162 www. t e c h n o l o g y r e c o r d . c om I NT E R V I EW According to a study by PwC, the vast majority of guests belong to at least three separate hotel loyalty programmes. This casts doubt on the success of these programmes by demonstrating that guests are motivated to sign up to a programme by something other than a profound love for a specific brand. According to Chi Chan, chief commercial officer at Ireckonu, hoteliers would be wise to recognise this. He shares some of the ways that hotels can mend their broken loyalty programmes by focusing on what matters most: the guest. Why do you think consumers belong to so many hotel loyalty programmes? Today’s loyalty programmes are designed in such a way that they actually incentivise guests to shop around. Most hotels have failed to offer a compelling reason as to why guests – especially new ones – should engage with their brand over another. If a guest can find a lower loyalty rate for a comparable hotel, they’re going to take it, unless your brand can engage with them in a sufficiently meaningful way that shifts their focus from price to something more profound. What do you consider the main shortcomings of hotel loyalty schemes today? The key issue is that hotel brands inherently expect guests to prove that they are loyal before giving them anything meaningful in return. In this way, most programmes are about the hotel, Understanding the customer is to key to cultivating brand loyalty. Chi Chan shares how Ireckonu is helping hoteliers use insights from their data to deliver better guest experiences Loyalty 101 BY E L LY YAT E S - ROB E R T S “ Ireckonu helps hotels put guests at the centre of everything they do”
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