La Quinta Corp. relaunched its frequent-guest loyalty program with new earning potential, reward options and hotel amenities for members, the Dallas company said last week.
La Quinta's previous program operated for more than 15 years and was based on accumulated credits that earned members free room nights. The program has more than 500,000 members.
The improved La Quinta Returns program lets members earn points that can be redeemed for free room nights and other rewards, including airline tickets from American Airlines AAdvantage, Delta SkyMiles and Continental Airlines OnePass; gift certificates for use at national retailers and restaurants, including Chili's, Target and The Home Depot; and tickets to professional sports teams including the Dallas Mavericks, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Phoenix Coyotes and Atlanta Hawks.
Members in the new program are assigned to three benefit categories — Silver, Gold and Elite — based on their level of participation. New members initially are entitled to Silver-level benefits. In addition to benefits consistent with the original program, the new program includes services such as express check-in, late checkout and account access via the Internet.
Frequency Marketing Inc., Cincinnati, helped La Quinta create the new loyalty program. Additionally, La Quinta's frequent-guest program database was migrated from in-house systems to FMI's proprietary Loyalty Solutions Platform. La Quinta continues to manage member services using FMI's platform at their existing call centers and has implemented a new Returns Web site that allows member interaction via the Internet.
