| Course | AVT-3050 Airline Marketing and Customer Service |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 4 |
| Paper type | Written Assignment 4: airline loyalty programs |
| Length | About 755 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | B.S.B.A. in Aviation Management |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for AVT 3050 Module 4
Rewards a Family Will Actually Use: Designing a Loyalty Program for Boardwalk Air
Student Name
B.S.B.A. in Aviation Management, Thomas Edison State University
AVT-3050: Airline Marketing and Customer Service
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
Rewards a Family Will Actually Use: Designing a Loyalty Program for Boardwalk Air
How Airline Loyalty Programs Work
Shaw (2011) describes the frequent flyer program as one of the airline industry's most important marketing tools since American Airlines launched AAdvantage in 1981. Members earn points or miles for flights, and often for spending with partners such as credit card issuers and hotels, and spend them on free flights and upgrades. Elite tiers add benefits such as priority boarding for the most frequent flyers. For large airlines, selling points to credit card banks has become a major source of revenue in its own right.
What Research Says
Liu (2007) tracked members of a convenience store loyalty scheme for two years and reported that the scheme shifted behavior most among customers who had bought little at the start. Heavy buyers were already loyal and changed little. That result matters for a small leisure airline whose customers fly only a few times a year: a program can encourage light users to consolidate their trips, but only if rewards are reachable.
Kivetz et al. (2006) found evidence of a goal gradient: customers increase their purchases as they get closer to a reward. They also found that giving customers a head start toward a reward, even an illusory one, increased effort. For Boardwalk Air, this suggests rewards should be close enough that a family can see progress after one or two trips.
Dreze and Nunes (2009) studied status tiers and found that customers feel more special when they belong to an elite tier that few others reach, and that adding more tiers can increase the sense of status for those at the top. But they also found that the size and structure of lower tiers affect how special the top tier feels. A small airline has few frequent flyers, so a large tier structure would make little sense.
Designing Shore Points
| Feature | Design | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Earning | 5 points per dollar of base fare; bonus for booking the whole family together | Rewards trip spending, not distance, since routes are similar in length |
| Household account | Family members pool points in one account | Families fly together but rarely enough individually to earn rewards |
| Rewards | One-way flight from 7,500 points; free checked bag and seat assignment from 2,500 | Small rewards visible after one trip, larger ones after two or three |
| Head start | 1,000 points for joining before a first booking | Uses the goal gradient effect found by Kivetz et al. (2006) |
| Status | One level, Snowbird, for members who fly eight or more one-way trips between November and April | Rewards seasonal residents who fill winter flights |
| Partners | Local partners: casino hotels, shore restaurants, a regional supermarket | Builds the hometown brand and lets members earn between trips |
Why a Winter Status Level
Boardwalk Air's demand is strongest in summer and on school breaks, and weakest in winter except among seasonal residents. A single status level tied to winter travel rewards the customers who fill seats when the airline most needs them. Benefits such as free bags, early boarding and a dedicated phone line suit retirees traveling with heavy luggage. Dreze and Nunes (2009) suggest that exclusivity is what makes status feel special, so a single level is kept, while the household account and small rewards serve everyone else.
Costs and Risks
Every point issued is a promise of future service, so the program creates a liability. Boardwalk Air should estimate how many points will be redeemed and set aside the cost, offer rewards mainly on off-peak dates when seats would otherwise fly empty and review point values once a year. Points should expire after 24 months without activity, with reminders, to limit the liability without angering members. The findings of Liu (2007) also warn that the program's effect may fade among customers who were already loyal, so the airline should measure whether members fly more after joining, not just how many join.
Measuring Success
Three measures will show whether Shore Points works: the share of bookings made by members, the number of trips per member household per year compared with non-members, and redemption on off-peak dates. If members do not fly more than similar non-members after a year, the program is costing money without building loyalty.
Conclusion
Research suggests loyalty programs change behavior most among light buyers and when rewards feel close. Shore Points is designed for exactly those conditions: families and seasonal residents who fly a few times a year, earning rewards they can see after one trip and a status level that rewards winter travel.
References
Dreze, X., & Nunes, J. C. (2009). Feeling superior: The impact of loyalty program structure on consumers' perceptions of status. Journal of Consumer Research, 35(6), 890-905. https://doi.org/10.1086/593946
Kivetz, R., Urminsky, O., & Zheng, Y. (2006). The goal-gradient hypothesis resurrected: Purchase acceleration, illusionary goal progress, and customer retention. Journal of Marketing Research, 43(1), 39-58. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.43.1.39
Liu, Y. (2007). The long-term impact of loyalty programs on consumer purchase behavior and loyalty. Journal of Marketing, 71(4), 19-35. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.71.4.019
Shaw, S. (2011). Airline marketing and management (7th ed.). Ashgate.
What the AVT 3050 Module 4 instructions ask for
The fourth AVT-3050 written assignment sits in Module 4, Loyalty Programs, which covers the first and fourth course objectives. Expect to explain how airline loyalty programs work, judge whether they create real loyalty and apply what you learn to an airline. Module 4 opens the second half of the course, so its material is tested again on the final, together with the last two modules. Designing your fictional airline's program here gives the marketing plan a ready section on customer retention. Research on loyalty programs from marketing journals will make the design more convincing than the textbook's description of large airline programs alone. Decide early how your program will measure success, because a loyalty program that cannot show results is hard to defend in the final plan.
How this AVT 3050 Module 4 example is built
The sample first explains how frequent flyer programs earn and spend, citing Shaw. A research section uses Liu on who changes behavior, Kivetz and colleagues on the goal gradient and Dreze and Nunes on status tiers, each followed by its lesson for a small leisure airline. A six-row design table pairs every feature of the Shore Points program with its reason, with a margin note on that pairing. The paper explains the winter status level, addresses costs and the point liability, and sets three measures of success before concluding that the program fits families and seasonal residents. Because the research comes partly from retail settings, the paper says why each finding still applies to an airline with occasional flyers.
AVT 3050 Module 4 rubric: what earns full marks
Mentors look for an accurate account of how loyalty programs work, a fair reading of the research on whether they build loyalty and a design that fits the airline's customers. A paper that pairs each design feature with a reason, and draws those reasons from research and segments, shows applied understanding. Addressing the cost of points and how success will be measured shows business judgment that program descriptions often lack. The rubric also rewards clear organization and correct APA citations. Mentors value honest limits, such as research drawn from retail settings, when applying findings to airlines. Linking the status level to the airline's seasonal demand shows that the design serves the business as well as the customer.
AVT 3050 Module 4 help: mistakes that cost marks
A frequent mistake is to describe a large airline's program in detail and then copy it for a small airline whose customers fly twice a year. Another is to treat any program as loyalty, without asking whether members actually fly more. Design for your segments: how often they fly, whether they travel together and which rewards they would use. Explain the cost of points and set a measure of success. Note when research comes from other industries and say why it still applies. Keep tier structures simple. If a loyalty design has you stuck, the first AVT-3050 sample on your airline costs nothing. Price your rewards in points that a family can reach within a year, or the program will feel out of reach to the customers it targets.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Thomas Edison State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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AVT 3050 Module 4 questions, answered
Where can I find a free AVT 3050 Module 4 sample paper?
The assignment above designs a loyalty program for a fictional Atlantic City airline's families and seasonal residents.
Do loyalty programs really make customers loyal?
Research by Liu found programs change behavior most among light buyers, while heavy buyers who are already loyal change little.
What is the goal-gradient effect in loyalty programs?
Customers buy more often as they get closer to a reward, and a head start toward the reward can increase their effort.
Why do airlines use elite status tiers?
Tiers make the most valuable customers feel special, and research by Dreze and Nunes shows exclusivity at the top shapes that feeling.
What does the AVT-3050 final exam cover?
The last three modules, tested through essay questions in a proctored session of 90 minutes.