Kim Kardashian Makes Simple Tweet About Startup, Causes Servers To Crash
In the United Kingdom, it may be the “Kate Effect” that is the phenomenon which proves the power of Duchess Kate, but in North America, it is certainly the “Kim Effect” that reminds us all of the ridiculous amount of impact the reality star has on her massive following. In one simple tweet on the social media platform, which involved the mention of a startup that Kardashian is a fan of, the servers to the startup’s site and phone lines were shut down due to high traffic and high call volume.
The startup company called JetSmarter states that back in May, Kim posted a tweet about their app on Twitter. The head of global expansion for JetSmarter, Paul Gruesvich, shared that the first tweet by Kim about their app, which she posted on May 1, resulted in “so many calls… that actually our servers shut down for a bit.”
Kardashian then went on to tweet about the startup on May 9, and again on June 4. Kim K’s most recent tweet about JetSmarter stated that she is “truly obsessed” with the app and service. What is the service the company offers? JetSmarter allows users to pay a yearly membership fee that gives them the ability to ride for free on empty leg flights where jets would not usually have passengers. Those members who can afford to pay a larger sum also have the option of chartering their own flights through the app.
This Is What It’s Like to Travel Like Kim Kardashian https://t.co/df1oJBlMqL via @MarieClaire
— JetSmarter (@JetSmarter) July 27, 2016
Business Insider notes that the company insists that it does not usually pay celebrities to post about the app online and social media, but they do give free access to its services if they share about JetSmarter. In sharing via social media, celebrities like Kim Kardashian often do bring on new members, yet for as much positive attention as she may have brought the company, Kim still received a bit of backlash. Headlines about the tweets by Kardashian promoting JetSmarter included those such as “Kim Kardashian mocked after telling fans to download private jet app,” and “The Kardashians slammed for not disclosing relationships to companies they hype on Instagram.”
The publication shares additional details about the ins and outs of using the private jet chartering app.
“JetSmarter works by buying up ’empty legs’ from private jet operators. An empty leg is when a private jet returns from a trip to its home airport, or if it’s repositioning to prepare to pick up more passengers. Those flights don’t have any passengers — it’s just the pilots and crew. The company buys empty legs in bulk and offers them to paying members for free. It says it gets a ‘vast’ discount on the prices of empty legs but declined to give an approximate amount. Grusevich says it results in a ‘win-win’ scenario for operators as they’re able to make money from flights that were, well, empty.”
The membership fee is paid yearly to join JetSmarter, and there are three membership tiers to choose from, all of which get members access to the private jet booking system. The least expensive membership tier, “access,” costs $4,000 a year with an additional $2,000 joining fee tacked on. It allows access to JetSmarter’s app, which gives customers access to book empty leg flights for free.
The next tier is “smart,” which lets members book seats on jets chartered by JetSmarter that run on regular schedules and also allows members to charter their own jets. The cost of this tier is $10,000, with an additional $5,000 joining fee.
The final tier is “sophisticated,” and it costs $40,000 yearly with a $5,000 joining fee and gives $20,000 of flight credits. Members of this tier can make “four outstanding reservations and you can book seats for other people, even if you’re not on the flight.”
. @KimKardashian at the Famous By Kanye West Private Exhibition Event At @BlumandPoe in LA. Aug 26. pic.twitter.com/agVQZpVlYG
— KimKanyeKimYe (@KimKanyeKimYeFC) August 27, 2016
It’s no wonder Kardashian is all about promoting the startup app seeing as luxury in all situations is clearly what she and her star family expect.
[Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images]
