Why you need a separate email for your loyalty accounts

If you’re a points and miles fanatic, you probably have multiple loyalty program accounts – as you should. A diverse points portfolio is essential to any rewards strategy. However, with numerous accounts comes the inevitable spam.

Not just unwanted emails from foreign dignitaries offering us a small fortune in exchange for a short-term loan, but tons of emails from partners of the programs you’ve joined. It can get overwhelming and clutter up your inbox really fast. 

At the same time, you don’t want to opt out of these emails because doing so means you could lose out on lucrative promotions. The solution? Set up a separate email for your loyalty program accounts. In fact, this should be the very first step in your points and miles journey. Setting up a separate account ahead of time saves you the hassle of updating your loyalty programs later. 

Whether it’s frequent flyer miles, hotel rewards or your favorite coffee shop, each program vies for your attention with promotions, updates, and special offers. Here’s why you need a separate email for your loyalty program accounts:

It’s free and easy to set up

While email accounts are free and easy to sign up for, I’d recommend choosing one with your current email provider. I use Gmail for my Pointchaser and personal email, so when it came time to set up a dedicated email account for loyalty programs, sticking to Gmail made sense. When I go to Gmail, I’m automatically logged into my default account. From there, I can easily toggle between my personal and loyalty accounts to stay on top of my emails. 

You can name your loyalty program email something like “myname.loyalty@gmail.com.” That way, it’s clear what the email address is for and you can easily remember it.

Streamline your inbox

Loyalty programs are essentially marketing schemes, which means constant advertising. Even when you opt out of emails, you’re bound to get at least one promotional message a week to get you to buy something or book a trip somewhere. Keeping your inbox clear and organized can be incredibly tough when you’re constantly inundated with messages of all kinds: Personal, work, and promotional. 

Even my professional email account is inundated with messages from the same PR “pros” who follow up a dozen times with the same irrelevant coverage requests. It’s already a battle trying to keep separate tabs to stay on top of all of the messages I do find relevant. It would be a nightmare if I threw in marketing emails from over two dozen loyalty programs. 

By funneling these emails into a separate account, I keep my primary inbox uncluttered and focused on personal and professional correspondence. This way, important emails from work or family won’t get buried under a mountain of promotional messages. This strategy keeps your emails organized and your primary inbox virtually spam-free.

Never miss out on deals

We’ve talked about unwanted emails, but the fact remains that some loyalty program emails are wanted. That’s why we sign up for them in the first place. With a separate email account, you can ensure that all of these emails aren’t marked as spam while maintaining an organized inbox. Since everything ends up in a dedicated account, you’re less likely to miss important promotions and limited-time deals. Just make sure to add this account to your phone or make a habit of checking it routinely. 

Some people like to limit their phone emails strictly to professional ones. I like having access to all of them: Work, personal, and promotional. It’s fairly easy to set up, too: Simply go to your phone’s settings > email > accounts > add new > then enter the credentials for your loyalty program email. 

Regularly checking this dedicated email ensures you stay informed about point balances, redemption opportunities and special offers. This proactive approach helps you make the most of each loyalty program.

Keep track of ongoing promotions

Using a dedicated email for loyalty programs allows you to create a well-structured system to manage loyalty program emails. You can create folders or labels to set aside important messages. For example, most hotel loyalty programs require you to register for quarterly promotions before your stay. This is easy enough, often requiring a simple click on a designated email link.

The problem is we often forget about these promotions. Creating a designated email folder to track these promotions can help you plan your trips better. Whenever I need to book hotels, I’ll refer to this folder for a quick comparison to see which program offers the best point bonus or discount deals. 

Enhanced security

Maintaining a separate email for loyalty accounts can also enhance your online security. Separating your loyalty program emails from your primary email reduces the risk of phishing attacks targeting your main account.

Using a unique password for this dedicated email also safeguards your information. If one account is compromised, the impact on your primary email and other critical accounts will be minimal.

Fewer distractions

Promotional emails from loyalty programs are meant to grab your attention. If they land in your personal inbox, they can distract you from important tasks. By channeling these emails to separate accounts, you can minimize distractions while focusing on personal or business emails.

You can then set a designated time to check this inbox and give it your full attention. I like to do this once a day for a few minutes o stay on top of the latest news, sign up for promotions and block any obvious spammers.

Final thoughts

Setting up a separate email account for your loyalty programs is an important step in your points and miles journey. It helps streamline your primary inbox, ensures you never miss a deal, boosts security and simplifies account management. This simple step lets you enjoy the full benefits of loyalty programs without the chaos. Even if you’re several years in, you can still set up an account, update your existing loyalty program emails and enjoy a more organized email management system.