Introducing Marriott Bonvoy

THE NEW NAME AND LOOK FOR MARRIOTT REWARDS, THE RITZ-CARLTON REWARDS AND STARWOOD PREFERRED GUEST

Marriott International has revealed Marriott Bonvoy, as the new loyalty brand that will replace the current Marriott Rewards, The Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) brands.

The revised marketing strategy has been eagerly awaited and has been under development since Marriott’s acquisition of Starwood Hotels and Resorts and last year’s integration of more than 110 million members of the Marriott Rewards, Ritz-Carlton Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) programmes.

Completion of Intergration

For the first time since Marriott acquired Starwood Hotels and Resorts in 2016, these programmes were brought together in August 2018 to operate under one set of unified benefits.

One currency will be spanning the entire loyalty portfolio of 29 brands and more than 6,700 participating hotels in 130 countries and territories.

Now, from February 13 the combined programme completes its integration with the rebranding under Marriott Bonvoy. Members have been able to seamlessly earn and redeem across the entire loyalty portfolio and achieve Elite status faster with new Elite tiers.

As a result of the unified, singlecurrency, when members combine their accounts, their points balances also combined, ending the need to transfer points between programmes.

Marriott claims that members now earn on average 20 per cent more points per dollar spent.

New names for previous Elite status

Alongside the new name and look, has anything else changed? Well, the launch of Marriott Bonvoy has introduced two new names for previous Elite status tier names. The Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite replaces Platinum Premier Elite for members who surpass 75 nights, while Marriott Bonvoy Ambassador Elite replaces Platinum Premier Elite with Ambassador.

The latter, the top Elite status tier of the programme, recognises members who surpass 100 nights and more than USD20,000 in spend annually.

These members enjoy the highest level of personalisation with a dedicated ambassador to help plan their travel and cater to their needs one-on-one.

Rebrand built on belief

Marriott says the new Bonvoy loyalty strategy is “built on the belief that travel enriches us all and has the power to enrich the world”. Upon its formal launch next month, the logo and branding will begin to roll out across all consumer touch-points, including on property, marketing and sales channels, digital, mobile and co-brand credit cards bolstered by a multi-milliondollar global media campaign that will start in late February. “Marriott Bonvoy marks an evolution in travel because it represents more than a loyalty programme,” says Stephanie Linnartz, global chief commercial officer, Marriott International.

“Marriott Bonvoy is a travel programme designed to bring to life our extraordinary portfolio of global brands in 129 countries and territories, while also providing endless inspiration for members to keep travelling and pursuing their passions.”

Marriott Bonvoy Moments

Also from February 13 and as part of the rebrand, Marriott Rewards Moments and SPG Moments will become Marriott Bonvoy Moments, which together with Marriott Moments will feature approximately 120,000 experiences in 1,000 destinations available for purchase or by redeeming points. In addition to accessing locally relevant sights and excursions, members can indulge in once a lifetime experiences during hotel stays. Marriott Bonvoy will also usher in a new mobile experience for members and will automatically replace the current Marriott app. The existing SPG and The RitzCarlton Rewards apps will be deactivated once the Marriott app takes