I had an interesting dilemma this morning and I’m not sure I handled it the right way.
Last week I wrote about being downgraded from Diamond to Silver status, missing the ‘soft landing’ to Gold that I expected.
And I missed several opportunities for quick and easy Gold status (from Milepoint’s premium membership, from American Express Platinum, and from the Hilton credit card that I gave up).
I had breakfast this morning with Mark Weinstein, a Hilton Vice President for the HHonors program. We’re both in Seattle for the same events. By the way I’m at the Marriott by the airport, he came to me, and as the only one of us registered at the hotel and able to earn points I insisted on picking up the check.
Unsurprisingly, like any good executive he did his homework and knew I had been downgraded to Silver. And he wants me engaged in his program. My account was already upgraded to Gold.
I told Mark that wasn’t necessary, that I don’t ask for special favors and experience travel the way anyone else does. I thanked him but said I really prefer not to get status that way.
But I also didn’t want to be rude. And I was taken by surprise. It didn’t jump up and down on the table, insisting that the Gold status be taken away. (Incidentally, two readers offered to give me their MIlepoint premium comped status. And as Frequent Miler pointed out I could have asked for a Diamond challenge and simply taken the Gold for not meeting it.)
As it stands right now, I have Gold status in the HHonors program. It’s the best mid-tier status but it’s also a ‘gimme’ level. I wouldn’t have taken Diamond.
But I’ve still also found myself, without asking or wanting to, being in the uncomfortable position of having violated my own approach.
I know that there are hotel chains that would give me status, and airlines too. I also know that on the frontlines of travel none of that matters, outside of my status, because I get treated just as badly as anyone else with similar status all the time.
In this case though, should I insist on removing the Gold status or taking the free breakfast on my (very) occasional Hilton stays? What do you think?
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I think you should turn it down.
You know (or ought to) that this guy is trying to influence your future comments about HH, even if he never says it.
Are you 100% certain that you NEVER EVER get freebies or upgrades or drink tickets from travel companies that Joe Blow would not get?
Take it! You would have taken the free comp from one of the MilePoint members, might as well take this and offer to donate the MilePoint ones.
It is easy to get Hilton Gold with the methods you mentioned so I think you should keep it but definitely email him stating your gratitude from his kind gesture!
I think you were right to protest it at first, but don’t need to embarrass the guy or the company for trying to make a nice gesture. You werent asking for it, and weren’t threatening or using the blog to gain favor.
HHonors gives out status all the time via challenges, corporate contracts, matches, etc. This isn’t much different
This may be unconventional, but as long as you disclose to us readers, I don’t have a problem with it.
@Gary – wow, you really needed an editor for this post. I read the following sentence four times and still have no idea what it means: “By the way I’m at the Marriott by the airport, he came to me, and as the only one of us registered at the hotel and able to earn points I insisted on pickup up the check.”
On the bright side, I was able to figure out this sentence: “And I was taken by surprised.”
Take it. Some people like to scold others about “appearances”, but such constraints are poor substitutes for actual integrity. At this point I regard anyone questioning your integrity as churlish. Integrity is the foundation of a great consumer blog. If no reasonable person believes that your opinion can be bought, then why fear the opinions of unreasonable people?
I suppose there’s a price at which anyone can be bought, but for you it would have to be bringing the Concorde out of mothballs and letting you bring 50 of your friends on a flight to Paris!
You’d look sillier for trying to turn it down. Keep it, get Gold for 2015 from one of the many options publicly available and stop being too concerned that a trip to Conrad Timbuktu requires so many points now. Just my two cents…
The simple way to resolve your ethical dilemma is to just get the HH credit card which offers gold status. I think that would ‘wash’ the comped status (though I would still thank him for being proactive and upgrading you). Consider the resulting credit pull a small price to pay for letting the status lapse in the first place.
I find undisclosed biases far more troublesome than making gifts to people who are quasi-press (e.g., bloggers on a subject matter).
And you have a legitimate interest in experiencing elite status, as that is, to some extent, the essence of the blog.
I suggest (1) a disclosure any time that you enjoy the corporate granted, “unearned” status, and, perhaps (2) an occasional report based on a stay where you decline status benefits so you might be able to report how any given property treats the unstatused.
I’d say take it as well. It is not like you asked for the benefit. Plus, it’s not like Gold is lot more valuable in this case. As a Marriott Gold myself, I rarely get any upgrades and do not consider it much better than Silver. But then, things might be different if I didn’t stay at a Courtyard most of the time..
Hi Gary – tell him thanks and keep it. And then just to keep yourself honest, go ahead and apply for another Citi HH Reserve card. You’ll get gold status with the card (redundant, but that way you know that you have status the “right” way), and you can report back to us if you get another pair of free nights with the new Reserve card (I’m assuming you’ve already got the card once already)
Any ethical damage from this rather minor instance of payola is already done whether you keep the status or not — so you might as well keep it. It might behoove you to mention the comped status if you write any posts that touch on Hilton elite status benefits while you hold the comped status.
Otherwise, chow down and tweet away complements of Mr. Weinstein.
Just take it. Gold is so really easy to earn, and you simply missed a couple of easy opportunities to get it for free.
You didn’t ask for this, you didn’t agree to give Hilton any benefits for doing it, and you promptly disclosed it. No sensible person thinks you will sell out the integrity of your blog for a few days of free Wifi and a few mediocre buffet breakfasts.
This was probably a bad move on Hilton’s part though, because now you will be bending over backwards to prove your objectivity. With the probable result of you’re being more critical of Hilton rather than less.
I would not bother worrying about it.
But that being said I think it makes is very clear that you and your peers are known and probably are treated differently because of your publications. You might not ask for upgrades, but you are on the provider’s radar and probably will be treated differently. Especially once you write a criticism of some chain for the service/room you received.
As some point it would be an interesting story to pair yourself with a similar traveler – who doesn’t blog or participate in industry events, and visit the same destinations and compare the rooms, amenities and service you receive.
Keep it.
Keep it…he presumably didn’t ask you for any favors in return, other than the possibility of your future business (though I guess it could be argued that Hilton has gotten some free publicity as the result of your published dilemma). As you have pointed out, Gold is very easily achieved so I don’t see it as a huge deal. If you are really feeling terribly uncomfortable, I guess the next time that you check into a Hilton property you could demand not to be upgraded, refuse the free breakfast, and pay for your internet (HHonors points aren’t worth much now so who cares about the bonus %). But I really see no need to punish yourself… unlike some of the other bloggers out there, you appear to be transparent in your interactions with the industry and fairly consistent in generating original content. The latter, I believe, is the true value-add for your readers.
Is this a joke? Your posts have become so utterly ridiculous, boring, useless and dare I say annoying, that I am removing you from my RSS feed and resolving never again to click on any of your baited posts. Best of luck with your downward spiral. Kind regards.
Take it for sure. Just make sure you keep loyal to your customers and right good posts about Hilton when they deserve and quick them down when needed as well. Just keep an unbiased view of their hotels and you are fine.
Keep it and stop whining.
Hilton gold is so easy to obtain that I can’t imagine it’d influence any reviews on their properties. Take it.
@Iolaire McFadden – in my experience there’s a big difference between a hotel loyalty program (chain-level) and an individual property, the chain may know who i am but there aren’t generally systems in place to alert the hotel (if they’d even care) and I get just as many bad stays as the next guy (as I share here). And with airline programs my upgrades clear or do not clear by the same system as anyone else.
Gold is the new Silver, especially with the myriad ways of obtaining it. Keep it.
I see no problem in taking comps as long as they are disclosed. And this particular comp is no comp at all, really, so it’s an easy decision.
I would just keep it and enjoy it. But you should also in return be a little nicer to HHonors and stop mentioning the devaluation. They have given you something of value — I imagine they expect something in return.
Take it. You offer excellent content to your readers and you deserve a little break. When you write anything about Hilton, just disclose that you were upgraded to Gold… Honestly, they should have offered you Diamond.
The perception of a conflict of interest is equally damning as a conflict of interest. Even if there is, in fact, no bias in a future review, your readers will always remember that you were given complimentary Gold status.
Just get it some other way — there’s certainly no shortage of ways to get unearned Gold Status.
Why should we stop mentioning the devaluation. More like they need to live with the consequences of their actions. They are surely aware that they have the ability to do long term damage to their programs when they suddenly devalue. Hilton also seems to have a different understanding of status. I feel like they view elite status as more of marketing tool to get you to stay, rather than a reward for staying.
I appreciate you thinking out loud on this one and sharing it here, but I feel you are obligated to decline it if you want to maintain the reputation you have established.
i think you’re grown-up enough to not let it influence you. If Gold were very difficult to obtain and worth a huge amount, I might say to decline it. But it’s not really that big a deal. You were Diamond already so you know the status.
But as Ruy said above, make a disclosure when you write anything about Hilton. Go for it Gary.
@Nick – I think that’s EXACTLY how Hilton thinks of status, and I think it’s pretty smart. As a light traveler (less than 40 stays/year), I used to spread my stays around with whatever brand’s (or local hotelier’s) property suited me in the city I was in. However, given the opportunity to start off with elite status, rather than have to spend a year earning it, I’ve since pushed all my business to Hilton whenever possible – and have enjoyed a lot of free food, nice rooms, and good treatment along the way. With any other chain I’d have spent a year earning that.
You disclosed the freebie Gold bump up, so, I say, keep it. I’m Gold in Hilton, but will be dropping down in 3/2015 because I dropped the Reserve card. Enjoyed the Gold on our trip to Hawaii, free weekend nights, free breakfasts all week that we were there, but I couldn’t justify the renewal because after the trip we didn’t put spending on the card.
Keep it, theres no problem in taking a comp as long as it’s disclosed.
I think the best resolution here is to change your policy of not accepting ANY freebies to one in which you go out of your way to make sure you accept ALL possible freebies. Given the readership of this blog and the expectation of content from people in a larger number of programs than you could possibly personally attain status with in a year, you need an incentive to stay at and review chains you otherwise might not. A much nicer way to avoid bias would be to ensure that every program treats you like royalty 🙂
So I would argue that you should be comped Diamond, Platinum, Diamond, EXP, 1K, other Diamond…
Gary: Take the status and enjoy. You didn’t ask for it and besides the value of the gift is minimal given the ways you could have acquired it.
Take it, you owe nothing to no-one. You only need to make sure that won’t influence your reviews.
I would probably turn it down. I get the sense that’s the way you’re leaning too. It’s all innocent, and nothing is being asked of you, but you’re getting something that you wouldn’t get if you weren’t you. I think the fact that you posted about it is enough to answer the question — if you think it might be a problem, then it is a problem. Your entire stock in trade is your credibility. The next time you review a Hilton property, what’s going to happen? Will you remember this? Maybe you’ll even unconsciously be harder on them then you otherwise would have been because you want to show you are not returning a favor. I just can’t see how its worth it. You don’t have to be rude — just say that it was an incredibly nice gesture, that you’re impressed they made the offer, but your policy is that you can’t accept these sorts of benefits.
Heh. Someone I know has a signature tagline: Ethics flies coach.
Even as relatively simple as Gold status is combined with how infrequent you use it, you should still decline it. You earn status in Hyatt the normal way, you’re completely able to earn status in Hilton the way anyone else does through credit cards or promos. You should stick to that.
If you weren’t a widely published travel figure, my opinion might differ (such as if you were comped status because you bring your company’s business or hold meetings, etc). But you do maintain a public persona and there’s no doubt that you hold some level of influence when you promote or criticize a program/company. So I have no doubt that while it may not have been stated or even covertly implied, there is hope that you will be influenced by the freebie even if you rarely/never use it. This isn’t just a free coffee or muffin either, it’s free breakfast and internet you wouldn’t get as a silver that can have significant value if you use them frequently.
Wow…some of y’all are m-e-a-n. In my line of work, I am the beneficiary of preferential treatment from my clients. I’m a sales rep–when they have something I want, they usually just give it to me. I rarely even ask for a discount.
The thing is even when I’m not paying for something, I’m not getting it for free. I am more than happy to return the favor in any number of ways (a little leniency, some additional help/promotional material, drinks..dinner…).
The fact of the matter is that you’re providing valuable exposure (whether good or bad, but if you’ve got a good product you don’t have much to worry about) to their program, and engaging people in a discussion that would have otherwise not happened. All of these/you bloggers provide something whose value is hard to quantify, but it’s there in a big way. I would never have cared about most of this stuff if I hadn’t been told, and look at me now–credit cards flying out my ass and points everywhere (and great experiences).
It’s really admirable that you see the inherent quandary about the potential for conflict of interest. A lot of people just wouldn’t care, or at least wouldn’t blog about it. That said, take it. All you’d have to do would be to apply for a card to get the same, and there’s no actual quid pro quo.
I say take it – as you stated, there are multiple ways to get it for free or practically free anyway. If they wanted to influence you, they would have upgraded you to Diamond.
I equate Hilton HHonors as the PillowPesos of the hotel loyalty programs.
Never mind the free status, what nuggets of info did you glean from your meeting, Gary?! Any chance of decent earning opportunities for those of us outside the US? Any upcoming programme changes?
Damn, forgot to tick the follow box!
@Garrett – bingo! You’ve described exactly the quid pro quo Gary is apprehensive of exhibiting.
Keep it, but just disclose the comp early in the main text (vs a small footnote) whenever you write about Hilton. Unless you become an apologist for HH, and as long as you disclose the comp status, I see no issue. Restaurant critics, if discovered, often get the nicest table in the house, but they can be honest about the food.
If it were Diamond status, then you may have a bit of a dilemma on the comp, but as it’s Gold, which you’ve passed on several times before and easy to get, I don’t see an issue with keeping it.
PS: Good to see you staying at a Marriott 😉
I think if, when reviewing Hilton properties, you disclose that you have been comped gold you’re off the hook ethically.
On the other hand, if you feel odd about it you can call him up and be very appreciative and ask him to let you get gold yourself so that you don’t feel even the slightest pressure to be “nice” to Hilton.
As you’ve mentioned, there are a number of ways you can get status without having to accept anything from Hilton.
Decline it; your reputation is worth far more than the $50 Hilton Gold is worth.
I would not take it. You are far to clever and resourceful and I’m sure you can find a way to get it on your own. If you do take it however, I will not lose sleep. It is something you have to justify in your own mind.
“This above all; to thine own self be true and it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any men.”
Time to sign up for the credit card that gives you auto-Gold status.
Otherwise you’ll need to disclose the one-time freebie for the rest of your life.
Who needs that hassle. Make the issue go away.
Keep it. Two reasons:
1) you’ve disclosed it
2) everyone in the points game has a solemn duty to get as much as they can for as little as they can – that’s the whole point of our game. Giving status back would be sacrilege. 🙂
Is there a way for you to send them $95 (or the cost of the credit card that would grant you the same benefit as the one comped?) to offset?
Take it. As long as it does not influence your writing, don’t worry about it.
You can have my Diamond card as I will never be staying at their notes again except to drain my points……….TRULY the best way to express your gratitude at the swarm treatment is just never stay there………..that would be fair…….
@CW – I replied to your message in the Apr 21 Bluebird post. Perhaps you didn’t see it. Thanks.
It’s called a conflict of interest.
At this “meeting”, did you express your disgust at last years massive 100% devaluation or did you just discuss credit card referral fees….
I think you should just keep it rather than potentially creating an awkward situation. It might assuage my slight guilt for getting SPG Gold status by “moving” to a Hyatt in Asia.
Keep it, don’t obsess, and move on to more important things!
rob said,
I think if, when reviewing Hilton properties, you disclose that you have been comped gold you’re off the hook ethically.
——————–
I think that covers it nicely.
Lot of companies do not want employees accepting any gifts/favors over $100. I feel gold status is less than that. Keep it
To be honest, at this point, all of your readers are going to have to take your posts about HHonors with a grain of salt. Agree with others that you should definitely disclose this in any relevant post. And, you should definitely NOT do what an earlier commenter mentioned: “I would just keep it and enjoy it. But you should also in return be a little nicer to HHonors and stop mentioning the devaluation. They have given you something of value — I imagine they expect something in return.” I’m not sure if s/he was joking, but that, obviously, would be the worst course of action.
The thing I’m most curious about in this whole scenario is why did you get rid of the Citi HHonors card? Didn’t you previously write about how it’s a no-brainer to keep it?
Personally I think it is in fact a no-brainer to get Hilton Gold by one of the cheap methods for anyone who does much traveling at all. Just the free breakfast and wifi from a single three-night stay covers the $95 cost and then some, and there are Hiltons everywhere.
C’mon Gary, you know the correct thing is to maintain your principles and refuse the freebie. If Hilton status really meant something to you, you could easily get it several ways. Surely all the affiliate income more than covers any upgrade you might want when you (rarely) stay at a Hilton…
I knew a politician who once said something like this: the art of dealing with a gift, large or small, in politics was to not feel obliged to act on behalf of the gift-giver even if accepting the gift and keeping it; otherwise it’s a bribe and you’re corrupt(ed).
What good is power if you don’t abuse it?
If the integrity of this blog is important to you, do not take this. I feel this blog is on a slippery slope as it is.
i would NOT keep it. it’s your reputation on the line. if you can get it via other normal ways, why don’t you do that? then you don’t need to feel like you owe hilton anything next time you review one of their lounges.
Tough call. Kudos for debating it. You could always opt to pay for your breakfasts and not accept many of the benefits. But, it seems this gift doesn’t influence your writing/lobbying, so go for it. On a side note, I was also downgraded from Diamond to Silver this year (been Diamond since 2005), so if anyone has one of the free Gold statuses and would like to donate it, please let me know. I would greatly appreciate it.
Nah, but taking Diamond would have been wrong.
As long as you continue to write and speak the truth about whats right or wrong with these programs it’s all good
As others have stated its easy to get gold and I’ve done it for others in the past by requesting gold from my contacts at the call center
Hilton has destroyed its program and it’s core value
Points are worse than Pesos and now a pitiful amount of miles are earned when double dipping
Diamond force is gone
I hardly use the program anymore and they gave me 3 years of complimentary diamond status to win my business back this year
Ive done 2 stays with them in 12 months down from 78
And I stil can’t say anything nice about the program or the Blackstone puppets running the program
Awful what they did and helpful to Hyatt and SPG
Of course you should NOT take it. His motivation is to buy you off, even if done subtlety.
Are you going to say in all the credit card pushing that you do, you are not taking “comps”? (Money == comps) Why do you have no problem with that?
Since gold status is so easy to come by and you have several other options for earning it, I say keep it, else you just spend unnecessary time getting it another way. You’ve always seemed to be a straight-shooter and I’d imagine it won’t affect your blog posts regarding Hilton.
You should decline it and give away the status to one of your readers.
Your integrity is not worth Hilton Gold. Politely decline.
What would you have done if it just magically happened and you did not bump into him?
One status level up is no big deal. You have disclosed it, accept it and thank them, to do otherwise is churlish.
Next time though, enjoy your breakfast in the Hilton!
@Linda Friedman – I’d have been very happy indeed!
Gary,
One can’t properly analyze or make decisions about an ethical dilemma considering only the instant situation. Context usually matters. You have established yourself as an honest, unbiased, call-it-like-you-see-it commentator on travel issues, and you were transparent about how you lost Diamond and Gold status (BEFORE Hilton gave you Gold and before your breakfast meeting) AND about Hilton giving you Gold, and your breakfast meeting. I have no concern you’re going to shave your comments about Hilton or Hilton Honors as a result.
All that being said, however, I offer the following as reasons I think the best course would be for you to write Hilton and ask that they return you to Silver:
o Not everyone who comes across your blog or other sources of your comments has followed you and knows of your allegiance to transparency and objective commentary. Appearance counts, and even if you and many of your followers know that you’re not going to change your comments because of this, not everyone will know that.
o Our detractors are going to run us down no matter how honest, scrupulous, and ethical we are. But why give them ammunition?
o I think it is a worthwhile advantage for you to be able to say “I never knowingly have accepted different treatment from a travel service provider than would be available to someone else doing what I’ve done.” I’d retain that advantage.
In my mind, the benefits of the status change aren’t sufficiently significant to warrant the downsides of accepting the change “gift.” If those benefits matter to you at all, I have no doubt you’ll be able to arrange to obtain them by one or another tack available to everyone (and you’ll have knowledge of more ways to do that than most others).
In summary, only you can determine if you’ll even infinitessimally prostitute yourself as a result of this. My money says you won’t, and I have no doubt many of your other fans will agree with me. I won’t think differently about you if you keep the Gold, given how it came to you. But I also have no doubt keeping the Gold will raise questions in the minds of some, and likely will convince a few (or reconfirm in the minds of those already convinced) that you get special treatment and probably reciprocate. That seems like a bad deal to me.
@ScottB – as it happens, and I wrote later, I did ask to be returned to Silver and I was in fact returned to Silver. Thanks!