Marriott Bonvoy? (Potential new program leak)
Nov 25, 2018, 12:47 pm
#121
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So people with no status (but having a Chase Marriott credit card) would be walking into hotels claiming they have Premier status because that's what their "card" shows.
AA has enough of that confusion because they let Citi use Gold and Platinum as card names having nothing to do with Gold and Platinum airline status (but some people get confused and think it does).
Nov 25, 2018, 12:50 pm
#122
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The BonVoy name only doesn't seem to make sense because there was marketing slogan attached to it that didn't happen to get leaked:
"We're creating the hotel program which will walk more guests than any other hotel program, as we tell them, well you signed up for BonVoy, so 'bon voyage'!" 
"We're creating the hotel program which will walk more guests than any other hotel program, as we tell them, well you signed up for BonVoy, so 'bon voyage'!"
Nov 25, 2018, 1:01 pm
#123
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hold it down for The Bay, reppin' Oakland
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Sure, voyage is just trip in French. But "Bon Voyage," which is almost certainly what they were riffing on, is (at least in the US) a phrase we trot out when we're sending off honeymooners or waving from the dock as our parents embark on a cruise. It's not a phrase that I (but maybe I'm weird) associate with business travel.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
Nov 25, 2018, 1:04 pm
#124
Join Date: May 2002
Programs: AAdvantage Platinum, United Silver, Marriott Titanium Elite
Posts: 2,276
I was not being intolerant. I was not questioning anyone's right to express an opinion. I was simply noting my surprise to the negative reaction. Bonvoy was called "ridiculous" and "pretty much the lamest loyalty program name imaginable," among other things.
Marriott is likely to introduce the name Bonvoy for its combined loyalty program in early 2019, given such evidence as trademark filings, so it's probably a "done deal" by now.
It seems to me that it's just a name. It's not the best brand name of the past decade, but it's not the worst either. I don't see how fact the bon has a meaning in the French language (a positive meaning) is a bad thing. Commercial neologisms often look to Latin or languages other than English. It's only a leaked name at this point, so it's meaningless now, except for what we each personally read into it. When the marketing begins, Marriott will do its best to give it a meaning. We'll get used to it.
Some day, even spell-checkers are likely to recognize it.
Nov 25, 2018, 1:14 pm
#125
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Nov 25, 2018, 1:23 pm
#126
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: La Jolla, CA
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Nov 25, 2018, 1:51 pm
#127
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I am amazed how much some folks here despise the name Bonvoy.
Bonvoy seems like an acceptable commercial neologism. Think of other brands like Avios and Expedia. Such brands usually have Latin roots or other components that suggest meaning, while not being words in the dictionary — but words that can be trademarked, protected, controlled, and are good for online use.
Bon means good in French. Voy suggests travel. And, of course, as others have noted, if you combine Bon Voyage into one word and lop off the final syllable, you get Bonvoy.
Bonvoy seems like an acceptable commercial neologism. Think of other brands like Avios and Expedia. Such brands usually have Latin roots or other components that suggest meaning, while not being words in the dictionary — but words that can be trademarked, protected, controlled, and are good for online use.
Bon means good in French. Voy suggests travel. And, of course, as others have noted, if you combine Bon Voyage into one word and lop off the final syllable, you get Bonvoy.
Nov 25, 2018, 1:52 pm
#128
Join Date: May 2002
Programs: AAdvantage Platinum, United Silver, Marriott Titanium Elite
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At first, I was going to call Bonvoy a portmanteau. A portmanteau involves two words blended into one. For example, Disney likes to coin portmanteaus such as Innoventions, Imagineering, and Environmentality. Bonvoy can be seen as portmanteau of bon and voyage, but that’s not how I expect Marriott to present it and market it (I could be wrong).
A neologism is simply a newly coined word or expression.
I also considered calling Bonvoy a “nonsense word” — not an actual word — but “nonsense” could be misinterpreted as negative on my part.
And I thought of just calling it a trademark. After all, trademarks, especially newer ones, are often not dictionary words.
Because Bonvoy is a newly coined word for commercial purposes, I chose to call it a commercial neologism.
A neologism is simply a newly coined word or expression.
I also considered calling Bonvoy a “nonsense word” — not an actual word — but “nonsense” could be misinterpreted as negative on my part.
And I thought of just calling it a trademark. After all, trademarks, especially newer ones, are often not dictionary words.
Because Bonvoy is a newly coined word for commercial purposes, I chose to call it a commercial neologism.
Nov 25, 2018, 1:58 pm
#129
Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 1,324
Sure, voyage is just trip in French. But "Bon Voyage," which is almost certainly what they were riffing on, is (at least in the US) a phrase we trot out when we're sending off honeymooners or waving from the dock as our parents embark on a cruise. It's not a phrase that I (but maybe I'm weird) associate with business travel.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
Nov 25, 2018, 2:02 pm
#130
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: La Jolla, CA
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Posts: 2,615
At first, I was going to call Bonvoy a portmanteau. A portmanteau involves two words blended into one. For example, Disney likes to coin portmanteaus such as Innoventions, Imagineering, and Environmentality. Bonvoy can be seen as portmanteau of bon and voyage, but that’s not how I expect Marriott to present it and market it (I could be wrong).
A neologism is simply a newly coined word or expression.
I also considered calling Bonvoy a “nonsense word” — not an actual word — but “nonsense” could be misinterpreted as negative on my part.
And I thought of just calling it a trademark. After all, trademarks, especially newer ones, are often not dictionary words.
Because Bonvoy is a newly coined word for commercial purposes, I chose to call it a commercial neologism.
A neologism is simply a newly coined word or expression.
I also considered calling Bonvoy a “nonsense word” — not an actual word — but “nonsense” could be misinterpreted as negative on my part.
And I thought of just calling it a trademark. After all, trademarks, especially newer ones, are often not dictionary words.
Because Bonvoy is a newly coined word for commercial purposes, I chose to call it a commercial neologism.
Nonsense and Portmanteau kind of go together- considering that it was Humpty Dumpty who first used the word when he was talking to Alice in Wonderland 🙃
Nov 25, 2018, 2:13 pm
#131
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: DCA
Programs: AA EXP; BoNVoY Tit LTP
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Someone else actually used Bonvoy before Marriott but they seem to have vanished: https://twitter.com/bonvoy
Nov 25, 2018, 2:25 pm
#132
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Sure, voyage is just trip in French. But "Bon Voyage," which is almost certainly what they were riffing on, is (at least in the US) a phrase we trot out when we're sending off honeymooners or waving from the dock as our parents embark on a cruise. It's not a phrase that I (but maybe I'm weird) associate with business travel.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
I think they would have been better off choosing/creating a word/name that spoke to the ideas of loyalty and preferential treatment. That would make more sense for the LOYALTY PROGRAM part of their business.
Barring that, if they wanted to focus on underscoring the best and most attractive aspects of Marriott for their most frequent guests, I would have tried to create a word/name that emphasized consistency and a sense of being welcome/belonging/being known and cared for.
I pointed this out in an earlier post in this thread.
OTOH, bon voyage has connotations of people departing, so maybe it's a reference to the elites who claim they're going to leave the new combined Starriott program.
OTOH, bon voyage has connotations of people departing, so maybe it's a reference to the elites who claim they're going to leave the new combined Starriott program.
Nov 25, 2018, 4:11 pm
#133
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I dont have a screenshot but have had agents show me the screen.
there is a line l that shows a series of codes. The first code shows statua. Then there are codes for things like king bed preferred, high floor, etc and one for ambassador. As far as I can tell, the codes in the Marriott system have not changed but in the past few days I've been recognized at check in as a Plat, a lifetime Plat, and a Plat Premier. One agent was very politely emphatic that X6 stood for lifetime platinum (its plat premier). And there isnt the slightest evidence of any priority for those with ambassadors unless the ambassador contacts the property. Perhaps .... the lack of training can be explained that the various operators knew that new names were coming.
there is a line l that shows a series of codes. The first code shows statua. Then there are codes for things like king bed preferred, high floor, etc and one for ambassador. As far as I can tell, the codes in the Marriott system have not changed but in the past few days I've been recognized at check in as a Plat, a lifetime Plat, and a Plat Premier. One agent was very politely emphatic that X6 stood for lifetime platinum (its plat premier). And there isnt the slightest evidence of any priority for those with ambassadors unless the ambassador contacts the property. Perhaps .... the lack of training can be explained that the various operators knew that new names were coming.
What should be displayed is the two-character code for your status and then an "L" for lifetime after it which would make this very easy. It's also a ridiculously simple IT change. Given that Marriott.com still tells me the landing page is "Raleigh-Durham Airport Hotel", I don't think anyone on this forum has a shred of confidence the IT department could even figure out how to display the "L".
-RM
Nov 25, 2018, 4:36 pm
#134
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
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Posts: 5,678
The name isn't a deciding factor for me at all - but that doesn't mean I won't engage in humorous banter about a goofy name. Marriott wouldn't be the first company to have its product or name mocked, and won't be the last.
Over at DoC, reader "PedroNY" commented that he was in a Marriott focus group where this was one of 3 names discussed...
https://www.doctorofcredit.com/marri...rriott-bonvoy/
PedroNY
November 24, 2018 9:59 pmI did a focus group for them 12 months ago, this was one of 3 names that they asked us about through out 2 hours of the focus group. I guess the cat is out of the bag now.
Cheers,
PedroNY
November 24, 2018 9:59 pmI did a focus group for them 12 months ago, this was one of 3 names that they asked us about through out 2 hours of the focus group. I guess the cat is out of the bag now.
Cheers,
PedroNY
PedroNY
November 25, 2018 9:50 amI signed an NDA, but other two were no better. Lol.
Cheers,
PedroNY
November 25, 2018 9:50 amI signed an NDA, but other two were no better. Lol.
Cheers,
PedroNY
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais...essel:BONVOY_6
Nov 25, 2018, 4:41 pm
#135
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Toronto, Canada
Posts: 946
I’ve decided the new name sounds like bonfire.
Top tip for Marriott Bonfire members - burn your points before the next devaluation.
Top tip for Marriott Bonfire members - burn your points before the next devaluation.