CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT WITH AIRLINE LOYALTY PROGRAMS IN BRAZIL: PERCEPTIONS REGARDING MILES, IMPORTANCE AND DIFFICULTIES IN MANAGING MILES.

Abstract:

Mileage programs, also known as frequent flyer programs or airline loyalty programs, were created with the purpose of attracting and retaining air transport customers through a rewards system based on miles or points. Over the past few decades, these programs have grown and have become a vast, complex, and profitable market. In Brazil alone, there are more than 185 million active customers in airline loyalty programs. In order to expand the available knowledge about mileage program customers’ behaviour, a survey was conducted among 414 consumers in this market in Brazil. A combination of methodological approaches was used in the study. Firstly, the qualitative method of free association was employed to examine perceptions and meanings attributed by consumers to airline miles. The results indicate that people predominantly perceive miles as rewards and, to a lesser extent, as a form of currency. In the quantitative phase, we aimed to explain the determinants of consumer engagement with airline miles. The structural equation model supported the proposed hypothesis model, indicating that consumer engagement is determined by the importance attributed to miles and the inherent difficulties in managing this asset.

Keywords:
Loyalty programs; airline miles; perceived importance; perceived difficulty; engagement; behavioural economics