Choice Privileges - I'm giving YOU points? huh?

I'm a CP Gold member...

today in the mail I received 3 "coupons" in which I can fill out the name of a staff member who recognizes my value to the CP program in a kind way, and that employee would get 1,000 CP points?

Is this serious?

How about I get 1,000 points every time CP employees fail to recognized me.

This started a couple of years ago, IIRC.

I never did quite get the point of the whole thing. Don't employees get discounts anyhow? Do any of them actually collect points? Who thought this would be a great idea?

This started a couple of years ago, IIRC.

I never did quite get the point of the whole thing. Don't employees get discounts anyhow? Do any of them actually collect points? Who thought this would be a great idea?

Pardon me for being a bit tongue-in-cheek for the moment: employees traveling with friends/family would at least get the discount of the friends and family rate. :D

More seriously, I guess a free night involving no out-of-pocket expense for the room may be considered at least a somewhat better deal than a discounted night that includes some out-of-pocket expense for the room.

I think giving people recognition in the service industry is always good when they are helpful. Reminds me of the things UA sent me to give to FAs and such.

I am wondering what the response will be if I decided to give these out to Choice employees. I have a feeling it will be met with me having to explain their use...

I had 55 nights in 2010. One (1), I repeat only one (1) Choice employee greeted me with a "welcome back Mr. Boeing727, or even bothered to acknowledge my status. I gave away one (1) 1,000 point coupon last year. Don't expect to give away more than that in 2011 unless something changes out there.

CP Platinum here; I received 6 certificates.

I stay at the same hotel frequently, and they know me by name and room preference. When I checked in for my last stay, I know I was recognized as a CP member, I don't remember if my status was mentioned. I might consider that to be close enough...

I assume that the employees can use them for the same things I can use them for, which certainly includes more than free hotel stays. Since it costs me virtually nothing in time and nothing in money or my own points - why not give them out?

I had 55 nights in 2010. One (1), I repeat only one (1) Choice employee greeted me with a "welcome back Mr. Boeing727, or even bothered to acknowledge my status. I gave away one (1) 1,000 point coupon last year. Don't expect to give away more than that in 2011 unless something changes out there.

There's something wrong with the new check in software. There's a hotel I stay in in New Stanton, PA that has the basket with water and snacks for elites that they never offer me. It also doesn't show my status on the check in form (even though there's a space for it). And they aren't the only ones that don't see it.

It really makes me appreciate the hotels that do see it and recognize it, and recognize the repeat customers. I can be assured that I can reserve the cheapest room available at the Comfort Suites in Haverhill, MA and not even have to ask for an upgrade - they do it when they see the reservation.

As I said in the rate CP thread, this chain is PLAGUED by inconsistencies...

There's something wrong with the new check in software. There's a hotel I stay in in New Stanton, PA that has the basket with water and snacks for elites that they never offer me. It also doesn't show my status on the check in form (even though there's a space for it). And they aren't the only ones that don't see it.
You aren't by any chance choosing to earn miles/credits, are you?

I don't know what you mean by "new check in software", so if it's really new, maybe they've finally fixed this, but for years, they've had a place where they can put in either your CP ID or your FF number, not both, and so if you said you wanted to earn in your FFP, there'd be no place for your CP number to go, and without your CP number, it also wouldn't pick up your status. (This was clearly visible if you compared your folios from the same hotel on a points-earning stay vs a miles/credits-earning stay.)

In past years, the promo at this time of year was triple points or miles/credits, and during such a promo, I'd find earning 1.5 Southwest credits per stay much more valueable than triple points. At one hotel where they hang the newspaper in the morning on CP members' doors, and then don't typically have spares to pick up in the lobby, they would never put a paper on my door during this time, and when I asked them why, they said the papers are handed out to CP elites, and when I mentioned I was Diamond, they said it didn't show that on their reservation. Indeed, it didn't even show that I was a CP member!

But the rest of the year, when I'd be earning points, no problem them seeing my CP elite status, and never was there a morning when the newspaper wasn't hung on my door.

You aren't by any chance choosing to earn miles/credits, are you?

I don't know what you mean by "new check in software", so if it's really new, maybe they've finally fixed this, but for years, they've had a place where they can put in either your CP ID or your FF number, not both, and so if you said you wanted to earn in your FFP, there'd be no place for your CP number to go, and without your CP number, it also wouldn't pick up your status. (This was clearly visible if you compared your folios from the same hotel on a points-earning stay vs a miles/credits-earning stay.)

In past years, the promo at this time of year was triple points or miles/credits, and during such a promo, I'd find earning 1.5 Southwest credits per stay much more valueable than triple points. At one hotel where they hang the newspaper in the morning on CP members' doors, and then don't typically have spares to pick up in the lobby, they would never put a paper on my door during this time, and when I asked them why, they said the papers are handed out to CP elites, and when I mentioned I was Diamond, they said it didn't show that on their reservation. Indeed, it didn't even show that I was a CP member!

But the rest of the year, when I'd be earning points, no problem them seeing my CP elite status, and never was there a morning when the newspaper wasn't hung on my door.

I've been earning points since I started, and have been highest level the entire time, except for a few months last year (I used a lot of points in 2009 and they didn't credit you with a night for status purposes then).

I thought they switched to a new software over the fall, as there were more than few hotels that asked for my patience when checking in. I could be mistaken, though...

I am wondering what the response will be if I decided to give these out to Choice employees. I have a feeling it will be met with me having to explain their use...

Yeah, I'm also quite skeptical that a Choice employee -- even a REALLY GOOD Choice hotel employee -- is going to know what to do with one of these vouchers.

And how the heck could they possibly earn enough vouchers to "win" anything? It's hard to believe a lot of these will be distributed.

But I guess I'll toss a card in my suitcase in case I run into that exceptional employee. It's hasn't happened yet to me at a Choice Hotel, though!

...for years, they've had a place where they can put in either your CP ID or your FF number, not both, and so if you said you wanted to earn in your FFP, there'd be no place for your CP number to go, and without your CP number, it also wouldn't pick up your status. They would never put a paper on my door...

And a miles-earning stay wouldn't be counted as a stay. And the room one gets relates to the rate paid, not status. And... And...

But the price is right (averaging $40 for me, last year, not factoring in the free nights -- which, by the way, are about to become Rapid Rewards).

And a miles-earning stay wouldn't be counted as a stay.
In the past, miles-earning stays did count as a stay. They didn't post inidivudally to the Choice website, but when calling in the Choice CS staff could see them and I did requalify for elite only by counting them one year. (This was before the stay counter was available online.)

Then once the online counter appeared, they ticked that up, even though again there was no other sign they were counter.

I haven't had a miles-earning stay in a year or two, though, so I can't prove in particular whether it works right this moment.

> which, by the way, are about to become Rapid Rewards

That's, by the way, why I know so much about how Choice miles-earning stays work. Because the only time I do Choice->RR is when Choice does not have a better promo on points than miles. I find the points as points just too valuable, but when -- in the past -- Choice would do a 3x points or miles promo at this time of year, earning 1.5 RR credits per cheap one-night stay easily trumped just 3x points on the same cheapo stay. But when I earn tons of points on things like stay 2 get 8000, no way I'd waste those on RR (unless it gets to expiration time, perhaps), since redeeming 8k Choice points for a $100++ hotel or 16k Choice points for a $200++ hotel is way more valuable to me than the number of RR credits that converts to (especially since RR 1.5).

Yeah, I'm also quite skeptical that a Choice employee -- even a REALLY GOOD Choice hotel employee -- is going to know what to do with one of these vouchers.

And how the heck could they possibly earn enough vouchers to "win" anything? It's hard to believe a lot of these will be distributed.

But I guess I'll toss a card in my suitcase in case I run into that exceptional employee. It's hasn't happened yet to me at a Choice Hotel, though!

I'm with you on that. However, I know of a couple of choice employees at properties I frequent that would deserve these and I wouldn't mind explaining how to use them. Otherwise, it would probably end up being an awkward social situation when they have no idea about the recognition cards and here's some random guy handing them something out of the ordinary. Not to mention that 1,000 points is essentially diddley.

I'm with you on that. However, I know of a couple of choice employees at properties I frequent that would deserve these and I wouldn't mind explaining how to use them. Otherwise, it would probably end up being an awkward social situation when they have no idea about the recognition cards and here's some random guy handing them something out of the ordinary. Not to mention that 1,000 points is essentially diddley.

Yeah, I'm mostly a "one off" Choice hotel customer -- I don't repeatedly visit the same properties and therefore don't establish "relationships" with the employees. If I did -- and one of employees took the time to somehow treat me "special" -- I would explain the program and hand them a card.

But, in my pattern of travel, I don't really ask the employees for anything special, and nobody has so far tried to pamper me in any way. Even though I'm a platinum, I'd be pretty shocked if they did! Choice isn't that kind of place. It's not an ultra personal above-and-beyond experience!

Yeah, I'm mostly a "one off" Choice hotel customer -- I don't repeatedly visit the same properties and therefore don't establish "relationships" with the employees. If I did -- and one of employees took the time to somehow treat me "special" -- I would explain the program and hand them a card.

But, in my pattern of travel, I don't really ask the employees for anything special, and nobody has so far tried to pamper me in any way. Even though I'm a platinum, I'd be pretty shocked if they did! Choice isn't that kind of place. It's not an ultra personal above-and-beyond experience!

Couldn't agree more. I have (now had) one property that I frequented where most of the desk staff knew me by name and were very nice, but I never taxed them with any special requests, nor did they do anything overly special for me, other than let me go to the supply room to get non-dairy creamer in the mornings when they ran out.

Unfortunately, the GM of the hotel has lost me as a customer, because he became so pushy about trying to get my company to establish a corporate rate, that I don't give him my business anymore.

Because the only time I do Choice->RR is when Choice does not have a better promo on points than miles. I find the points as points just too valuable, but when -- in the past -- Choice would do a 3x points or miles promo at this time of year, earning 1.5 RR credits per cheap one-night stay easily trumped just 3x points on the same cheapo stay. But when I earn tons of points on things like stay 2 get 8000, no way I'd waste those on RR (unless it gets to expiration time, perhaps), since redeeming 8k Choice points for a $100++ hotel or 16k Choice points for a $200++ hotel is way more valuable to me than the number of RR credits that converts to (especially since RR 1.5).

1) +1

2) "RR 1.5" :D! I've actually always called it the real RR 2.0.