I have been staying at the Renaissance in St. Augustine, FL for the last 10 or so weeks. I am starting to receive these surveys from Marriott via (snail) mail asking me to rate my stay in a 16 question survey.
My question to Marriott: how the heck do you expect to get any responses if you offer nada, zip, nil in return for filling out the survey? Sometimes these market research types are so clueless...

Just mail them back empty. This way you are at least helping the US Postal Service get revenue from Marriott.

Same thing with the Renaissance I stay in (past 4 months for a total of 120 nights). They have me drowning in surveys but offer nothing in return. I have started just sending empty envelops back.

Marriott is also the worst chain in the sense of promos. we get no online booking bonus, we get no option of platnium gifts (even if you get them), I get very little in the terms of respect from Elite services when I ask them something.

My latest gaff is over not receving ANY elite materials yet. Passed silver in Feb, made Gold by March, Plat by April and still NO CARD, welcome letter, etc. I asked them about this in an email and I got a canned response back saying that you can find the benefits of elite membership at the following link, yadyadaya....

If there are Mariott Lurkers out there you need to do something or you are going to start having a defection to Starwood. I am already exploring it as people on the starwood forum have online reward booking (instant, no certs to mail to you), promos out the *ss, and online booking bonuses.

END OF MY RANT

I "explored" a change to Starwood less than a year ago as my prefered hotel plan, and I only wish I had done so sooner. With a pretty modest business travel and vacation schedule (one or two stays per month), I have managed to score two Free Fridays usable anywhere I want by August 30, plus I've already built up enough points for free nights at the W Seattle (a premier SPG property) and several lower-grade properties.

I've done this without really trying all that hard, and the my overall satisfaction is infinitely higher with the quality of the properties as well as the SPG plan's flexibility.

Marriott is still fine in my book, and I have a few stays occasionally at Courtyards or Fairfield Inns, but only when SPG properties are not available. I'll probably find a way to use my points and then migrate to Hilton Honors as my plan.

FWIW, I don't mean to say that this works for everybody. SPG is just a better option for me as my primary hotel plan.

What do you mean no option of plat gifts?

don't you receive the card at check in as to what you would like.. for example.. I always choose a Sam Adams and the Ice Cream.. but there are other choices too, no points to choose from but nonetheless, there are other choices.

I've had only good luck with these gifts. I really like them.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gottigotti:
[Bbonus, we get no option of platnium gifts (even if you get them),

Are you guys really that bitter about surveys? I get them from time to time from various air and hotel companies. If I'm in the mood, I fill them out. If I'm not, I toss them. If I take one look at the survey and it looks like more than 5 minutes of my time, I toss it.

I probably ignore 75% of survey requests either because it looks like too much work or because I'm not in the mood.

I've never expected a reward for filling them out, and I've never gotten mad and sent them an empty envelope. I don't think it's THAT big of a deal.

No, some of us don't receive any cards, nor even any "plat gifts". Indeed, this is the first I've ever heard of any such thing as "cards" on check-in.

I've been plat since October last year, and have stayed over 60 nights at various Marriotts already this year, and although I *did* finally get my platinum card in the mail early this year, what I *haven't* gotten includes:

- No "card" asking about what you'd like when I check in - ever!;
- No account statement in nearly a year (although they do have my address - I received the W14 certificates I earned at various times over the last 9 months);
- The Elite Offer booklets all other elites seem to get;
- Answers to my requests for credit of various stays, despite calling, faxing (twice), the hotel even faxing (twice); e-mailing numerous times, including to the FlyerTalk "special" address (but I did get mechanical responses to some of the e-mails saying they had received the e-mail and would get back to me - which they didn't), writing letters and even sending them "certified" mail so I know the letters were received.

All of my communications have been polite and courteous. The faxes have been of the hotel bills in question proving my having stayed in the hotels and when, and of my credit card bills confirming the charges. I have even included the copies in my letters. The hotels at which I stayed, that I have been unable to get credit for, have been more than helpful in trying to get this straightened out - even to the point of sending special faxes to Marriott.

Yet - nothing!

I'm not sure what one needs to do to get a response out of those people.

The one time I wrote negative comments, about the Residence Inn in Windsor, CT; the GM of the hotel was on the phone to me within a week asking what went wrong, how can they improve the hotel, etc.

She offered, and I accepted, 10,000 MR points.

BTW, the Renaissance in St. Augustine is a wonderful place :-). It's great to go down to the lobby in the morning, get a cup of coffee, and listen to the waterfalls.

I've had 100% success with the plat amenity--the booze and snacks show up right on time..Everytime. It would be nice if they would throw us a bone for filling out the surveys (even 50 points) but I usually fill them out anyway.

I really don't understand the concept of NOT doing the surveys. Whenever I've been given survey's I fill them out. If I'd have problems on the stay, I've ALWAYS recieved a call or snail mail letter saying how they've addressed the problem, and occasionally compensation. Remember, Marriott GM's pay and JOBS are based off of these surveys. If your staying at a hotel a lot, and give them a favorable result (assuming it's deserved) you might be surprised as to how you can be rewarded.

I'm just curious when everyone who travels suddenly decided they "deserved" points and or "something" for any little thing a company asks them to do?

I take my car in for service - I usually get a survey asking how things were at the dealership. I don't expect an oil change in return. What I do expect is that if I have a complaint and I bring it up, that something be done about it which, in my experience, happens at Marriott.

I actuallt filled in a guest survey at the hotel itself due to the many problems I had there during my 1st 2 weeks. Got a message from AGM, I called back and left message and subsequently didn't hear anything back anymore

I've been platinum for the past 7 years and agree that Marriott is doing little to earn my continued business. It's always a guessing game now as to whether I'll get a welcoming gift, an upgraded room, a comp breakfast if the concierge lounge is closed, a newspaper, etc. There is absolutely no uniformity in the Rewards program now. In fact, I'm so irked, I just cancelled 12 room nights, opting for similar properties at a far less cost. My loyalty is ebbing very quickly.