Marketing Buzzword: Transparency
In honor of my first day at the Web2.0 Expo in San Francisco I am going to blog something completely unrelated, but ties in with my theme of marketing needs to change as technology accelerates the rate of information distribution.
Case Study: Wyndham Hotels - Ramada Inn
A month ago I stayed at a Ramada Inn. Ramada is owned by Wyndham Hotels. Yesterday, I got a call that started out as a courtesy call by Wyndham to thank me for my business. Normally I do not take unsolicited phone calls, but I will take a thank you call. Then, the caller progressed and said she wanted to reward my loyalty with an offer to stay at a Wyndham hotel - a 4 day/3 night package - at a special rate. I thought this is good marketing - take a customer who had a good experience at one of your hotels and try to introduce him to higher end experiences - maybe create a loyal customer!
Then, the caller slips in the catch. It was a timeshare solicitation! At this point I was furious about the deceptive nature of the call, told the caller "not interested", and immediately hung up. Likely, I will stay away from Wyndham brands in the future and I rarely get riled up with companies' stupidity - but I really hate deception.
The point is transparency. While it is questionable to use paying hotel customers as a list to sell your timeshares (not to mention a sure way to not get repeat business). It's even worse to get them to talk to you under the umbrella of a "courtesy thank you call". At least tell me right up front, "we know you stayed at our hotel and I would like to talk to you about our timeshare opportunities." That way I can give you permission for the conversation. The way Wyndham does it now reeks of deception. No doubt they know it. Some Wyndham marketing genius, who should be fired, thought "no one likes our timeshare telemarketing so let's alienate our hotel customers by tricking them to listen to our pitch".
Do I need to say anymore? Transparency = Trust = Increase Brand Value.
