The recent free points offers for ‘liking’ Starwood hotels on Facebook haven’t worked out too well, they get much greater response than expected and they end the offers early.
I haven’t blogged any of them, because I’ve been busy and haven’t seen them until maybe 8-12 hours after they’re posted on various other websites… and they’re already dead.
It seems that hotels expect to narrowly target, say, guests at the hotel with a sign in the lobby — connect with their existing guests. But they just say ‘like us on Facebook and we’ll give you points’ with no other qualifying criteria, the offers get posted online, and we all go, “Free points??? YEAH!” And then a motel in Heth, Arkansas all of a sudden has 15,000 fans (most of whom would never be willing to set foot in the motel, or for that matter in Heth, Arkansas).
Well, Mommy Points stayed in the Aloft Austin in the Domain and discovered that liking their Facebook page is worth 250 points. After liking them on Facebook, email your name and SPG number to: krista.langley@aloftaustinatthedomain.com
I have a feeling that Krista will be getting lots of emails. As of this writing, the hotel has 210 likes. We’ll see how high it goes before they pull the plug. The offer says it’s valid through July 31. We’ll see!
We have friends, but now we need fans! Our Facebook is officially moving to our new fan page. “Like” Aloft Austin at the Domain now through July 31st, and receive 250 SPG bonus points! Email your name & SPG number to krista.langley@aloftaustinatthedomain.com and we will verify that your points have been added.
Update: As expected, they decided to end this early after coming into the office in the mroning and seeing a bit of an avalanche, they picked up about 700 new ‘likes’ in a few hours. They gave about 30 minutes notice that they would be pulling the offer and they have since said that they will honor the points for everyone who got in before then.
it seems to be raining SPG points this month. very nice! txs
Maybe it’s been pulled. Try to like FB link from their website http://www.aloftaustinatthedomain.com and you get ERROR.
Hurry, they just posted this:
We love our Aloft fans!! Hurry up and get your points for “liking” us as this promotion ends sharply at 10am TODAY! Please send your SPG member number to krista.langley@aloftaustinatthedomain.com. Don’t forget you can still earn an additional 250 SPG points by checking into our property on Foursquare when you stay with us! Breeze on by for Happy Hour tonight from 5-8pm! HAPPY FRIDAY, y’all!!
New message on their wall says it now ends at 10a.m. Today (7/22/11). It did end fast!
I wish everyone would just dump Facebook—especially big-end businesses that think it’s something big, it’s just another website on a website. The reason, I’m skeptical is I don’t want a bundle of 20-something Silicon Valley (mostly male) button-pushing phonies getting all my personal information for 250 SPG points here, 150 AAdvantage Miles there, etc. Give me a break.
Facebook is all free and then claimed to be valued at $100 Billion USD? A’ha (cough, cough)…..with that valuation, the contest should have been for 25,000 SPG points (or even better….the mother of SPG promos, 5 stays, in 5 brands for 50,000 SPG points back in 2000).
Just my thoughts. And well placed: 50,000 SPG points to stay in 5 brands vs. 250 on Facebook with penny ads stealing business and personal information to track [you]. You can see which side I’d be jumping all over to do given the current economic environment (that Facebook helps extend).
Ed, Aloft in Austin is sponsoring the SPG contest. And who peed in your cereal. Geez, lighten up Francis.
I just missed it! They just posted this:
Thanks for all the emails! Time has expired at 10am sharp for this promotion! The points should be added to your account within 5-7 business days. Did you miss out on this promotion? Stay tuned for more in the future! Don’t forget to check-in on Foursquare next time you visit!
Yeah, I just saw that message too.
Now I have to gho back and unlike,
so I don’t get a bunch of Spam.
Social Media is a joke anyway, it buys nothing for advertisers. Once they recognize that they’ll limit future specials like this.
At 7:45 this morning, they had between 500-600 fans. They were close to 800 when the posted the new deadline, and are at 900 now.
KennyG said,
Ed, Aloft in Austin is sponsoring the SPG contest. And who peed in your cereal. Geez, lighten up Francis.
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Enjoyed your great comment. But wait for the day you have to “pay to post”, you won’t be so ‘hit-and-run’, big-bully, BS……the weakling will pop you in the nose quite hard.