Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

During Covid pandemic,with all planes grounded and people encouraged to stay home, Thai Airways flipped its miles program upside down and, for the first time, gave people miles for not going anywhere. A specially developed app used geolocation technology to determine if the users stayed home and automatically rewarded them with miles. Stay Home Miles Exchange transformed a context where travel brands suddenly became irrelevant into an experience where they were not only relevant, they could engender loyalty. - 37,230 Registered users. - 809,152 Miles awarded. - 3,236,608 Million hours spent indoors.

Background

Coronavirus landed early in Thailand and of all businesses, aviation was the most badly hit. As Thailand’s national carrier, Thai Airways had to innovate to stay relevant and keep its customers engaged with a different kind of travel experience.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

While it’s customary to reward miles for the more you travel, Thai Airways has done the complete opposite and flipped the travel experience on its head, rewarding customers for staying within their own four walls. #StayHomeEarnMiles

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

The idea plays on the universal insight that the excitement around any trip doesn’t start with the flight – it starts with the planning. So the brand was not only rewarding members for staying in, it was also giving them hope that future travel was not too far away.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

We flipped our miles program upside down, encouraging people to stay home to prevent the spread of the virus. Our app used geolocation technology to determine if users stayed within 100m radius of their homes and automatically rewarded them with miles. With that, Thai Airways not only rewarded members for staying in, it also gave them hope that future travel was not too far away. All they needed was an active frequent flyer membership (Royal Orchid Plus) with Thai Airways and the Stay Home Miles Exchange app on their device. With a simple and intuitive interface, the app used geolocation technology to determine if the user was within 100m radius of his / her home. Users could then track their own mile counters real time and enjoy home while collecting their rewards.

List the results (30% of vote)

- #1 In health & fitness category in the app store. - $764K PR Value. - 37,230 Registered users. - 809,152 Miles awarded. - 3,236,608 Million hours spent indoors.