and fees with miles, transferring miles between participants, restoring expired miles, and purchasing miles for themselves and other program participants.
- What should participants do to join the updated program?
- Joining the AZAL Miles program is easy: registering in the Personal Account section on the official website www.azal.az or in the AZAL mobile app is enough for customers. It is also worth noting that children over 2 years old, with parental assistance if necessary, and anyone over 18 can join the program for free through registration in a personal account.
Existing participants have been automatically transferred to the updated program. Several concessions have been made during this process, considering the importance of customer satisfaction. For example, the expiration date of all participants' flight miles has been automatically extended for 3 years until August 2027. Additionally, the determination of participants' status miles has been based on flights taken in the last 20 months, not just the last year, as per the program conditions.
Since the launch of the updated program, every participant who takes a flight will receive 300 Welcome Miles as a gift. Participants with the previous Classic, Gold, and Platinum statuses can be upgraded to the Elite status based on their flights. Furthermore, previous Gold status participants who have not taken flights will at least retain the Silver status, while Platinum status participants will retain at least the Gold status. Those who have taken flights at least once will maintain their current status. As a gift, 300 miles are also credited to participants' accounts on their birthdays.
- What are your expectations from these updates and changes?
- First and foremost, we believe this will significantly contribute to making our passengers' journeys more affordable and memorable, encouraging them to choose Azerbaijan Airlines for their future travels.
Additionally, digitalization enhances operational efficiency and simplifies business processes. Our team members will analyze customer feedback, focus more on creating added value within the program, and focus on following and implementing global innovations.
- Could you share your future plans?
- Of course, we continuously make updates based on our customers' requests and suggestions. We have plans to introduce specific offers for different segments, add new privileges for various statuses, and bring several new functionalities to the program. Additionally, we are considering establishing a partnership network to make earning and using miles more accessible for program participants. It is a sure thing that we will periodically hold various promotions. We plan to understand the needs of customers more deeply and prepare personalized products for them. Therefore, I invite all passengers to join the program and follow us to take advantage of these opportunities. We, in turn, will continue to work eagerly to ensure you have a pleasant and memorable experience at every step of your journey with Azerbaijan Airlines.
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