Dynamic pricing in my favour
 

3 weeks ago I booked (cash) a 4-day stay at a California Travelodge online. Today the exact same reservation was $54 cheaper, so I cancelled the original reservation and re-booked at the lower price. This is the second time during the past 4 months that I have been able to reduce the cost of a stay by checking current prices.

A good reason to avoid advance purchase rates (unless they're still available a day or two before the stay starts and still a good deal then).

I've had the same experience at particular hotels in just about every program, including also Best Western, Choice, Hilton, Marriott, and SPG. That's because prices are set by the particular hotel, not the program, so the fact that some hotels have dynamic pricing that acts in your favor has nothing to do with the hotel program itself.