Qantas Too Trigger-Happy with Emails?

Most Qantas Frequent Flyer members are used to getting emails from the airline. Qantas sends out almost daily emails about sales, Rewards Store discounts, health insurance, Qantas Golf Club, credit cards, monthly newsletters, offers to upgrade your flight… the list goes on.

But one AFF member is particularly unimpressed to have received no less than nine emails encouraging them to upgrade after simply booking a domestic flight.

albatross710 had booked a return flight from Brisbane to Sydney with Qantas, and over the course of a week received more than one upgrade offer by email per day. Qantas started out by sending multiple emails inviting this member to “Make on offer to upgrade on your flight to Sydney”. This was followed by a few “Still interested in an upgrade?” emails.

Finally, because albatross710 hadn’t placed an upgrade bid, Qantas then thought they would send a “Last chance to Upgrade” reminder email.

albatross710 writes:

I recently updated my Qantas marketing preferences. I’m surprised that for a return BNE-SYD that I would receive 9 emails over 7 days.

Regardless of how many offers the minimum bid of $120 still doesn’t get me for a < one hour flight.

Like many airlines, Qantas offers passengers the opportunity to upgrade via the Plusgrade platform. On flights where Business class is not full, Qantas invites selected passengers to bid a combination of points and money for a chance to secure a “BidNow” upgrade.

It is likely that you’ll receive more follow-up emails from the airline if you’ve clicked on the link to make an upgrade offer, but haven’t yet placed a bid.

Virgin Australia also uses Plusgrade to manage its “UpgradeMe Premium Bid” system. Virgin too sends emails inviting eligible passengers to upgrade, however it doesn’t send nearly as many emails as Qantas does.

How to opt-out of emails from Qantas Frequent Flyer

Of course, Qantas doesn’t just email its customers with upgrade offers. Qantas and its frequent flyer program send out so many emails every week that it borders on spam.

Some of the emails are relevant, but many won’t be relevant for many of the recipients. For example, Qantas has been sending promotional material about Qantas Business Rewards to children. In another case, Qantas sent an email to a minor with an offer to buy a lounge pass… for a lounge they couldn’t legally access because they’re under 18.

The good news is that you can choose to opt-out of most specific types of emails from Qantas Frequent Flyer. If you’re getting too much spam from Qantas, log into your Qantas Frequent Flyer account and go to “My Profile”. Then, click on “Interests and subscriptions”. Here, you’ll be able to select which types of emails you want to receive.

However, make sure you don’t unsubscribe from important emails that you might actually want to receive – such as personalised bonus status credit offers! These kinds of emails would be classified as “Exclusive offers for Qantas Frequent Flyer Members”. Beware that by opting out of the monthly eNewsletter, you could also miss out on warnings if your points are due to expire in the next 60 days.

Join the discussion on the Australian Frequent Flyer forum: Make an offer to upgrade on your flight to Sydney. How many emails is enough?

Matt Graham

The editor of Australian Frequent Flyer, Matt's passion for travel has taken him to over 70 countries… with the help of frequent flyer points, of course!
Matt's favourite destinations (so far) are Germany, Brazil & Kazakhstan. His interests include economics, aviation & foreign languages, and he has a soft spot for good food and red wine.

You can connect with Matt by posting on the Australian Frequent Flyer community forum and tagging @AFF Editor.