Le Chic Geek
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I had just pulled out of the rental car area of Minneapolis – St. Paul International Airport when I saw a giant sign that read:
Still Collecting Airline Miles? Still Using a Pager?
It was an ad for FlexPerks and apologies for the lack of a picture of the ad. I don’t think driving in a new city plus whipping out a camera would be the best combination ever!
But back to the ad–the ad suggested that collecting airline miles was as old-fogey as using a pager.
Let’s compare the two. I can use a pager as a paper weight. I can break a window with a pager if I am stuck in a car that drove into a lake (while trying to get a picture of a credit card ad). I can create a Halloween costume of a 90s business man with a pager.
What fun things can I do with miles? I can upgrade a cheap Hawaii flight to first-class (as I just did last week). I can fly to Mendoza for wine tasting. I can fly to so many Asian destinations that I would be able to compare the different champagne offerings. But no, I cannot use miles to escape from a lake-bound car.
What bothers me so much about this ad is, I feel like I am its target audience–yet, it is mocking me. FlexPerks is a credit card that claims to earn miles faster than traditional methods.
FlexPerks got in trouble in 2009 for a misleading ad campaign, comparing itself to Delta. So, I noted how careful they were not to incriminate any particular airline. But suggesting airline miles are useless and outdated? Tell that to me while I’m sipping a cocktail on my way to Kauai.
