Event Planner FAQ.pdf - cloudfront.net
EVENT PLANNER INTERNAL TALKING POINTS AND FAQS Event Planner Internal Talking Points Overview: Event Planner Rewards is a program to drive loyalty with our meetings customers and enables us to compete for our share of the meetings market with prospective customers. Event Planner Rewards members earn rewards based upon the dollar amount spent at any of our Red Lion Hotels for the following: • All guest room revenue • Catered food and beverage revenue • Meeting room rentals that are associated with a group or catering sales agreement which specifies Event Planner Rewards as part of the terms of the agreement. The Event Planner Rewards terms must be included in the group booking agreement, indicating that both the customer and the hotel agree upon the terms of rewards. The Event Planner Rewards number attached to the recipient of the rewards is to be documented in the group sales agreement. Hotels are billed for the rewards that are awarded, dollar-for-dollar, plus any processing fees. For example, if the Event Planner earns a $100 gift card, the gift card is fulfilled by RLHC after receiving appropriate documentation from the hotel. The hotel is then billed back $100 plus any processing fee for the away fulfillment. RLHC will attempt to process any gift cards in bulk to lessen any additional processing fees. Q. When do we use Event Planner Rewards? A. It is only a loyalty building program if we consistently offer it. So when asked for Event Planner Rewards by a customer, offer it. And proactively offer it to gain a competitive advantage. Rewards are a tool and a concession. It is a tool to help close business and gain a competitive advantage. It is also a tool to build repeat business and loyalty. It is a concession, as the cost of the rewards directly impacts the profitability of the business. There is approximately a 2% cost associated with the rewards fulfillment. Scenario: 30 rooms for 2 nights at ADR of $95 = $5700 @70% rooms profit margin = $3990 net Less cost of rewards @100 = $3890 net This still looks like a great decision, especially if it is the only concession. It will need to be weighed with other concessions, such as complimentary rooms, suites and any other commissions and rebates. Bottom Line: Use Event Planner Rewards to help close business.
Q. What about my customers who liked the old R&R Club program? A. Educate your customers about the benefits of the new program – the cash value they receive is much richer than the R&R Club program. With the R&R Club program, they received 10,000 points for every $3,300 spent. Now, if a customer spends $5,000, which is the equivalent of 15,000 R&R Club points, the payout is over 150% higher than what they were getting previously based upon cash value. R&R Club program: $5,000 = 15,000 points 15,000 points = 1.5 nights at a Red Lion Hotel OR $37.50 gift certificate for Macy’s, Costco or Giftcertificates.com Event Planner Rewards 2015: $5,000 = $100 to be applied to the master account or $100 gift card For every $5,000 they spend, up to $25,000 we are giving them a $100 value reward, pure and simple. That is $63. 50 more than they got per 15,000 points with the R&R Club program. We reward them and they decide how they want to reward themselves any way they like. Q. What if my customer spends less than $2,000 for their event? A. If a guest spends less than $2,000, it will be up to the hotel’s discretion to award the $50 gift card or master bill credit. We do not recommend breaking the reward below $50. Q. What if my customer spends more than $25,000 and they want additional rewards? A. This is your decision, keeping in mind the loyalty you build by honoring the rewards on the additional amount you spend. It is 2% to award $100 on every $5,000. Do the math and if it is profitable for you, then it likely makes sense to do it. Many of our competitors do not have a cap on their rewards programs. So, you may also want to understand who you are competing against. Q. What if my customer asks about airline miles as an available option to earn? A. While RLHC does not currently offer airline miles as a perk, please consider informing Event Planners that request this feature that they are able to purchase airline miles at a low cost by using their gift card earned. Alaska Airlines currently has a low-cost airline purchase program which charges an airline purchase program $27.50 per 1,000 miles, plus a 7.5% Federal Excise Tax and GST/HST for Canadian residents. At that price they can get 3,000 miles per $100 rewards gift card. Any mileage transactions will take place through the airline directly and will not involve RLHC. Q. How are Event Planner perks fulfilled? A. Currently there is a Event Planner Fulfillment Form within the Event Planner page that can be accessed through SharePoint. Once a group/meeting is completed, the Event Planner form will be filled out completely and sent to the individual
listed within the form. If the Event Planner has chosen to receive the master account credit, this will be listed within the form and any credit will be done on property before payment is completed. If the Event Planner has chosen the gift card option, this will be listed within the form and someone within RLHC will fulfill the cards and send directly out to the Event Planner. Any charges (including the cards themselves) and any fees associated with them will be directly provided to RLHC accounting to be paid for by the property. Orders will likely be done in bulk uploads to keep any costs down. Q. What collateral do we have on the Event Planner program? A. Sales teams have available collateral that provides details about the Event Planner program that can be ordered through HD Supply. Hotels also have an electronic version available to them that is posted on the Event Planner page on SharePoint that can be used to send via email. Q. If an Event Planner books a group and reservations nights are booked by individual members, will both the Event Planner and member earn credit? A. This will be a HUGE selling tool for sales teams as RLHC is different than our competitors in this area. The Event Planner is eligible for rewards for business in which they facilitate the agreement with the hotel, regardless of who pays for the business. So for individually booked reservations affiliated with a group agreement, both the Event Planner and the individual Hello rewards members receive reward credit. The Hello Rewards membership profile attached to the individual reservation will earn individual stay count credit, while the room revenue associated with the room is applied to the Event Planner’s rewards credit. Most of the major hotel brands Event Planner bonus programs only award the Event Planner for rooms which go to a master bill and will not award credit to the planner as well as an individual. Q. Will RLHC gift cards be available within the Event Planner program? A. Currently the available Event Planner perks are provided below and include a cash card option as well as a master account credit. We are continuously working on an enhancement to allow RLHC gift cards to be an option. As additional Event Planner perks are added to the program, communication will be presented to the field.
GIFT CARD
MASTER ACCOUNT CREDIT
Guest Spent
Gift Card Amount
Guest Spent
Gift Card Amount
$2,000 to $4,999
$50
$2,000 to $4,999
$50
$5,000 to $9,999
$100
$5,000 to $9,999
$100
$10,000 to $14,999
$200
$10,000 to $14,999
$200
$15,000 to $19,999
$300
$15,000 to $19,999
$300
$20,000 to $24,999
$400
$20,000 to $24,999
$400
$25,000+
$500
$25,000+
$500
© 2015 Red Lion Hotels Corporation
Q. What about my customers who liked the old R&R Club program? A. Educate your customers about the benefits of the new program – the cash value they receive is much richer than the R&R Club program. With the R&R Club program, they received 10,000 points for every $3,300 spent. Now, if a customer spends $5,000, which is the equivalent of 15,000 R&R Club points, the payout is over 150% higher than what they were getting previously based upon cash value. R&R Club program: $5,000 = 15,000 points 15,000 points = 1.5 nights at a Red Lion Hotel OR $37.50 gift certificate for Macy’s, Costco or Giftcertificates.com Event Planner Rewards 2015: $5,000 = $100 to be applied to the master account or $100 gift card For every $5,000 they spend, up to $25,000 we are giving them a $100 value reward, pure and simple. That is $63. 50 more than they got per 15,000 points with the R&R Club program. We reward them and they decide how they want to reward themselves any way they like. Q. What if my customer spends less than $2,000 for their event? A. If a guest spends less than $2,000, it will be up to the hotel’s discretion to award the $50 gift card or master bill credit. We do not recommend breaking the reward below $50. Q. What if my customer spends more than $25,000 and they want additional rewards? A. This is your decision, keeping in mind the loyalty you build by honoring the rewards on the additional amount you spend. It is 2% to award $100 on every $5,000. Do the math and if it is profitable for you, then it likely makes sense to do it. Many of our competitors do not have a cap on their rewards programs. So, you may also want to understand who you are competing against. Q. What if my customer asks about airline miles as an available option to earn? A. While RLHC does not currently offer airline miles as a perk, please consider informing Event Planners that request this feature that they are able to purchase airline miles at a low cost by using their gift card earned. Alaska Airlines currently has a low-cost airline purchase program which charges an airline purchase program $27.50 per 1,000 miles, plus a 7.5% Federal Excise Tax and GST/HST for Canadian residents. At that price they can get 3,000 miles per $100 rewards gift card. Any mileage transactions will take place through the airline directly and will not involve RLHC. Q. How are Event Planner perks fulfilled? A. Currently there is a Event Planner Fulfillment Form within the Event Planner page that can be accessed through SharePoint. Once a group/meeting is completed, the Event Planner form will be filled out completely and sent to the individual
listed within the form. If the Event Planner has chosen to receive the master account credit, this will be listed within the form and any credit will be done on property before payment is completed. If the Event Planner has chosen the gift card option, this will be listed within the form and someone within RLHC will fulfill the cards and send directly out to the Event Planner. Any charges (including the cards themselves) and any fees associated with them will be directly provided to RLHC accounting to be paid for by the property. Orders will likely be done in bulk uploads to keep any costs down. Q. What collateral do we have on the Event Planner program? A. Sales teams have available collateral that provides details about the Event Planner program that can be ordered through HD Supply. Hotels also have an electronic version available to them that is posted on the Event Planner page on SharePoint that can be used to send via email. Q. If an Event Planner books a group and reservations nights are booked by individual members, will both the Event Planner and member earn credit? A. This will be a HUGE selling tool for sales teams as RLHC is different than our competitors in this area. The Event Planner is eligible for rewards for business in which they facilitate the agreement with the hotel, regardless of who pays for the business. So for individually booked reservations affiliated with a group agreement, both the Event Planner and the individual Hello rewards members receive reward credit. The Hello Rewards membership profile attached to the individual reservation will earn individual stay count credit, while the room revenue associated with the room is applied to the Event Planner’s rewards credit. Most of the major hotel brands Event Planner bonus programs only award the Event Planner for rooms which go to a master bill and will not award credit to the planner as well as an individual. Q. Will RLHC gift cards be available within the Event Planner program? A. Currently the available Event Planner perks are provided below and include a cash card option as well as a master account credit. We are continuously working on an enhancement to allow RLHC gift cards to be an option. As additional Event Planner perks are added to the program, communication will be presented to the field.
GIFT CARD
MASTER ACCOUNT CREDIT
Guest Spent
Gift Card Amount
Guest Spent
Gift Card Amount
$2,000 to $4,999
$50
$2,000 to $4,999
$50
$5,000 to $9,999
$100
$5,000 to $9,999
$100
$10,000 to $14,999
$200
$10,000 to $14,999
$200
$15,000 to $19,999
$300
$15,000 to $19,999
$300
$20,000 to $24,999
$400
$20,000 to $24,999
$400
$25,000+
$500
$25,000+
$500
© 2015 Red Lion Hotels Corporation
