Recently, Hongkun Hotel Group and Shouqi car-hailing reached a strategic cooperation, in which member exchange is the first step of cooperation between the two sides, and then the two sides will also carry out in-depth cooperation in order exchange, marketing interaction and other aspectsCoincidentally, the member cooperation between CTS Hotel Group and SSAW Hotel Group has also recently entered the final stage, which marks the official conclusion of the membership exchange between the two.
In fact, it is not uncommon for members to be connected in the industry, and I remember the glorious deeds of several hotel groups a few years ago in order to resist the "collective huddle" of OTA platformsThere are also "high-profile appearances" with the deep integration of global luxury goods and international hotel brands. This represents a development trend, and hotel member cooperation has become the norm in the evolution and change of major hotel groups.
Hotel membership cooperation has gradually become the industry standard
At present, there are roughly two ways of cooperation between hotel members: one is industry grouping, and the other is cross-border cooperation.
In July 2021, Mehood Hotels signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Jinling hotel chain hotels on the exchange of membership rights and interests, and Mehood members can directly receive Jinling VIP members, and the membership level will be automatically matchedIn November 2023, after the membership system of SSAW Boutique Hotel and CTS Hotel is opened, when a new member registers, with its authorization and consent, he or she can become a member of the other party at the same time when registering through the direct sales channels of both parties, and enjoy the member** and membership rights and interests provided by both parties. This is a hotel-to-hotel huddle!
Source: SSAW Boutique Hotel***
In May 2022, Marriott Bonvoy and Alipay members jointly launched the "Marriott Bonvoy x Alipay Member Cooperation" activity, allowing Alipay members to enjoy multiple benefits such as 1 yuan for breakfast and ** to win "1 yuan for hotel co-branded customized afternoon tea experience" while redeeming the corresponding Marriott Bonvoy member membershipIn June 2023, Mandarin Oriental's "Fan Club" will be interconnected with Fliggy members, and Fliggy members who have not yet registered for "Fan Club" at Mandarin Oriental will be able to register for a direct "Fan Club" membership with Mandarin Oriental. This is a binding between the hotel and OTA!
In December 2017, Atour announced that it would work with Tencent QQ Super Members to promote the exchange of membership rights and interests, and QQ Super Members will enjoy the membership privileges of Atour at the corresponding level throughout the whole process from registration to booking and check-inIn August 2023, IHG One Rewards, IHG's global guest loyalty program, and China Duty Free Members, a subsidiary of China Duty Free Group, achieved an exchange of member benefits. This is a crossover attempt for the hotel!
At the same time, the hotel group itself is constantly evolving. Dehao Group upgraded its membership system to "Baida Wood" and strengthened the label of "experience consumption". The group calculates membership points based on "length of stay", and the guidance to consumers has changed from "how much money to spend" to "how much time to spend". At the same time, many increments have been made in membership rights and experience gameplay, and hotel membership 40 times. This is a new upgrade of the hotel!
In the context of the acceleration of the integration of culture and tourism and the iteration of consumption upgrading, the two sides will strengthen collaboration and cooperation with the help of superior resources, realize the interconnection of member services, and jointly create a new form of cooperation. Judging from the actions of hotel groups in member exchange and cooperation in recent years, it has entered the stage of universality.
The "competition" and "cooperation" behind the exchange of information
Hotel member communication is a new type of competition and cooperation relationship based on the common interests and demands of both parties. While promoting resource sharing and complementary advantages, in-depth cooperation seems to be more in line with the pursuit of both sides, and is also conducive to obtaining greater benefits. For hotel groups, what are the reasons for their willingness to cooperate?What are the pros and cons of these collaborations for hotel groups?
Advantage 1: Increase the number of members. In terms of the number of members, there is a significant gap between hotels and platform companies. Through the cooperation of hotel members, the number of members of the hotel will be directly increased. CTS Hotel's loyalty program, the "Heart-to-Heart" program, currently has 6.95 million members, and Four Seasons Club Club, as the loyalty program of SSAW Hotel Group, currently has 5.7 million members, with the combined number exceeding 10 million.
Source: CTS Hotel official website.
Advantage 2: Enhance marketing strength. As a traditional industry, the hotel marketing method is mostly the adjustment of the first end. As of November 15, 2023, Wanda's progress in the write-off of ** merchandise orders sold on Fliggy.11 has increased by more than 3 times year-on-year, and the premise of these sales is achieved on the basis of mutual membership between the two parties. After linking with OTA, the hotel will realize the diversity of marketing and the channelization of promotion.
Advantage 3: Expand product categories. Through the exchange and cooperation with external corporate members, it not only adds new brand connotation to the hotel, but also extends the product line. For example, the linkage between Lijiang Jinmao Puxiu Snow Mountain Hotel and Lancôme Absolue skin care series, Armani Black Key skin care series, HR Helena and other consumer brands not only enriches its service matrix, but also increases the hotel's additional income
All honey, when it is sweet to the end, will be greasy. While joining forces, each other's shortcomings will be gradually amplified. Silas believes that it is important to try to forgive others and never forgive yourself.
Disadvantage 1: It may reduce member income. The hotel group has increased the number of members in the short term by interconnecting with partner members, but it has also sacrificed some of its revenue. If you are already a Marriott Silver card consumer, after the members cooperate with each other, "Silver Card Stays Twice to Upgrade", the consumer is exempted from spending 15 nights, but for Marriott, the revenue of 15 nights is lost.
Disadvantage 2: It may implicate the hotel's reputation. When selling a new membership card, consumers will not only compare the new membership card with the original regular membership card, but also with the previous lifetime membership card. Once it is found that there are differences in membership rights, services, etc., it may cause some dissatisfaction;If the hotel partner makes the wrong decision, it will implicate the reputation of the hotel, and ultimately affect the reputation of the hotel.
On the whole, the advantages of hotel member cooperation outweigh the disadvantages. Ms. Yang, an industry veteran, believes that the cooperation between hotel members is not an overnight job, and requires continuous optimization and improvement by both parties. "With the passage of time, all parties will continue to mature and steady, and under each other's careful polishing, they will also become 'shining'."
How the hotel skillfully manages this "marriage".
Robbie Kelman Baxter states in his book "The Membership Economy" that "the core of the membership economy is to create value for users, not transactions aimed at selling products". In order to forge a long-term relationship and win more operating income, the hotel group has to carry out member exchange and cooperation, and how to maintain it skillfully is the key to the longevity of this "marriage".
The first is to adjust the membership cycle. The membership systems of the two sides of the hotel may not match well, and the hotel can re-plan the membership system when carrying out member exchange cooperation. If the benefits of the Gold Card of the previous Lifetime Card are very different from the benefits of the current One-Year Gold Card, the hotel can launch a set of annual upgraded membership cycles, including Silver Card, Gold Card, etc., which are all annual.
The second is to carefully select partners. Hotels should prefer those companies with strong strength and good reputation, and have the values of becoming bigger and stronger with each other. At the same time of mutually beneficial cooperation, we will complement each other's resources, help brand development, promote the expansion of hotel and related business scale, and ultimately enhance the popularity and influence of the hotel brand.
The third is to improve the member experience. Consumers choose hotels, no longer influenced by a single **, but have a sense of brand experience. When designing membership benefits, hotels should fully consider the unique value of members, and add more scarcity content when room upgrades, free breakfast, member discounts, reward points, food and beverage points have become standard.
Source: CTS Hotel official website.
To sum up, the development of the membership system will boost the hotel industry to move forward. In the context of the industry's multi-format integration and intensive cultivation, only by constantly trying diversified cooperation possibilities can loyal members get a more perfect experience. In fact, behind all the experience economy, in essence, is the self-innovation of the industry. Is every hotel in the middle of it ready?