It is time to rethink loyalty in travel and hospitality
Hospitality loyalty programs are still a key tool for customer retention and incentivization but with the recent shift in customer mix and changes in business travel due to the pandemic, hospitality loyalty programs need to evolve to remain relevant to current customer needs. Several hospitality companies have already taken steps to revamp their loyalty programs to better meet the needs of travelers.
Loyalty programs have been one of hospitality’s great historical success stories – that goes without saying. Along with their peers in aviation, hotels were some of the earliest and most enthusiastic adopters of accumulative points-based programs that gave customers powerful incentives to remain loyal to a brand.
Such programs remain core to the industry to this day. They’re still one of the most powerful customer retention and incentivization tools any hospitality business has to offer, with guest promotions and messaging not only driving repeat business, but also providing an invaluable source of data on customer preferences and behaviors.
The Hotel Yearbook 2023 - Annual Edition
As we have embarked on 2023, it is evident that the hotel industry has made a robust recovery from the
pandemic.
Occupancy and pricing have returned to their pre-pandemic levels. However, the future of our
industry is contingent
on how nimble the hospitality sector can be in adapting to ongoing innovation, changing market
conditions, evolving
consumer preferences, new staffing challenges, and sustainability realities. These uncertainties are
the new normal
in an unpredictable world.