InfoSec, you've got a lot of good points made by others.

Due to their smaller footprints, I always recommend that anyone who has either Hyatt or Starwood as their primary also has a backup hotel chain with a larger footprint. I recommend that they have at least one of the following:
1) Marriott - Gold is the sweet spot, but takes quite a few nights. The Chase Marriott Visa helps a lot here with 15 nights' credit.
2) Hilton - Diamond's better but Gold's sufficient in most cases. You can get Gold status automatically with a credit card.
3) IHG - Benefits are a bit murkier, but getting better. Platinum's the sweet spot and is given with the credit card. The annual fee on the credit card is $49 and gives you a free night at any IHG property worldwide. I always use mine to stay Intercontinental hotels (except for the weekend we stayed at the Palazzo) which more than pays for the annual fee.

Depending on how much you travel, the more backups the better. I even have Best Western Diamond status due to their status match program.