Hotels get nearly half of their business from the small percentage of people who travel frequently. But the hotel chains' customer loyalty programmes are not as effective as they could be in keeping such guests within the network and away from the competition. To bring these visitors back more often, hotels must restructure their programmes and learn more about their users.
The take-away
Hotel loyalty programmes don't capture new frequent travelers quickly enough and often don't continue to offer meaningful rewards once heavy travelers have maxed out. Managers should adjust rewards programmes to make them more appealing to travellers at both ends of the spectrum.
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