PORT OF SEATTLE 
MEMORANDUM 
COMMISSION AGENDA               Item No.      4d 
ACTION ITEM 
Date of Meeting    October 14, 2014 
DATE:    September 19, 2014 
TO:      Ted Fick, Chief Executive Officer 
FROM:   James R. Schone, Director, Aviation Business Development 
Deanna Zachrisson, Business Leader, Airport Dining and Retail 
SUBJECT:  Customer loyalty program on behalf of Airport Dining and Retail merchants 
ACTION REQUESTED 
Request Commission authorization for the Chief Executive Officer to execute an 18-month
agreement with Thanks Again LLC for an airline mileage customer loyalty program on behalf of
the Airport Dining and Retail Merchant marketing program for an estimated amount of $60,000. 
SYNOPSIS 
Since January, 2012, the Port has had an agreement with Thanks Again LLC for a customer
loyalty program that rewards customers with airline miles for purchases at Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport ("Airport"). Customers can earn miles for parking, as well for purchases at
any restaurant, retail or passenger service location at the Airport. The agreement with Thanks
Again LLC was granted via a policy waiver for a period not to exceed three years and less than
$300,000. This contract was directly entered into with Thanks Again, without competition. The
agreement with Thanks Again will terminate on October 31, 2014. However, the Airport Dining
and Retail merchants would like to continue the program for an additional 18 months under a
new agreement that will be fully paid for by the merchant-funded marketing program. Staff seeks
Commission authorization because the total amount of the soon-terminated agreement and the
proposed new agreement exceeds $300,000. The source of funds is the Merchant Marketing
program fund which is wholly supported by contributions from Airport merchants for marketing
efforts on their behalf. 
BACKGROUND 
The Airport Dining and Retail staff manages a multi-facetted marketing program on behalf of the
merchants at the  Airport. The merchant marketing program is unique for the Port, but
commonplace in other retail environments such as shopping malls. Each tenant pays, as part of
their contractual obligations, 0.5% of gross sales (not to exceed $24,000 per location) into a joint
merchant marketing fund that is managed by staff under advisement of a Merchant Marketing
Advisory Committee. This committee is comprised of dining, retail and passenger services 
representatives from both large and small businesses.  The marketing funds are considered, for
practical purposes, to be a resource belonging to the merchant tenants as their use is specifically
restricted to marketing of the Airport Dining and Retail program. The funds are used to promote

Template revised May 30, 2013.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Ted Fick, Chief Executive Officer 
September 19, 2014 
Page 2 of 4 
the offerings at the Airport, and are particularly valuable for marketing to local residents that
make up the majority of the Airport's customers. 
The customer loyalty program with Thanks Again is one such facet of an overall marketing
effort. Thanks Again is an airport and airline loyalty program that awards travelers with airline
miles on a number of airlines for purchases in airports and from airlines. Thanks Again is the
only company in the United States that specializes in loyalty programs for airports and airlines.
Currently, there are 170 airports that feature the Thanks Again loyalty program, either via an
airport agreement or directly via merchants in airports. One advantage for travelers is that miles
can be earned at member airports and merchants nationwide regardless of where they register for
the program. Travelers can earn airline miles for travel on American Airlines, Alaska Airlines,
Delta Airlines, Frontier Airways, JetBlue Airlines, Southwest Airlines, US Airways and United
Airlines. 
In 2011, Port staff representing the parking as well as the dining and retail business agreed that
the loyalty reward program offered by Thanks Again could be a valuable tool in building greater
customer loyalty to their respective businesses and thereby increasing non-aeronautical revenues.
Travelers who actively earn and use airline miles are known to seek out opportunities to add to
their accumulated miles. As Thanks Again was the only known provider of this type of loyalty
program for airports, a policy waiver was sought and granted for a 3 year contract with Thanks
Again for an amount not to exceed $300,000. The contract was signed on January 10, 2012 and
the program was officially launched to the travelling public in February, 2012.
During the past few years, this program has been promoted throughout the airport with particular
emphasis on travelers who are more likely to spend incrementally more than they might
otherwise without the incentive of one earned airline mile for every dollar spent at Airport shops
and restaurants. Currently, there are more than 7,500 Seattle area members in the program and
another 7,000 members in the Washington state catchment area. 
When the Thanks Again loyalty program was adopted as part of the merchant marketing effort at
the Airport, the Sea-Tac merchants opted to brand the loyalty program as "Merchant Miles" and
incorporate it into the overall promotions and marketing under the "Eat Shop on the Fly"
moniker seen in the terminal, in print and in online advertising. Promotional signage featuring
Merchant Miles was installed throughout the Airport and point-of-sale collateral was developed
for each merchant location.  In addition, the program created an opportunity for merchants to
work with their employees to encourage incremental sales and improve their customer service as
they interact with the travelling public on a daily basis. 
In order to ensure that the contract amount did not exceed the $300,000 limit, Thanks Again was
notified that the contract would expire on October 31st, 2014.  Representatives of the Aviation
Division's parking staff determined that they did not wish to continue with the Thanks Again
program past the contract expiration date. However, the Airport Dining and Retail merchants by
way of their Marketing Advisory Committee would like to continue with the program for an
additional 18 months. At a meeting of the advisory committee on September 23, 2014, the

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Ted Fick, Chief Executive Officer 
September 19, 2014 
Page 3 of 4 
merchants asked Port staff to pursue a shorter-term continuation of the program through April
30, 2016. 
The rationale for continuing the program for another 18 months is based on the plan to
completely refresh the overall marketing program for the Airport Dining and Retail offering in
early 2016 as part of the transition to new offerings at the Airport per the Airport Dining and
Retail Master Plan. Until such time, the merchant's desire is to keep existing collateral such as
signage in place. 
PROJECT JUSTIFICATION AND DETAILS 
The loyalty program, specifically the ability to earn airline miles for all purchases within the
Airport Dining and Retail program has been integrated into the overall marketing campaign
messages on the radio, in print and in Airport signage. With the end of the three year contract
near, the merchants must determine what to do with all of the Merchant Miles marketing that has
been s incorporated into the terminal promotional signage. The cost for removing, designing new
signage and installing it is estimated at $60,000. In light of the cost to wind down the program 
and replace all the signage now, the Airport Dining and Retail staff turned to Thanks Again to
explore a shorter-term continuation of the program for the merchant Marketing Advisory
Group's consideration. Thanks Again responded with a proposal for this short-term continuation
of the program that will cost approximately $60,000. 
Allowing the program to continue for an additional 18 months would allow for a more seamless
transition for all terminal merchant promotional signage in conjunction with an official launch of
the dining and retail redevelopment effort. Merchant Miles would cease accepting new enrollees
through its own website on January 31, 2016. Once the Thanks Again program is discontinued
here, interested parties can still enroll in the nationwide Thanks Again program via Thanks
Again's own website. 
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS 
The merchants' joint marketing fund will support this expenditure. While continuing with the
loyalty program for another 18 months will cost roughly $60,000, removal and replacement of
the promotional signage in the terminal for the loyalty program at this point in time is anticipated
to cost approximately $60,000. By continuing with the loyalty program, the signage and other
promotional materials can remain in place until the planned refresh of the marketing program in
early 2016. 
STRATEGIES AND OBJECTIVES 
The merchant marketing program, including the Merchant Miles loyalty program, support the
Port's Century Agenda goal to "advance the region as a leading tourism and business gateway"
by providing an extraordinary customer experience at the Airport. The program also supports
the Aviation Division's strategic goals to operate a world-class airport and grow nonaeronautical
net operating income.

COMMISSION AGENDA 
Ted Fick, Chief Executive Officer 
September 19, 2014 
Page 4 of 4 
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED 
Alternative 1)  Do not proceed with a short-term continuation of the Merchant Miles/Thanks
Again customer loyalty program for the Airport Dining and Retail merchants. This would
necessitate the replacement of all dining and retail signage associated with this program by
October 31, 2014. This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 2)  Execute a new agreement with Thanks Again LLC for continuation of the
customer loyalty program. The program would continue to be in place until April 30, 2016 at a
cost of approximately $60,000. This is the recommended alternative. 
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
Exhibit A: Current agreement with Thanks Again LLC 
Exhibit B: Example of Merchant Miles promotional materials 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
None