Just the other day, I got a second email offer from another charter broker: a “complimentary seven-day private yacht experience through the Mediterranean or Caribbean.”
These, and offers of $500,000 in flights for $250,000 in funds, are not sustainable.
They are limited to, in some cases, one person, in others, maybe five or 10.
Details Matter
I didn’t write about the latest free yacht vacation deal because the broker didn’t provide me with the terms.
Which is the point?
Is it even worth your time to chase this deal down?
The broker’s objective is to get you to call or submit a request.
They now get your contact information for follow-up marketing.
That could be valuable if their program is a fit.
Even if this deal doesn’t work, something down the road might interest you.
Auto dealers, I am told, want to get you in their showroom.
Jet card sellers want to get you on the phone.
They can learn about your needs.
That lets them highlight the attributes of their offering that fit best.
They want to understand who else you are talking to.
That lets them undermine those companies’ credibility.
Should you call?
If you go through our Decider Custom Analysis process, we encourage you to call each relevant company and spend time with them.
Those companies offer programs with terms and policies that fit how and where you want to fly.
Will you get one of those outrageous deals you see in emails?
I’ve spoken to subscribers who have, and have been happy with it.
I’ve also spoken to subscribers who were unhappy because they didn’t fully understand that the terms were different.
In one case, a broker had cut the price but raised the daily minimums.
It was a good deal if your flight time exceeded the daily minimum.
If you did short flights, not so much.
In some cases, you can negotiate terms.
What Are They Thinking?
Companies in the industry that aren’t deal-centric scoff at the ‘drop-your-pants’ approach.
I am told these deals make the phone ring.
They are a conversation starter.
At the same time, in our annual survey, you tell us that too many deals that sound too good to be true cause your trepidation about the future.
You’ve also told us that you get spammed with follow-up emails and sales calls.
You can always hang up.
Deleting is easy.
The first calculation is how much time you want to spend.
READ: Buying Prepaid Jet Cards: Fly, Bank or Bust?
