Allegiant Allways Rewards, A New Loyalty Program

Las Vegas-based ultra low cost carrier Allegiant Air historically hasn’t had a loyalty program, at least not one that rewards flying. I suspect this is because the airline primarily targets price-sensitive leisure travelers looking to fly point-to-point.

That has finally changed — Allegiant has launched the Allways Rewards program, which is the company’s new frequent flyer program, and it replaces myAllegiant. The more I think about this program, the more I like it.

The basics of Allegiant Allways Rewards

The Allegiant Allways Rewards program is refreshingly simple. When it comes to earning Allegiant Allways Rewards points:

• You earn one Allways Rewards point per dollar spent on any purchase with Allegiant while logged into your account (this includes flights, ancillaries, vacation packages, etc.)
• You earn two Allways Rewards points per dollar spent when the transaction amount is $500+
• The person paying who is logged into their Allways Rewards account earns the rewards, rather than each individual traveler (this is great for families, since all your points could be consolidated into one account)

When it comes to redeeming Allegiant Allways Rewards points:

• Each Allways Rewards point gets you one cent towards any purchase with Allegiant, whether it’s for a flight, vacation package, or whatever else
• You can redeem Allways Rewards points in any increment to partially cover the cost of an Allegiant purchase, so after you take a flight you’ll always get some sort of a discount on your next Allegiant purchase
• Allways Rewards points expire after 24 months of inactivity

As you can see, the program is essentially offering a 1% reward on all your Allegiant purchases, and if you make larger transactions, you’re getting a 2% reward. This couldn’t be much more straightforward, as you can earn and burn on all purchases directly through Allegiant.

I think Allegiant’s new loyalty program is brilliant

While I’m ordinarily a huge proponent of the value of rewarding and creative airline loyalty programs, Allegiant is a different kind of airline with a specific customer base. The airline serves point-to-point routes that other airlines don’t even try. People choose Allegiant for both price and schedule. Want to fly nonstop from Flint to Punta Gorda for $69? You’re going to fly Allegiant, of course.

So Allegiant isn’t like American Airlines, where a loyalty program could be a competitive advantage for a route between New York and Los Angeles, or between Los Angeles and Honolulu, where there are lots of competitors.

With that in mind, I think Allegiant introducing a simple, revenue based frequent flyer program with easy redemptions is logical:

• Allegiant customers are most likely to be engaged with the program if it’s straightforward, since they’re not looking to jump through hoops to redeem for a Cathay Pacific first class award ticket to Bali; the program is intended to be practical rather than aspirational
• It’s smart that Allegiant has no minimums on redemptions — Allegiant customers may remember that they have a small “credit” with the airline after each flight, and Allegiant may be the first airline they turn to when they start their online searches for their next trip
• The larger rewards for bigger transactions makes a lot of sense (given how low Allegiant’s fares ordinarily are), and encourages people to book the entire family, add in a hotel or car rental, etc.
• It’s also logical to see Allegiant rewarding the person making the purchase, rather than each individual traveler, which will allow rewards to rack up more easily for families

Bottom line

Allegiant Air has launched the Allways Rewards loyalty program. The value proposition is essentially that you earn 1% back on all Allegiant purchases (2% back on purchases of $500+), and then they can be redeemed with no minimums towards future Allegiant purchases.

While I wouldn’t want to see the major legacy airlines adopt programs like this, I think this is a well thought out program for an airline like Allegiant.

What do you make of Allegiant Allways Rewards?