Things in the Sky

I admit it. I was originally very negative when Southwest unveiled their new Business Select product back in Novemeber. In fact, you can even go and find my idiotic comments on the blog posting. (Hindsight is 20/20)

I did, however, like some features they announced at the same time. The new boarding process seemed like a good step (though I’ll decide for sure when I try it for the first time next week). I was also a fan of the enhanced gate areas. I disliked the renaming of the refundable fare to “Business,” simply because it implied (at least to me) a different class of service. But I wasn’t too displeased since refundable fares already existed at Southwest. (They have since renamed this fare Antyime, by the way.)

But it was truly Business Select and the A-List, a reward of preferred boarding to frequent fliers, that really annoyed me. I felt that Southwest always did a good job treating its passengers equally and that creating a preferred fare as well as elite-ish portion of Rapid Rewards was a big change from “the Southwest way.” But then I thought about it some more and realized what a brillaint idea these two things were.

First, Business Select has the potential to be a big moneymaker for Southwest. The extra money charged over the regular Anytime fare is mostly profit. The first benefit, preferred boarding just required a software change. The free alocholic beverage probably doesn’t cost much. Finally, the extra Rapid Rewards credit leads to faster free roundtrips, but it could mean greater loyalty and a more frequent purchasing of the Business Select fare by some travelers. I also disliked the A-List at first, but then came to believe that it was also a good idea. Anyone who flies that much deserves a little reward from Southwest.

And plus, these changes didn’t take much away from the average Southwest flyer other than a lower probability of him or her getting his or her favorite seat. They mainly added value to the Southwest product.\

So, Southwest, I’m sorry for doubting you!