That’s the cry heard from an increasing number of frequent flyers today. When primary research is commissioned to help diagnose the complaint, it may be surprising to learn that the same program features are often reported as both a Key Complaint and Delight.

Three examples:

These consumer opinions form a classic two edged blade that slices for or against depending on your point of view. To a great extent, the airlines and issuers of cobranded airline cards could do more to relieve frequent flyer angst.

Let’s take the issues sequentially:

In defense of the airlines and their card issuing partners, options to earn miles have grown to the point of near saturation. Miles can be earned on activities as diverse as sending flowers or obtaining a mortgage. It is well publicized that many airline cobrand cardholders earn the majority of their miles without stepping on an airplane. As a consumer, the complaint that not enough options exist falls on deaf ears. By making this statement, you serve witness that either you are not paying attention to program communications, or that you are not the best candidate to benefit from a frequent flyer program. In this case, your failure to redeem can’t be blamed on the Loyalty Asterisk™.

Consider the options to redeem mileage beyond air travel and hotel stays. After nearly wearing out my calculator, I can’t make the math work in favor of swapping miles for merchandise and magazines. In fact, the only time I have gone the magazine route is when I was striving to beat an expiration date on mileage earned with an airline I no longer frequent. In that case, I was willing to ignore the value exchange and was satisfied to get something for what otherwise would have turned to dust.

The complaint that “I can’t use my miles when I want” is the most delicate to correct. The early premise of frequent flyer programs was “travel now and take your family to Hawaii next Christmas” (fill in your own dream destination). And over the years, the sense of entitlement created by loyalty program sponsors has created a difficult fan base to satisfy. Let’s face it, the air travel experience has changed and consumer expectations for using miles should change as well.

The perceived value of air travel rewards has always been measured in emotional terms. Redeeming to attend a family reunion or take a vacation increases value, while redeeming to attend yet another business meeting is evaluated through careful fare comparisons.

I have not experienced difficulty redeeming miles for my desired travel destinations. It’s not because I am lucky, just that I try to match the destination with the season and am flexible on dates. Applying common sense to the process would help consumers tremendously and reduce frustration, but the airlines can play a big role in the process.

The challenge for the airlines is to tone down the aspirational messaging that has driven demand for frequent flyer programs since their beginning, and subtly reposition with a more practical approach to mileage redemption. Flying the family to Cleveland to visit friends may not play well in full page advertisements, but in today’s economy it represents a valuable savings to a family of four.

I humbly suggest that the airlines limit their promotion of exotic destinations where obtaining a seat with miles carries the same odds as hitting the lottery. Traveler preferences can be refined through use of the massive data the airlines possess and would allow the suggestion of secondary destinations to meet the needs of frequent flyers, reduce frustration, and increase the perception of value across the flying base.

The change is subtle and not easy to execute, but will pay off through higher customer satisfaction over time. The airlines have contributed to the present frustration with their yield management systems and can just as directly relieve the pressure by changing the focus on what constitutes a worthwhile reward.

Bill Hanifin