What is status matching and how does it work

Hotel loyalty programmes are struggling to attract the most loyal members of other programmes into their fold. The following example is a good proof.

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Loyalty programs status match

For those new to the subject, status match is an offer made by a loyalty program to give you the status equivalent to that which you already have with a competing loyalty program.

Status matches are a common practice in loyalty programs, especially hotel programs.

Some programs work case-by-case… while others create real acquisition campaigns with dedicated sites.

Become a Best Western Diamond member with a status match.

Here’s an example from Best Western Rewards, who nicely called their status match: “Status Match No Catch“.

status match bw — Status match, Best Western edition

With our Status Match…No Catch^® program, we will match your ELITE status in any other hotel loyalty program, FREE of charge. You’ll begin earning Best Western Rewards^® points at the Elite level instantly, and watch them add up even faster.

The process

I’ll take my case as an example. Thanks to my American Express Platinum card , I am a Gold member of the Marriott Bonvoy program.

equivalence statuts spg marriott ritz — Status matches in the 3 groups

The Statusmatcher.com site, which is very informative, gave me some indications on the program that I should choose to try and match o Best Western Rewards.

In this case, I found that SPG Gold members generally got Best Western Diamond status. WhileMarriott Bonvoy’s Elite Gold members were more easily awarded the highest status: Diamond Select.

The procedure is described on the Best Western Rewards website. But there is no need to fill out the form indicated.

So, I just sent an email to StatusMatch@bestwestern.com saying:

My Best Western Rewards membership number
My Name
My address (as indicated in the account)
The competitor loyalty program
My status with the competitor’s loyalty programme

I added a screenshot of my Marriott Bonvoy account proving that I am indeed a Gold Elite Member.

10 minutes later (!!!!), I got an email validating my new status: Diamond Select!

bw diamond select jm — Achieving Best Western Rewards Diamond Select status

Within 10 minutes, I went from the lowest status (Blue) to the highest status (Diamond Select) which normally requires staying a minimum of 50 nights in Best Western hotels during the year!

statuts best western — Best Western Statuses

This status allows you to earn 50% bonus points for each stay… and to get back 10% of the points exchanged for a free hotel night (stays in Canada and the United States only)!

If you requested the Best Western Rewards MasterCard and earned 20,000 points, you may be able to redeem some of your points for one or two nights at a hotel!

The goal

So with my American Express Platinum card, I’m..:

Gold member of the Marriott Bonvoy program
Gold Member of the Hilton Honors Program
Gold member of the Radisson Rewards program (ex-Club Carlson)

Thanks to various status matches I was able to become:

Explorist Member of the World of Hyatt Program
Diamond Select Member of the Best Western Rewards Program
AccorHotels Platinum Member
IHG Platinum Member

What is the purpose of this “race” for status? In addition to ensuring that I am always greeted very well in any hotel that is a member of a group, it allows me to achieve the status of another program. And sometimes it even allows you to climb the ladder faster!

Thus, the Diamond Select Best Western Rewards status is known to offer a more direct way to the Diamond status of the Hilton Honors program, which I am much more interested in than the Best Western status!

Other ways to achieve higher status

The next status I wish to have is Marriott Bonvoy Platinum.

statuts marriott rewards — The differences between the Marriott Bonvoy statutes

Thanks to the status match, this one will allow me to get Marriott Bonvoy Gold.

statuts starwood preferred guest — The differences between the Marriott Bonvoy statutes

There is a quicker method to achieve it if you’re already a Marriott Bonvoy Gold member, called “Road to Platinum“. You have to call Marriott Bonvoy and ask for this challenge. To achieve this, you must book 9 stays (which can be 9 one-night stays) in hotels of the group within 3 months. Usually you would have to stay 75 nights in a year!

Tip: ask for this challenge at the beginning of the month. You will then have every day of the current month + 3 months to complete it!

By applying for this challenge at the beginning of March 2018 and completing it by the end of June 2018, Marriott Bonvoy Platinum status will be valid until the end of February 2020.

Conclusion

When you get hooked on points and miles… you end up getting hooked on hotel and airline status too! They are like treasure chests for… infidels like us! 🙂

N.B.: as Jasmin rightly mentions in his commentary, the programs generally allow a lifetime status match. So prepare your move so you don’t make an unnecessary status match!