It doesn’t take much to evoke a feeling of nostalgia for the “good old days” when people could travel freely – and Qantas has tapped into that sentiment with an emotional campaign offering free flights, accommodation and fuel to persuade people to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
In the travel sense, the “good old days” means pretty much anytime before early last year, when the 21st-century’s great bogeyman, spoilsport and evil spirit, the vile Covid-19 coronavirus, made its touchdown. The “good old days” was the carefree era when Aussies could zip over to Bali or New Zealand for a break, jet across to Disneyland with the family – or fly between Sydney and Perth.
These days, vaccination is a key element in regaining the freedom to travel and to do many other things. Vaccinated Australians are helping the country get out of lockdown and Qantas recognises that. The airline is running a memorable ad (see below) across TV, digital, outdoor, print and radio to celebrate it.
From today, the Qantas “Be Rewarded” campaign will let fully vaccinated Australian-based Frequent Flyers who are 18 and over claim their reward through the Qantas App by choosing one of three options:
- 1000 Qantas points
- 15 status credits (which help Frequent Flyers move up between Silver, Gold and Platinum tiers)
- $20 flight discount for Qantas or Jetstar
Members will then be automatically entered into a mega prize draw to win a year’s worth of flights, accommodation and fuel.
Ten mega prizes will be up for grabs with a winner selected from each state and territory and two mega prize winners as part of a national TV campaign.
Australian singer Tones And I made an exclusive rendition of her hit single “Fly Away” for the Qantas “Be Rewarded” campaign. The campaign will run across TV, digital, outdoor, print and radio thanks to media support.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4o9_AK1Kcyo
Winners of ten mega prizes will receive a year’s worth of flights to take off to more than 60 destinations around Australia, with free accommodation across 345 Accor hotels, resorts and apartments (including Sofitel, Pullman, Peppers, Mantra, Mercure, Mövenpick, Novotel and Ibis) and top up their cars with free fuel from any of bp’s 1400 service stations across the country.
Winners will also be able to take off to any Qantas and Jetstar international destination when borders start to open.
Qantas Group chief executive Alan Joyce said the vaccine rollout was critical for protecting public health and key to breaking the cycle of lockdowns.
“Getting vaccinated is an important step that every Australian can take that brings us that little bit closer to life as we knew it.
“As the national carrier, we want to recognise those who have made the effort to protect themselves and the community.
“This is one of the biggest giveaways we’ve ever done. The impact of the pandemic on the travel industry and our own Qantas Group team members means we have a clear vested interest in the success of the vaccine rollout.
“Our crews can’t wait to get back to reuniting family and friends, taking people on holiday and putting some energy back into the whole tourism industry. For us, getting the vaccine rate up to 70 and 80 per cent means thousands of people can go back to work.
“With the Federal Government’s vaccine program ramping up across the country, now is the ideal time to say thank you to Australians for stepping up and protecting themselves and others.”
Australians can claim their points, status credits or flight discounts and be automatically entered in the mega prize draw by downloading the Qantas App (via the App Store or through Google Play), using their Medicare app to access and upload their Covid-19 digital vaccination certificate and selecting their reward choice. Vaccination certificate information will be deleted upon verification.
The mega prize flights will be fully carbon offset by Qantas. The reward prize can be claimed from today until 31 December 2021. Winners of the mega prize packages will be announced in January 2022. Terms and conditions apply, as is usual in these promotions, and (it goes without saying) vaccinations must be taken on the advice of a medical practitioner.
Written by Peter Needham
.jpg){kind=tracking}