hospitality

Crowne Plaza Fuels 'Big Win' Vids With Rickie Fowler

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is activating against its relationship as official hotel and resort of the PGA Tour with its Crowne Plaza properties. The luxury chain is touting its "Big Win" loyalty program, which the IHG Rewards Club launched last August. That initial effort by IHG ran through December and was followed up with a 2014 campaign that runs through April. 

Crowne Plaza's piece of the “Big Win” promotional pie centers on videos featuring PGA star Rickie Fowler.  The videos, which started on Thursday, deliver personalized offers, which is a central point of this second chapter of the “Big Win” IHG promo. They have Fowler delivering content and tips on golf and travel. But they also have Fowler delivering personalized content: he greets whoever is viewing the videos by name and then tailors the "Big Win" promotional offers to him or her. 

advertisement

advertisement

The company says the effort includes a social-media element where loyalty members who view the content can execute a practical joke on friends involving fake golf tips from Fowler. One bit of faux content has him suggesting that the best way to putt is to close your eyes. The company says it is the third consecutive golf season in which it has used Fowler for promotional marketing. The company also has behind-the-scenes footage of the videos on its YouTube page.  

The videos will be rolled out progressively and extend through the "Big Win" promotion, which ends April 30. They were created by PGA Entertainment, and Ogilvy and the technology that customized the content delivery is by StarGreetz. The videos were shot on site at Riviera Country Club in Southern California. 

StarGreetz is a proprietary video personalization platform that recognizes data and  builds unique "commercials" to 11 unique channels (email, Facebook, websites, point-of-purchase, outdoor, print, banner ads, et al.). Eric Frankel, CEO and Founder of the company says the The Crowne Plaza/StarGreetz collaboration includes over three billion possible versions. "This particular campaign incorporates numerous personalization techniques never-before-deployed."

According to the Market Metrix Hotel Index database of U.S. hotel guests, 25% of travelers spend more than $1,700 a year on hotels and represent nearly half of all revenue spent on U.S. hotels. They spend on average $120 per night. They earn $98,038 per year -- 35% more than the average guest -- and stay about 20 nights per year in hotels -- 7 nights more than other guests. And they are four times as likely to join a frequent stay program, though, per Market Metrix, their levels of satisfaction and loyalty are about that of other hotel guests.

Next story loading loading..