Inside Hyatt's Loyalty Strategy: Why Care Creates Customer Advocacy(#779)

PAULA: Hello, and welcome to Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV, a show for loyalty marketing professionals.

PAULA: I’m Paula Thomas, the founder and CEO of Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV, where we feature insightful conversations with loyalty professionals from the world’s leading brands.

PAULA: Today’s episode is hosted by Bridget Blaise-Shamai, former president of the AA Advantage program, the award-winning Travel Rewards program of American Airlines.

PAULA: Bridget is a global C-suite executive and is currently advising VC-backed startups in loyalty, travel and payments.

PAULA: Enjoy.

BRIDGET: Welcome, everyone, to this edition of Let’s Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

BRIDGET: Our guest today is Lloyd Blair, the senior vice president of global marketing and loyalty for Hyatt Hotels and Resorts.

BRIDGET: Hyatt operates nearly 1,500 properties in over 80 countries, from iconic luxury at Park Hyatt to wellness escapes at Miraval, to lifestyle favorites like Andes, to dependable core brands like Hyatt Regency and Hyatt Place.

BRIDGET: While it has larger hotel competitors, Hyatt has successfully built a portfolio designed around customer experience quality instead of just sheer scale.

BRIDGET: Complementing this is the World of Hyatt, widely considered one of the strongest hotel loyalty programs, which is based on a simple premise.

BRIDGET: Reward real customer loyalty with benefits that matter and are delivered in practice, not just promised in policy.

BRIDGET: This session promises to be educational and inspirational.

BRIDGET: Enjoy and let’s get started.

BRIDGET: Welcome Laurie to Lets Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

LLOYD BLAIR: Thank you so much.

LLOYD BLAIR: I’m so happy to be here today.

BRIDGET: We’re delighted to have you.

BRIDGET: There’s an awful lot of good stuff going on at Hyatt and the World of Hyatt, and our listeners are clearly ear to hear all about it.

BRIDGET: And so really just as a matter of format within our podcast, we always like to start with a few questions, really to get the listeners an opportunity to know you better.

BRIDGET: And the first one starts with a question from the founder of Lets Talk Loyalty, Paula.

BRIDGET: And that question right now is, is there a nonfiction book that’s really influenced you as you think about your leadership around customer loyalty or leadership in general or just, you know, your business style that’s really had an impact on your career?

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, absolutely.

LLOYD BLAIR: When I started at Hyatt, actually, I was new to the world of hotels and the world of hospitality.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so a book that I read straight away when I joined this amazing organization is called Unreasonable Hospitality.

LLOYD BLAIR: And it’s all about leadership, of course, but how you create memorable, unforgettable experiences, how making people feel seen and cared for, makes such a profound impact and how they feel about your brand.

LLOYD BLAIR: And, you know, as a marketer at heart, that’s something I’ve always strived to do.

LLOYD BLAIR: But having it be so pinpointed and underscored in a way that connected back to this category I was learning, has really helped me be successful in my career at Hyatt.

BRIDGET: Yes, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Will in my past at American.

BRIDGET: And yes, every detail is cared for, down to the tiniest, tiniest nuggets.

BRIDGET: So that’s terrific.

BRIDGET: Thank you for sharing that.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, there’s some insight that you pull.

LLOYD BLAIR: I’m not going to quote it precisely, but there’s something in there that’s like the, the real definition of luxury is being seen.

LLOYD BLAIR: And we all think about how to deliver this experience when really, like the best example of luxury are just being understood.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think that’s something that can be taken away across leadership, across marketing, across brand design, and certainly across loyalty.

BRIDGET: That’s so true.

BRIDGET: This is the core essence of being, of being seen, being heard, being understood.

BRIDGET: So thank you.

BRIDGET: Those are terrific.

BRIDGET: That gets to work from.

BRIDGET: So building upon this, it’d be great to learn a bit more about your own background and areas of focus in your current role.

LLOYD BLAIR: Sure.

LLOYD BLAIR: So I’ve spent my career really focused on brand building, whether in advertising or marketing, customer experience and loyalty.

LLOYD BLAIR: I’ve worked across many industries, mostly in retail and CPG, and now, of course, in hospitality.

LLOYD BLAIR: I think what all of those have in common, especially this idea of a brand goes well beyond this widget and into an experience, and how to really leverage loyalty and data to inform marketing, and the importance of just beyond that tangible product, every single touch point is a reflection of the brand.

LLOYD BLAIR: And in my current role, I look after all things global marketing and loyalty for World of Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: So I am thinking about every day, the program, but specifically how it is inspired by Hyatt’s purpose of care, and how we bring that to life, and make sure that everything we do, and every communication point for our members, or experience they have from the pre-stay through the stay experience, feels relevant, intentional, and meaningful.

BRIDGET: So what is really enviable, I think, in travel, so with hotels and air travel, is that there are many opportunities to have a touch point with a customer.

BRIDGET: And I think it’s really incumbent on the brand to make best use of that.

BRIDGET: And in my conversations with Hyatt when I was at American Airlines, what was so consistently clear to me is how deeply entrenched this is about care of customer and care for employee that then would inform whatever policy or product or program that would come out of it.

BRIDGET: So love how genuine it really is for Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, absolutely.

LLOYD BLAIR: And it is felt, I mean, from the first days in the role to the day-to-day of thinking about how do we innovate our program, that idea of care and understanding is a part of everything that we do.

BRIDGET: And it’s real.

BRIDGET: Okay.

BRIDGET: So tell us, what are your favorite loyalty programs?

LLOYD BLAIR: Well, of course, I have to start with World of Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: But I would say, let’s take a step back.

LLOYD BLAIR: I’ve worked in loyalty for some time.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think that loyalty programs have, for the most part, been highly transactional.

LLOYD BLAIR: Some people would say, over time, just this cycle of devaluation, you get me in, you capture my info, and then I never really feel either that value or valued.

LLOYD BLAIR: And what I think, and I cannot take credit for this, by the way, but my bias towards what we’re building at World of Hyatt is that members don’t have to work hard to feel both valued and to have something valuable.

LLOYD BLAIR: And that’s something that we think a lot about.

LLOYD BLAIR: It should be simple, it should be transparent and truly rewarding.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think a lot of loyalty programs these days have sort of lost the elements of what loyalty really is in its most simple and foundational state.

BRIDGET: Yeah, I absolutely agree.

BRIDGET: And certainly as it relates to Hyatt, if you go out to Reddit and read travel blogs or simply talk to a world of Hyatt customers, this is exactly what they’re saying.

BRIDGET: They really feel cared for and valued and that they’re really honored to be a part of this community.

LLOYD BLAIR: So yeah, I feel so lucky to be able to lead this brand.

LLOYD BLAIR: And it’s funny, even in my own travels, my family and I were just on vacation in Japan and I was getting breakfast at the club lounge at a hotel and overheard two women who had just introduced themselves to each other talking about their own experiences with World of Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I just had to sit back.

LLOYD BLAIR: And what’s so cool is how passionate people are and our members are, and they are certainly willing to share and advocate and tell stories about how they experienced the brand.

LLOYD BLAIR: And every marketing leader out there wishes that they could have that level of engagement.

LLOYD BLAIR: And we’re lucky enough to have it and we need to harness that and make sure we protect it.

BRIDGET: Agree.

BRIDGET: And I would certainly believe and suggest that Hyatt has earned it.

BRIDGET: I mean, absolutely earned it.

BRIDGET: And just building upon that, though, really, this stuff just doesn’t happen right.

BRIDGET: They’re really, what it’s really well done and the results bear that out.

BRIDGET: It’s really kind of intrinsic to the company itself and the company strategy and the company’s direction on where it’s going.

BRIDGET: So what can you share with us about Hyatt’s North Star that guides them, or guides you part to me on the design and execution of products and programs for customers?

LLOYD BLAIR: Sure.

LLOYD BLAIR: So our North Star for Hyatt and of course, World of Hyatt by definition is our purpose, which is to care for people so that they can be their best.

LLOYD BLAIR: That is true for how we engage with one another.

LLOYD BLAIR: It’s certainly true with how we think about how we engage with our guests, our members, our customers, and how we design the future of programmatic elements of what we do as well.

LLOYD BLAIR: So we make sure every program update, every potential partnership, every benefit that we extend is a reflection of that experience of care to our members and to those that they care about.

LLOYD BLAIR: So to take that just a step further, I think we’ve built one of the industry’s most valuable loyalty programs by listening to what members care about.

LLOYD BLAIR: I just got off of a session where we spent time with members, listening to them, because we’re thinking about what’s the next iteration of our program.

LLOYD BLAIR: And it starts with listening.

LLOYD BLAIR: I certainly can’t pretend to sit here and say, I have all of the answers.

LLOYD BLAIR: It is our loyal members and their experiences that help us continue to be inspired and innovate for the future.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think that’s just one example of that connection of care and personalization that is just a guiding principle with how we think about how we do business.

BRIDGET: Yeah, and I think what’s, I think obvious and clear in that Hyatt works very hard is that it delivers benefits that matter and they deliver in practice versus just having it as a policy that doesn’t get delivered.

BRIDGET: And I think that is working so well for Hyatt and all its advocacy with its customers.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, I mean, it has to be something that is felt.

LLOYD BLAIR: And again, back to that point of a brand is only as good as every touch point that it has.

LLOYD BLAIR: If we have benefits that don’t actually, that aren’t actually felt or they get missed in the check-in experience, then that’s worse than never having that benefit at all.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so our promise is really comes to life in our recognition and the consistency of the delivery of that experience that is promised.

BRIDGET: So as we think about this, the clarity of the North Star is very, very empowering to employees.

BRIDGET: It helps understand how that transcends into the culture at Hyatt and how that really helps enable and supports all that Hyatt is striving to do.

LLOYD BLAIR: Absolutely.

LLOYD BLAIR: So we have this framework or saying, I guess, that is that empathy plus action equals care.

LLOYD BLAIR: And when you combine that, our colleagues are really empowered to deliver these thoughtful and personal experiences that show up in how our guests and members feel when they stay with us.

LLOYD BLAIR: It’s that underpinning, again, empathy plus action is what equals care.

LLOYD BLAIR: And not everyone is traveling or experiencing our brand because of this super special once-in-a-lifetime vacation.

LLOYD BLAIR: They might be traveling because they’re attending a funeral or they’re interviewing for a job, and this is a super stressful moment for them.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so, we have to, that point of empathy is critically important as we think about deep understanding of each and every guest or in some cases, our colleagues, and then delivering that action, which is really what underpins that care.

BRIDGET: So, I think that is an excellent point.

BRIDGET: I think it’s really hard to do, but it’s so clutch.

BRIDGET: And the reason why I say that is you could be a novice traveler, you could be a very experienced traveler, and then at any moment in time, you’re going to have any one of endless emotions.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yes.

BRIDGET: For Hyatt to really champion trying to tap into that, to then know how to either get in front of it for the customer or minimally be able to react to it is really laudable.

BRIDGET: So, love every bit of it for the Hyatt brand.

LLOYD BLAIR: It’s interesting too, because no one expects that everything is perfect.

LLOYD BLAIR: That’s impossible.

LLOYD BLAIR: But it’s how we handle the imperfection and close that gap that actually makes the difference in the experience.

LLOYD BLAIR: An air conditioning unit is going to go down, but it’s the immediacy by which we’re able to communicate and the offering of some sort of different room experience, or whatever that might look like in that moment.

LLOYD BLAIR: That’s the part of the action and care that really brings out to life.

BRIDGET: That’s right.

BRIDGET: And again, it’s in the detail of it all and the execution.

LLOYD BLAIR: Absolutely.

BRIDGET: So switching here a little bit, as we think about Hyatt as a global hospitality company, it was always challenging to me as an airline person, and where we can move the planes around to wherever the demand may be moving to.

BRIDGET: Hotels place bets, right?

BRIDGET: And you stand up a brand wherever it is stood up.

BRIDGET: And really, part of that is how you’re earning the trust and loyalty of your customers, requires this relevant product, which includes relevant location, the pricing, the integration of local culture, and many, many other things.

BRIDGET: As well as what you’ve already touched on, a consistent set of experiences and how that comes from the employee, or how it comes from technology or a combination thereupon.

BRIDGET: And then of course, amplified by the World of Hyatt program.

BRIDGET: So with that as a backdrop, it would be terrific to share with our listeners a summary of the 37 hotel brands that Hyatt offers and why behind them.

LLOYD BLAIR: Sure, so we went through a bit of a strategic brand realignment, all designed to one, accelerate growth, but two, help make sure we’re serving the unique needs of our guests and members and customers and owners.

LLOYD BLAIR: So maybe I’ll spend a minute talking about each of these.

LLOYD BLAIR: We have our luxury brands.

LLOYD BLAIR: These are, of course, the finest places for refined tastes.

LLOYD BLAIR: Think Park Hyatt, Alila, Miraval, but each one of those brands is distinct in and of themselves.

LLOYD BLAIR: We have our lifestyle portfolio, highly differentiated brands made up of beloved award-winning hotels.

LLOYD BLAIR: Think the Standard, Amdaz or Thompson.

LLOYD BLAIR: We have our inclusive portfolio.

LLOYD BLAIR: These are all-inclusive getaways designed for when every moment is worth celebrating.

LLOYD BLAIR: Think of Secrets and Dreams, Hyatt, Ziva and Zalara, and our newest addition to the World of Hyatt portfolio by Principe.

LLOYD BLAIR: Of course, the Classics portfolio.

LLOYD BLAIR: These are our timeless brands from the world’s most-traveled places.

LLOYD BLAIR: Our Hyatt Regencies and Grand Hyatt are two of the great brands in our Classics portfolio.

LLOYD BLAIR: And then our Essentials portfolio, which is our select service brands that continue to demonstrate that pipeline strength, growth, and owner value.

LLOYD BLAIR: So Hyatt Place, Hyatt House, and Hyatt Select are a few of the brands there.

LLOYD BLAIR: But I think what’s interesting and important, and you sort of touched on this, is our, especially our members, but travelers in general, look for brands sometimes.

LLOYD BLAIR: Sometimes they start, and what we hope for is they start with Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: And they may want to do a celebratory girls weekend at maybe a standard or at an all-inclusive brand secrets, let’s say.

LLOYD BLAIR: And then for their business travel, they’re going to a conference at a Hyatt Regency, or a family soccer tournament, and they’re staying at a Hyatt Place.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so this ecosystem is meant to serve our guests and members’ needs first across the breadth of our brands.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so while we, of course, are being brand led and what we think about clearly sets the definition of what is a park Hyatt, for example, our portfolios are truly designed to meet the needs across many different travel purposes all within a fitting ecosystem so that Hyatt and World of Hyatt can really continue to serve those needs.

BRIDGET: So I love that you kind of painted this picture of a parent perhaps in Tokyo on business days at the park of Tokyo and then a couple weeks later, a child has a traveling soccer competition or a traveling software competition and they are, as you suggest, at Hyatt Place or Hyatt House.

BRIDGET: And how is it though that Hyatt delivers at the global brand with consistency and at the brand level itself?

BRIDGET: So what is it that at any range of these terrific brands that you have within your portfolio, that the customer can reliably expect X from Hyatt, be it Hyatt Place or Hyatt, Park Hyatt?

BRIDGET: And then of course, how is it that you then have those incremental points of distinction at Ondes, the Merrival, the Park Hyatt?

LLOYD BLAIR: I’m so glad you asked.

LLOYD BLAIR: I think to start at the brand level, our portfolio is very intentionally designed to deliver distinct and experience led stays, depending on the guest needs and mindsets.

LLOYD BLAIR: But that connective thread is of course, World of Hyatt, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: And so there are World of Hyatt benefits and brand experiences that I know we’re going to spend some time talking about.

LLOYD BLAIR: And the benefits and experiences also come through in the rewards.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so within our award ecosystem, we have benefits specifically for our well-being brands, like Miraval.

LLOYD BLAIR: We have benefits specifically for, say, our essentials portfolio, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: If you, when you hit 10 and 20 nights, you can specifically earn points for a future stay in some of those brands.

LLOYD BLAIR: So I think it’s a balance of how we think about the role of World of Hyatt in those experiences at the member level.

LLOYD BLAIR: What is promised to you within the ecosystem and within the status that you have?

LLOYD BLAIR: How do we deliver through personalized experiences at the portfolio or brand level?

LLOYD BLAIR: But then how does each brand deliver its own distinct, experience-led focus as well?

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we’re constantly thinking about all of those with the goal, of course, of bringing people into the Hyatt ecosystem through World of Hyatt, and then getting to experience many of our brands and what makes each of them special.

BRIDGET: Well, as someone who has had the opportunity to have an experience at a number of the Hyatt brands, I think well done.

BRIDGET: And what I love is someone with a heavy loyalty background, how it is to the World of Hyatt, how it feels very tied together, and all these to a path intended for the customer’s benefit.

BRIDGET: So thank you.

BRIDGET: That was a terrific explanation.

BRIDGET: Now, of course, the employee part isn’t really clutch, but so is tech, so is data.

BRIDGET: And these two words, two letters that we’re all living with, AI.

BRIDGET: Can you tell us a little bit about how you are leveraging these tools to enable the intended experiences for customers?

LLOYD BLAIR: Absolutely.

LLOYD BLAIR: So I’ll maybe talk about two different things within the tech and AI space.

LLOYD BLAIR: The first is, if our promise is we deeply understand you, we’re going to anticipate your needs and then deliver care, we can’t do that without really understanding you.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so the first thing that we’re doing is helping to make sure that we are delivering whether it’s content or sort of the meeting your needs on property, making sure that those moments and actions are delivered and in the hands of our colleagues so that I know you say are here for that girls weekend or maybe celebrating a birthday.

LLOYD BLAIR: If we miss that, we have a real opportunity to recognize you and celebrate you and maybe give you something special.

LLOYD BLAIR: That is a huge opportunity, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: And so how we think about those moments and then deliver, there is that empathy and action equals care again.

LLOYD BLAIR: And data helps us to anticipate our guest needs and understand them more.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so for those stays that matter most, or really just if we’re going to deliver an amenity to you and you have a bottle of wine in your room, but you don’t drink alcohol, that’s a miss on our part.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so how can we make sure that we are delivering those experiences in a personalized way that really represents the care that we’re looking for?

LLOYD BLAIR: So I would say that is one capability that will continue to advance with all of the new tools and technology out there.

LLOYD BLAIR: The second is, oh, sorry, go ahead.

BRIDGET: Well, please, I mean, I’m just going to give one of my own experiences that really map to what you just shared.

BRIDGET: I was on a business trip in Manila, and it’s a journey to get to Manila from the United States.

BRIDGET: I was at the Hyatt-Ringsey Manila, City of Dreams, so pretty close to the airport.

BRIDGET: I had a room with club level benefit, and I arrived pretty late, admittedly.

BRIDGET: But the check-in team said the lounge was still open.

BRIDGET: I was like, awesome, because I just wanted to grab a glass of wine and settle in for just a moment.

BRIDGET: And I go to the floor within minutes of that, and they’re like, sorry, we are closed.

LLOYD BLAIR: No, no.

BRIDGET: I was like, okay.

BRIDGET: And I left.

BRIDGET: I was like, how can that be?

BRIDGET: And not two minutes later, knock, knock, knock on my door.

BRIDGET: And it was cared for.

BRIDGET: I mean, it wasn’t flawless, but it was cared for.

BRIDGET: And that’s what I talk about.

BRIDGET: That’s what I talk about.

BRIDGET: It was sorted out and care was extended to me.

BRIDGET: So I loved everything you just share with the listeners.

BRIDGET: And as someone who’s been a beneficiary of it, it’s all true and happening as described.

LLOYD BLAIR: No, that’s great to hear.

LLOYD BLAIR: So the second example, and this is launched and I would encourage everyone to go on to our website and use this is our AI HotelFinder.

LLOYD BLAIR: So you can now search on hyatt.com in a personalized way.

LLOYD BLAIR: So, you know, gone are the days where you have to know exactly where you want to go, exactly the dates you want to be there, and exactly how many people you’re going to be with and how many rooms, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: That’s how we’ve searched for hotels for, I don’t know, as long as websites have been around, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: But this tool allows users to search for hotels by sort of anything, anything that they’re inspired by.

LLOYD BLAIR: It could be that you’re looking for a romantic getaway in Europe on some summer weekend.

LLOYD BLAIR: It could be that I am looking for whale watching on the West Coast in the Pacific during the prime season, but also make sure there’s a heated pool for my kids, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: Open forum and we will produce the properties that are right for that specific personalized search.

LLOYD BLAIR: We will also, of course, understand your World of Hyatt engagement and be able to deliver recommendations that make the most sense for you.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so that has been something that has been super interesting to see what people are searching for, because one, it helps our searchers find exactly what they’re looking for if maybe they’re not exactly sure what they’re looking for.

LLOYD BLAIR: But two, is it helps us understand what people are looking for so that we can do more of that.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so it’s been very rewarding and I think you’ll see more from us in this space.

BRIDGET: So I’ve certainly spent time on hyatt.com taking this out of the garage and doing the most insane type of multi-attribute requests.

BRIDGET: And it delivers every time.

BRIDGET: So what I do love about it, consistent with what you said, we can only hypothesize or speculate or guess the demand curve of our customers.

BRIDGET: But when we turn the keys over to them to express where they are, that’s very empowering.

BRIDGET: And two, like you said, it then allows Hyatt to have even greater information to go and put that back into good use of creating value for customers.

BRIDGET: So I love it.

BRIDGET: I hope everyone on this podcast will go and give it a try because it’s super well done, super well done.

BRIDGET: Okay.

BRIDGET: So let’s move into the World of Hyatt now.

BRIDGET: As we’ve talked about it, every one of the 37 brands is supported by the World of Hyatt.

BRIDGET: So let’s start with a high level question around strategic positioning of World of Hyatt and how for a long time it’s been a key lever on something we haven’t really talked about.

BRIDGET: That World of Hyatt and Hyatt, in a game of scale, has managed to way outpunch its weight for a really long time.

BRIDGET: You know, for a really long time.

BRIDGET: So let’s talk a little bit about, again, the strategic positioning of your award-winning loyalty program and how it’s been a part of outpunching your weight.

LLOYD BLAIR: So a couple of things, I would say there are some non-negotiables that we have when it comes to World of Hyatt from a brand standpoint.

LLOYD BLAIR: And again, from a strategic standpoint, it’s all grounded in this idea of care.

LLOYD BLAIR: We created our brand platform that we launched, gosh, about two years ago now.

LLOYD BLAIR: And the consumer-facing line of that is be more here.

LLOYD BLAIR: And it’s about how we as World of Hyatt can help you be more of whatever you’re looking for in that moment, but the intentional sort of focus that it takes to be present when you’re traveling, and how World of Hyatt can help enable that.

LLOYD BLAIR: So if we unpack that from a programmatic standpoint, I think that there’s, like I said, some four non-negotiables that have helped World of Hyatt to your point punch well above its weight.

LLOYD BLAIR: The first are sort of on the structural side.

LLOYD BLAIR: We have the highest value of points in the hotel industry, and that’s by design, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: We have to, because we are still not everywhere.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we have to deliver that outsized value for our members to really make sure and stay within the Hyatt ecosystem.

LLOYD BLAIR: Second is we are the only global hotel loyalty program that still has a fixed award chart.

LLOYD BLAIR: Everyone else has gone to this dynamic pricing, and while we are and have announced that we are making some evolution to that because we haven’t really touched the award chart in five or so years, we are committed to that transparency and that simplicity.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so our members really always can understand the reward pricing at any given moment.

LLOYD BLAIR: As we look at some of the more emotional benefits of the program, this is where sort of more of the magic happens.

LLOYD BLAIR: Going back to that idea of being grounded in care, members have choice at every milestone.

LLOYD BLAIR: Again, I’m certainly not going to anticipate what every one of my 60 plus million members wants when they hit each milestone.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we make sure we give choice, whether it’s just peer points, something to enhance my stay experience, or something even more experiential than that, maybe in the well-being space.

LLOYD BLAIR: The second is being able to gift really any of your rewards or points to other members.

LLOYD BLAIR: And this was all inspired by the idea of the guest of honor benefit, where our globalists can bestow episodically all of their globalist benefits.

LLOYD BLAIR: Globalist is our highest elite tier.

LLOYD BLAIR: They can gift that to someone that they care about for a meaningful stay.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so all of these ideas of being grounded in care, and how do you take a loyalty program that is so, loyalty programs are famous for earn, redeem, earn, redeem.

LLOYD BLAIR: But what’s emotional about that?

LLOYD BLAIR: All of these ideas allow us to, I think, deliver care in a really unique way and ultimately deepen the relationship that we have with our members and understand them even better.

BRIDGET: So I think those are all great points you’re raising because I find that we can get ourselves a bit wrapped around the axle and earn, earn, earn, earn, right?

BRIDGET: And that allows you to go immediately transactional.

BRIDGET: But where the endless value is truly captured is when it does feel magical.

BRIDGET: And it fills something way beyond just a certain moment in time.

BRIDGET: And while I do applaud the, the need and the priority that you all placed on being the best redemption value in the hotel category, I also applaud what you do with your status members and the benefits that you’ve just articulated out here on their role of having that sense of magic and loyalty to Hyatt.

BRIDGET: That I feel isn’t cared for enough, or at least not talked about enough by other brands.

BRIDGET: And so I love it.

BRIDGET: I certainly spent my time in advance of this, just reading about how customers feel about it.

BRIDGET: And again, you just find the oversized comments about happiness and what it meant for them in that moment in time to that certain family member or the hero status.

BRIDGET: All of those things, I feel like you are caring for in your program.

BRIDGET: Even though honestly, the structure of it is pretty traditional, but yet the execution of it comes across a lot more innovative, fresh and unique, if I may say so.

LLOYD BLAIR: Well, thank you.

LLOYD BLAIR: And yeah, I think at the most simplistic level, we already talked about this a little bit, but the delivery of those benefits, the consistency of those benefits, just the simplicity of feeling recognized and valued is so often missed.

LLOYD BLAIR: And that’s, I think, the magic of what people are looking for.

LLOYD BLAIR: We did some interviews with some members recently, and someone said, you know, traveling with the World of Hyatt, I get a feeling of gratitude, which to me is just, you know, to be a part of a loyalty program, but then feel gratitude, that is extraordinary.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I’m very proud of that.

BRIDGET: Well, I think when a brand like Hyatt elevates the journey, I think it just resonates so deeply with customers.

BRIDGET: They expect X, but yet they get Y.

BRIDGET: And I just love it.

BRIDGET: I love every bit of it for Hyatt.

BRIDGET: So we’ve touched on an awful lot, but what I would like to talk about a little more is about redemption, right?

BRIDGET: You’ve mentioned there have been some changes.

BRIDGET: I think they’re effective this month.

BRIDGET: Love to get your kind of thoughts behind that.

BRIDGET: And then talk a little bit more about the portfolio of redemption options that are afforded to World of Hyatt customers.

LLOYD BLAIR: Sure.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah.

LLOYD BLAIR: So like I talked about, we are very committed to maintaining our fixed award chart.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I know and my team knows, we recognize that when people think about World of Hyatt points, they’re thinking about possibility and the future, their future experiences.

LLOYD BLAIR: And our responsibility is to protect the value of the points over the long term and the ability to have a fixed award chart over the long term.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so something that we’ve been looking at, again, I mentioned that we haven’t really touched the award chart in about five years.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so this is in an effort to ensure that we are balancing that exceptional value that our members can continue to expect from us with the long-term sustainability of the program.

LLOYD BLAIR: So it is one of those risk rewards of announcing and the changes before implementing it.

LLOYD BLAIR: We wanted to, I wanted to make sure that we were giving our members enough time to prepare and plan.

LLOYD BLAIR: We’ve continued to reinforce transparency.

LLOYD BLAIR: And while there will be changes, those changes will be an evolution over years to come.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so, you know, I don’t expect that in, in the, you know, that members with the new award chart will wake up and suddenly feel different about the value of World of Hyatt points.

LLOYD BLAIR: And in fact, I think that we’ll be pleasantly surprised with the evolution that we will publish.

BRIDGET: So two things I’d like to just say for the listeners, I think there’s very few brands, certainly between airline and hotel, that have a fixed award chart.

BRIDGET: So that really is a point of distinction and bravo to you.

BRIDGET: Second, you know, there’s all kinds of ways where trust is earned by the customer, which is on the path to earning loyalty.

BRIDGET: There’s no loyalty with the customer if they don’t trust the brand.

BRIDGET: And when Hyatt gives the customer the respect of communication about change, the transparency about the change, and time to consider it on their terms before the change is, again, another wonderful reflection about Hyatt and its prioritization of care for its customers.

LLOYD BLAIR: I couldn’t have said it better myself.

BRIDGET: Well, I believe it.

BRIDGET: I believe it.

BRIDGET: But also, you also have some terrific other options for redemption, spas and dining, points and cash.

BRIDGET: Those are other elements where utility is realized by customers.

LLOYD BLAIR: Yes, absolutely.

BRIDGET: So one of my favorite things, because of my history with American and Hyatt are partnerships.

BRIDGET: But you all are, in my observation, very particular.

BRIDGET: You really give a lot of thought to brands you’re going to partner with.

BRIDGET: Can you give us a bit of a sense for the thinking behind it and the partnerships that you are embracing today?

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, absolutely.

LLOYD BLAIR: I think there’s a couple of ways that we look at it.

LLOYD BLAIR: One is we look at where and how our members want to stay with World of Hyatt, how we can continue to maximize their experiences, both across state experiences, but also within the travel ecosystem and more.

LLOYD BLAIR: Our vision is to really be part of a connected travel ecosystem and be a part of our members, end-to-end travel experiences.

LLOYD BLAIR: We also have an alliance with the Venetian in Las Vegas, Largest Hotel, and we needed more presence in a really important market, and the Venetian was the right brand partner for us there.

LLOYD BLAIR: I think what you’ll hear from us and see from us soon is some expanded partners in the travel ecosystem, but also beyond that, we recently announced a sponsorship in the F1 space with the Audi Revolut F1 team.

LLOYD BLAIR: We are activating more with athletes.

LLOYD BLAIR: Jessica Pagula is one example of a brand partner that we have.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we are trying to be where our members are and engage with them.

LLOYD BLAIR: People travel for sports and entertainment.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we’re very much looking at that, along with other partners in the travel space.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think you’ll hear more from us soon there.

BRIDGET: I’m curious as a cat, but I love the broad perspective that you’re taking on this love, every bit of it.

BRIDGET: Also in terms of partnerships is a long-standing one with Chase, who issues your Echo Brand credit card.

BRIDGET: And not too long ago, you actually extended the partnership.

BRIDGET: What would you like to share with our readers or our listeners about that?

LLOYD BLAIR: Yeah, we’re very excited about our continued relationship with Chase.

LLOYD BLAIR: It’s been a deep integrated partnership.

LLOYD BLAIR: And just to take a step back for anyone who is looking to expand their own credit card portfolio in a travel space.

LLOYD BLAIR: Our credit card offering the World of Hyatt credit cards provide card members with the ability to earn and redeem across all of our over 1500 hotel and all inclusive properties, and our 1200 Mr.

LLOYD BLAIR: and Mrs.

LLOYD BLAIR: Smith properties.

LLOYD BLAIR: And because of the value of our fixed award chart and choice and milestone rewards, I think our card holders get exceptional redemption benefits and really stand out amongst co-branded credit cards.

LLOYD BLAIR: As we announced with the continuation of the relationship, we do plan to expand our credit card portfolio, so more news there.

LLOYD BLAIR: And our credit card members are some of our most engaged members.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so the ability to just find another way to earn and redeem on just credit card spend has been another opportunity for us to get to know our members better, engage with them in really unique ways.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think you’re going to see again more, and I wish I could say more now, you will see more coming out of the Hyatt and Chase relationship soon too.

BRIDGET: Well, I look forward to, you know, hotels like airlines are more episodic, right?

BRIDGET: In terms of the engagement with the customer and how a form of payment and a co-brand card has done such a great job of creating something more habitual.

BRIDGET: And I certainly think the Chase World of Hyatt card has some terrific embedded benefits for cardholders.

BRIDGET: So very pro, pro Hyatt co-brand card with Chase.

BRIDGET: So as we think about this and all this wonderfulness that you have shared with us, how are you measuring success?

BRIDGET: How are you saying, okay, we are on the right path or maybe that didn’t work as well as we thought.

BRIDGET: Let’s redirect.

BRIDGET: How are you measuring the success of everything you’re doing?

BRIDGET: There are.

LLOYD BLAIR: Well, I think it’s a lot of things, right?

LLOYD BLAIR: So one is World of Hyatt remains the fastest growing loyalty program in global hospitality.

LLOYD BLAIR: So we are continuing to acquire and retain members.

LLOYD BLAIR: We’re growing at a rate of about 30 percent annually since 2017, which is just tremendous.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so that one tells me in the macro sense, do we have a desirable offering that people want to be a part of?

LLOYD BLAIR: I think so that growth would indicate at a macro level, yes.

LLOYD BLAIR: At the other macro, I would say we are, our members are becoming more loyal and more valuable.

LLOYD BLAIR: So as Hyatt has grown in our brands and our portfolios, as we’ve offered more milestones from, we went from 100 nights to 150 nights, we are seeing more and more members stay more and spend more with us.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so again, we are sort of balancing both ends of that, continuing to acquire members and continuing to grow value with our current members.

LLOYD BLAIR: But in the more specific sense, I think I started this way, it goes back to listening.

LLOYD BLAIR: Our members are very passionate.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so we have our own community where we will do pulse checks on either something that we’re thinking about doing or something that we have done and getting feedback on it.

LLOYD BLAIR: I spend time listening with members in feedback sessions.

LLOYD BLAIR: And so I think that’s also something that just sets us apart is, we’re not just looking at data and making choices from a spreadsheet.

LLOYD BLAIR: We’re spending thoughtful time with highly engaged members, making sure we’re continuing to innovate and deliver on the future of what the expectations are.

LLOYD BLAIR: And I think what that leads us to is that World of Hyatt is setting the bar for what the future of loyalty is and that’s incredibly exciting.

BRIDGET: So to me, as I just listened to you, it also strikes me that this is an approach with humility too.

BRIDGET: You know, let me learn, you know, and that again is something that can be missing amongst brands.

BRIDGET: It’s just the art of listening and accepting you don’t know everything and just approaching things with great humility.

BRIDGET: So thank you for that.

BRIDGET: And, you know, here we are wrapping this up.

BRIDGET: I just wanted to give you the opportunity.

BRIDGET: Is there anything else you’d like to leave our listeners with today?

LLOYD BLAIR: I mean, I think I would just wrap up, first of all, by saying thank you so much for the time and thank you for your listeners who have spent this last little while with us listening to all about Hyatt and World of Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: But, you know, my team and I are on a journey to continue to harness the success of World of Hyatt.

LLOYD BLAIR: And how we think about loyalty is that it’s not just earned through transactions, it’s felt through experiences.

LLOYD BLAIR: And points are not just a currency, but a means to connection.

LLOYD BLAIR: And, you know, if we can take that and continue to involve World of Hyatt into, you know, a culturally relevant, emotionally resonant brand that our members continue to truly love, then that’s success.

BRIDGET: Well, the proof is in the pudding.

BRIDGET: So very well done, Laurie.

BRIDGET: I’m sure our listeners are going to want to know where they can connect with you.

BRIDGET: Is LinkedIn okay to keep for them in the chat?

LLOYD BLAIR: LinkedIn is great.

LLOYD BLAIR: Absolutely.

BRIDGET: Thank you.

BRIDGET: Well, thank you so much for your time today.

BRIDGET: And thank you to our listeners.

BRIDGET: And until next time for Lets Talk Loyalty and Loyalty TV.

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