Starwood Preferred Guest - Juggling Promotions

Long time reader - first time poster. I stay approximately 300-350 nights a year in Starwood properties (not kidding) so I'm always looking for ways to maximize my promotions since I don't get any sort of threshhold awards.

Anyway, I'm currently registered for the fabled stay 10 get 2 weekend nights free at any hotel in the world (including cat 6). I've already racked up my 100 nights to accumulate the maximum 10 weekend nights (already booked 3 at the St Regis Monarch Beach yay!) and I want to switch my promotion to a different one.

So let me get to the point:

1) What other 300-level promotions are out there? I tried looking for a thread or a sticky with links but couldn't find one. If there is a link, please let me know.

2) Why don't I get offers for 100 and 200-level promotions? Do these even exist?

Thanks and I appreciate it - this board has been extremely helpful!

Long time reader - first time poster. I stay approximately 300-350 nights a year in Starwood properties (not kidding) so I'm always looking for ways to maximize my promotions since I don't get any sort of threshhold awards.

Anyway, I'm currently registered for the fabled stay 10 get 2 weekend nights free at any hotel in the world (including cat 6). I've already racked up my 100 nights to accumulate the maximum 10 weekend nights (already booked 3 at the St Regis Monarch Beach yay!) and I want to switch my promotion to a different one.

So let me get to the point:

1) What other 300-level promotions are out there? I tried looking for a thread or a sticky with links but couldn't find one. If there is a link, please let me know.

2) Why don't I get offers for 100 and 200-level promotions? Do these even exist?

Thanks and I appreciate it - this board has been extremely helpful!


Here's another question: Why isn't there a better way to track your promotion status online?

Here's another question: Why isn't there a better way to track your promotion status online?

It's coming. I don't know when, but it's coming.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

Long time reader - first time poster. I stay approximately 300-350 nights a year in Starwood properties (not kidding) so I'm always looking for ways to maximize my promotions since I don't get any sort of threshhold awards.

Anyway, I'm currently registered for the fabled stay 10 get 2 weekend nights free at any hotel in the world (including cat 6). I've already racked up my 100 nights to accumulate the maximum 10 weekend nights (already booked 3 at the St Regis Monarch Beach yay!) and I want to switch my promotion to a different one.

So let me get to the point:

1) What other 300-level promotions are out there? I tried looking for a thread or a sticky with links but couldn't find one. If there is a link, please let me know.

2) Why don't I get offers for 100 and 200-level promotions? Do these even exist?

Thanks and I appreciate it - this board has been extremely helpful!

1) you get one only per member per series of targeted promotions

2) the 100 series was for Q1. the 200 series was for Q2. you probably did not get them because you were not targeted in those quarters.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

excuse my ignorance, but what are 100/200/300 series promotions?

excuse my ignorance, but what are 100/200/300 series promotions?

100 = first quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
200 = second quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
300 = third quarter 2004

I anticipate that the fourth quarter will bring us some 400 series promotions. ;)

An example of a 300 series promotion would be Stay 5, Stay 10, and Stays Count Double. Lots of threads here on them. Probably the 100 and 200 series, too.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

100 = first quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
200 = second quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
300 = third quarter 2004

I anticipate that the fourth quarter will bring us some 400 series promotions. ;)

An example of a 300 series promotion would be Stay 5, Stay 10, and Stays Count Double. Lots of threads here on them. Probably the 100 and 200 series, too.[/email]

You're the man, William - you really deserved that Freddie. I never put 2 and 2 together to realize the promotions were quarterly - I thought the higher the number, the better the promotion.

So let me ask this, then I'll go back to lurking... now that I've maxed out my Stay 10 get 2 free, can I switch over to the triple points promotion I was signed up for? There's really no point in me staying on this stay 10 since I've already hit 100 nights. Should I just wait for the 400-level? I kind of want to max out the triple points promo...

I didn't hit ultra-mega-platinum until June so that's probably why I wasn't targeted for the 100/200 level promos.

You're the man, William - you really deserved that Freddie. I never put 2 and 2 together to realize the promotions were quarterly - I thought the higher the number, the better the promotion.

So let me ask this, then I'll go back to lurking... now that I've maxed out my Stay 10 get 2 free, can I switch over to the triple points promotion I was signed up for? There's really no point in me staying on this stay 10 since I've already hit 100 nights. Should I just wait for the 400-level? I kind of want to max out the triple points promo...

I didn't hit ultra-mega-platinum until June so that's probably why I wasn't targeted for the 100/200 level promos.

Now that you've maxed out Stay 10, you'll have to wait for the fourth quarter to see if anything is forthcoming. Everything this quarter is a 300 promo, which is not compatible with other 300 promos, including Stay 10.

I wouldn't place too much on stay history being the defining element for who gets what. It's a lot more complicated than that. ;)

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

I wouldn't place too much on stay history being the defining element for who gets what. It's a lot more complicated than that. ;)

Sounds like a bunch of smoke and mirrors to me - but I guess I'll take what I can get. Do you generally discourage people sharing promotion numbers/offers on here (being that you work from starwood)? I have registered for some promotions I haven't "directly" been sent in the past.

Sounds like a bunch of smoke and mirrors to me - but I guess I'll take what I can get. Do you generally discourage people sharing promotion numbers/offers on here (being that you work from starwood)? I have registered for some promotions I haven't "directly" been sent in the past.

I try and discourage it for several reasons:

1) if you register for a promotion you weren't intended to have, we can remove it from your account without notice. this sets you up for a major disappointment later. it can also get you some attention from Accounts Integrity.

2) if you call and successfully coax an associate into giving you something that you weren't intended to have and we find out about it, that associate is written up for violating company policy. it goes into their permanent work record, so this sets our associate up for some major disappointment later.

3) your call, if it is solely for this reason, adds to the work load unnecessarily and inhibits our ability to provide customer service where it may truly be needed.

4) promotions are not an entitlement or a reward for being an elite member in the program. they are dispersed according to the goals of the marketing gurus who decide who gets what by applying the metrics necessary to determine it.

5) promotions are an expense to the program. if we have more members participating in a given offer than anticipated, we are limited by budgetary constraints on what can be offered later in the year and to how many.

So, yes, I discourage it, but there is little that I can do or have the time to do anything to prevent it.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

I try and discourage it for several reasons:

1) if you register for a promotion you weren't intended to have, we can remove it from your account without notice. this sets you up for a major disappointment later. it can also get you some attention from Accounts Integrity.

2) if you call and successfully coax an associate into giving you something that you weren't intended to have and we find out about it, that associate is written up for violating company policy. it goes into their permanent work record, so this sets our associate up for some major disappointment later.

3) your call, if it is solely for this reason, adds to the work load unnecessarily and inhibits our ability to provide customer service where it may truly be needed.

4) promotions are not an entitlement or a reward for being an elite member in the program. they are dispersed according to the goals of the marketing gurus who decide who gets what by applying the metrics necessary to determine it.

5) promotions are an expense to the program. if we have more members participating in a given offer than anticipated, we are limited by budgetary constraints on what can be offered later in the year and to how many.

So, yes, I discourage it, but there is little that I can do or have the time to do anything to prevent it.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

GOOD FOR YOU....it drives me crazy when people do things like this...it really takes away from the integrity of the promotions. I am all for maximizing WITHIN the rules, but lying and deceiving is B.S.!

I don't mean any disrespect to the OP, but with so many nights/stays, how would you find time to redeem the free weekends, etc that you would also earn from promotions?

-David

Thanks Dave - my thoughts exactly. Of course, besides finding the time, exactly what other hotel would you want to go to?

It's nice to know there are promotions for all quarters. However, I have earned all the free nights (yes, 1 free night per 5 nights :( ). Can you just squeeze out a mid quarter promotion like triple points or something please? :D

100 = first quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
200 = second quarter 2004 (these have run their course)
300 = third quarter 2004

I anticipate that the fourth quarter will bring us some 400 series promotions. ;)

An example of a 300 series promotion would be Stay 5, Stay 10, and Stays Count Double. Lots of threads here on them. Probably the 100 and 200 series, too.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

I don't mean any disrespect to the OP, but with so many nights/stays, how would you find time to redeem the free weekends, etc that you would also earn from promotions?

-David

I get 5 weeks of vacation a year and take quite a few weekend trips. Consultants generally get things called "flex flybacks" where we can travel to the city of our choice for the weekend instead of going home. So I'll head to the W in LA for the weekend, etc.

I try and discourage it for several reasons:

***Good points***[/email]

Those are completely valid reasons - and I definitely respect you for being straight with us on that! I will make sure not to share targeted promotions in this forum.

Last question though - is there anything we can do to ensure we receive promotion offers each quarter?

Thanks!

...Last question though - is there anything we can do to ensure we receive promotion offers each quarter?

Thanks!

Well, not being one of the marketing gurus, I can't say what the parameters will be for any future targetted promotions, so I wouldn't know what to tell you to make it a sure thing; however, I know that it is very rare for someone to be targetted for more than three quarters out of a year for anything. Most of the time, almost everyone is excluded from one time to another.

In short, I don't think there is anything you can do to better your chances. You just have to meet the basics that the metrics demand, and that changes from promotion to promotion and from quarter to quarter.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

It is so nice to get a straight answer with reasons from a company. Even reasons that the public might not like. More firms should take this approach. Thanks Starwood Lurker.