Wyndham’s Simple, Straightforward Approach to Loyalty Seems to Be Working
Photo Credit: A still from Wyndham Hotel Group's newest advertisement featuring the Wyndham Rewards Wyzard. Wyndham / Wyndham Hotel Group
Skift Take
At a time when most hotel loyalty programs are so highly coveted and promoted by hospitality companies, but also increasingly complicated in some cases, it's interesting to see how Wyndham's easy-to-understand approach is working to help attract new customers and reward them.
Nearly a year ago, Wyndham Hotel Group embarked on a massive revamp of its loyalty program to make it simpler and easier for members to earn points and redeem them for stays.
With the new Wyndham Rewards program, launched in May, members only need 15,000 points to stay anywhere within the Wyndham hotel portfolio, whether it’s at a Days Inn, Super 8, Dolce, or Wyndham Grand property. There are no blackout dates, and 15,000 points goes toward one night’s stay in a standard room at a participating hotel, up to the room’s maximum occupancy, and subject to availability.
Wyndham spent $100 million to invest in an 18-month advertising campaign to market it, increasing its digital spending to $5.2 million, a budget six times more than what they spent in 2014. It also hired Kristofer Hivju, a Norwegian actor best known for his role on HBO's "Game of Thrones" to play the Wyndham Rewards Wyzard. His catchphrase? “You’ve earned this.”
Today, the company is seeing the rewards
