Change in SVN ELITE benefits

I'm 5-star elite and I have just been upgraded at WKORV-N. My weeks there are island view and we got a beautiful ocean front (not sure if it was considered ocean view or ocean front, but it was in fact what I could accept as ocean front). Sincerely, I was not expecting that, and probably the resort being brand new has something to do with it. Obviusly, the reservation was made almost one year ago (but not in the first possible day for it).
It's been a good surprise, as it has been the resort itself..I was afraid about what to expect just in the second week after opening, but everything was fine. My only complain would be that nobody is watching the pool to enforce the rules, and that means jacuzzis always full of children using them as small pools and disturbing anyone else (under 16 are not allowed to be in the jacuzzis), or even some glass bottle at the pool (and that is a BIG RISK with those winds!).
Anyway, wonderful resort and excellent staff.
About 5-star benefits, I don't think the upgrades here are so important...I sincerely trust Starwood when they say it could be quite frustrating...if getting an unit in Hawaii or the Caribbean is almost impossible out of your home resort, then it's obvious an upgrade to a larger unit would be more a fantasy than a real option to expect. I would make them other suggestions....for instance, free valet parking or free daily tidy service for 5-star owners...things like those would be much more practical than flying upgrades, imho.

We were also upgraded at the north to an Ocean view. I am travelling on business, but I did get a picture of the view that I will post when I get back. The story is the same as above.

fljbrs said:

I'm 5-star elite and I have just been upgraded at WKORV-N.

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The new SVN elite benefits starts in 2008. You can still get upgrade this year.

I am of the the belief, that for your very first stay, unless you have purchased oceanfront, (because where else can you go from there?!)..they upgrade you(reguardless of status) so that you want to upgrade your purchase. Our first year(we bought island view at WKORV) we were upgraded to a oceanview deluxe , and it was a fabulous view! That reservation was made probably at the 8th month window, we vacationed in August.

The next time I made the reservation at 12 mo. and we got our mountain vew, but luckily a high floor. This was during April spring break of this year.

myip said:

The new SVN elite benefits starts in 2008. You can still get upgrade this year.

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I was specifically told (as many others were) that the changes to the benefits took place earlier this year when they were announced. Specifically I was told that, effective immediate, no upgrades for Elite owners will be given. The only exception to this (immediate policy change) was the increase StarPoints upon conversion which are set to start in 2008; it was not appropriate for them to start this half way through the year. I do have great news on the upgrade issue which I will be posting shortly.

Email to Suzanne Clark

Before I copy the email that I sent I would like to say that Suzanne has communicated very well throughout this tough time of changing benefits. She is a true professional and has definitely made me feel like a valued customer. This morning I sent the following email to Suzanne:

Suzanne,
It has been a couple of months since we spoke. I again appreciate the time that you spent talking to me. When I had first called the Elite phone number, I was also told that upgrades would not ever be given. In our last conversation, you informed me that Starwood’s policy was that they would not be doing any upgrades for 5* Elite owners. You did mention that you were taking our feedback and that you were going to see if anything could be changed. Two 5* Elite TUG members just posted stories of recently being upgraded. If this means that you were able to positively impact the policy, I would like to thank you VERY MUCH! Does this mean that you were able to get the policy changed? Can we as 5* Elite members at least have a hope of an upgrade at check in?
Thank you again for you help and assistance,

Upgrades Are Back!

Here is Suzanne's reply:
So nice to hear from you again. While we are not going to communicate the villa upgrade as a promised benefit, we have put the process in place to surprise and delight our Elite owners and automatically upgrade you when available. It will work just like the SPG upgrade benefit, if available upon check in we will automatically upgrade you. Have a great evening! Suzanne

I then sent this for clarification:
I’m sorry Suzanne but I had one more question for clarification. I am assuming that a 5* Elite would get an upgrade before a 3 or 4* Elite if only one was available. Is this correct?

Here is Suzanne's reply:
Yes, we will begin with 5,4,3 star as priority..... Suzanne

I too have continued to talk with her electronically to keep this issue alive. Her communication makes sense and is a reasonable starting point. Thank you for keeping us in the loop.

Sounds like a reasonable solution.

Westin5Star said:

we have put the process in place to surprise and delight our Elite owners..........

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Sounds like Starwood has jumped on the Net Promoter Score bandwagon...... "surprise and delight" gives it away.

Surprise and Delight

We just returned from a wonderful 2 week stay at WKORV-N. My reservation was for a 1BR the first week and a studio for the second week. Upon check-in, I asked if it was possile to convert the second week to a 1BR unit if we shortened our stay. I was told that they would let me know after the room assignments had been made for that week. Well, quite to my surprise, I was told that we could remain in the 1BR unit that we were in for the second week as a complementary upgrade and we did not have to shorten our stay. We were not only surprised and delighted, but thrilled to be 3 Star Elite if that had anything to do with it.

Fran

Westin5Star said:

Here is Suzanne's reply:
So nice to hear from you again. While we are not going to communicate the villa upgrade as a promised benefit, we have put the process in place to surprise and delight our Elite owners and automatically upgrade you when available. It will work just like the SPG upgrade benefit, if available upon check in we will automatically upgrade you. Have a great evening! Suzanne

I then sent this for clarification:
I’m sorry Suzanne but I had one more question for clarification. I am assuming that a 5* Elite would get an upgrade before a 3 or 4* Elite if only one was available. Is this correct?

Here is Suzanne's reply:
Yes, we will begin with 5,4,3 star as priority..... Suzanne

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SO, What happens to an SVN owner that makes a reservation at the 8 month window using StarOptions? Will he get and Island View, Ocean View, or Ocean Front View? I don't think that the "Upgrade Policy" or "No Policy" makes any sense now? Will they tell you what you get when you make your StarOption reservation? They did before. Or will they hold this back and allocate at check-in (for 8 month window StarOption traders)? IF so, then there will be lots of rooms and views available for 5*'s!!! Or, do upgrades only apply to a Studio to a 1 BR? What is the "View" upgrade policy and how does it differ from the room size?

I really wish we could know when making reservation what view we will have - even if later than the "owner window". We have flexibility and I would not reserve unless I could have ocean view (which we own) or ocean front (upgrade!). Its a long trip and I don't want to be surprised with island view if I can't make early reservations. I'd rather change the week to get what I bought and want

duke said:

SO, What happens to an SVN owner that makes a reservation at the 8 month window using StarOptions? Will he get and Island View, Ocean View, or Ocean Front View? I don't think that the "Upgrade Policy" or "No Policy" makes any sense now? Will they tell you what you get when you make your StarOption reservation? They did before. Or will they hold this back and allocate at check-in (for 8 month window StarOption traders)? IF so, then there will be lots of rooms and views available for 5*'s!!! Or, do upgrades only apply to a Studio to a 1 BR? What is the "View" upgrade policy and how does it differ from the room size?

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My understanding of this is that if an SVN owner reserves at 8 months then they will most likely get a Island View (especially if Elite owners are also trading in). If that SVN owner is 5, 4, or 3* Elite (in that order) then they will have a very good chance at an upgraded view and / or room size (ie studio to 1BR) depending on what is available. I could be wrong on this but this is as I understand it.

Darlene had a great idea to send a gift to Suzanne for her assistance in bringing back Elite upgrades at checkin. By Darlene's suggestion (and coupon code), we sent Suzanne a "Thank You" cookie gift basket on behalf of all TUGGERS! Thank you again Darlene for your help on this!

Elite upgrades may be back by my trust in SVO isn't

SVO Management said:

While we are not going to communicate the villa upgrade as a promised benefit, we have put the process in place to surprise and delight our Elite owners and automatically upgrade you when available.

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If this benefit has indeed been returned, why would Starwood NOT want to communicate this fact to its elite owners?

The notice could go something like this:

. . .

Dear Elite Owner,

You know how we induced you to buy your new developer unit with the promise that we would give you free room upgrades in the future, if available, and then a couple of months ago arbitrarily and without any advance notice just up and cancelled that benefit? Well, I’m pleased to secretly (shhhh don’t tell anyone) inform you that at least for now we have sort-of returned that benefit subject to the following changes:

Our original promise was to give you notice of the upgrade ahead of time (30 days for 3 star elites, 60 days for 4 star elites, etc.) so you could plan your trip accordingly. For example, if you traveled off season you would know ahead of time that you only needed to use enough StarOptions for a small one bedroom, but would still be guaranteed a large one-bedroom unit on arrival.

We have dumped that whole advance notice thing because it takes way too much of our reservation agents’ time dealing with your requests over the phone, thereby taking away from their ability to make telemarketing calls for us on your nickel.

Accordingly, our new policy is that if a better villa is available on check-in and no-one else is entitled to it, we’ll give it to you rather than have it go unused. Sure, this is a basic common sense policy, but it still took us a couple of months to get around to adopting it, and we just wanted to annoy you these past few months first.

We know that your expectations of us are so low that you will be surprised and delighted with this new, super secret, change. Moreover, please delete this email because we don’t want to formally communicate this new, super secret, change. We would rather have you only know about the change that cancelled this benefit outright, but we really didn’t (remember, mums the word . . . ..)

Please send your “Thank-You” cookies to the following address . . ..

Sincerely,
SVO Management, Inc.

. . .

I’m guessing that SVO’s legal department proposed this “solution.”

You can almost hear the testimony now . . . ..“We didn’t cancel a benefit that we used to induce new sales, we simply modified the implementation of that benefit to make it more manageable . . . ..”

-nodge

Nodge,
I love your funny posts. There is alot of truth in what you write.

I am very excited to have the upgrades back at all; it beats not having any chance at an upgrade. I wanted to get to 5* almost exclusively so that I could often turn my studio into a 1BR (for instance I would split LO for 2 consecutive weeks and hope for 2 weeks in a 1BR). I knew that sometimes it would get it and sometimes I wouldn't but it would not have changed my travel plans. I do understand being able to use less StarOptions so of course I would rather that they still tell me ahead of time.

BRING BACK NOTIFYING US AHEAD OF TIME FOR UPGRADES- In the meantime, thank you for bringing back upgrades at all!

Nodge: Outstanding!

Nodge: Great post. But I just intercepted this internal memo, sorry:

To SVO Management;

The poster known as nodge is now on double secret probation.

Signed

Loving legal dept.

Negma said:

Nodge: Great post. But I just intercepted this internal memo, sorry:

To SVO Management;

The poster known as nodge is now on double secret probation.

Signed

Loving legal dept.

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I'm not worried. SVO would need some sort of internal communication and tracking system to actually enforce it. If they had those systems, I guess they could give me lousy rooms or deny my StarOption reservation requests in retaliation.

Hey wait a minute . . . ..

I need to get back in SVO's good graces pronto. Do you think Suzzane would like a nice TUG luggage tag? I'd get her a set, but know that most people only need one.

-nodge

very, very funny.

i will donate my luggage tag...

So - I can pay the ~$2000 MFs and convert WPORV usage for 86K StarPoints... such a deal - do I get a luggage tag also?

*****
Dear DAVID,

Congratulations on your decision to purchase with Starwood Vacation Ownership. Because we are excited to have you as a member of the Starwood family, we are delighted to present you with the following exciting opportunity.

Your membership in Starwood Vacation NetworkSM provides you with countless travel options. Even before you have the opportunity to visit your Home Resort, you can make the most of your membership through this Starwood Preferred Guest® promotion.

Available exclusively to new Owners who have not yet enjoyed occupancy rights at their Home Resort, this Starwood Preferred Guest promotion can help you enjoy one of the cornerstones of Starwood Vacation Network. With payment of a usage fee, you can receive the converted value of your ownership week in Starwood Preferred Guest Starpoints®, allowing you to travel to Starwood hotels and resorts around the world. These Starpoints will be available for your use for six years from the date of deposit.

Starwood Preferred Guest offers extraordinary experiences, rewards and recognition wherever your travels take you. Enjoy flexible reward options with distinguished Starwood brands, airline programs and various merchandise partners—as well as the exclusive benefit of no blackout dates on Free Night Awards.

Although this promotion is available until December 31 of the year prior to your occupancy, you may contact us anytime to take advantage of this valuable offer. For more information, please contact Owner Services toll free at 888.619.2988, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Eastern time.

Sincerely,
Suzanne Clark
Vice President
Owner Services
*****

I think the fee for Starpoints before your usage years is around $1,600. That's less than $0.02/Starpoint. Not a great deal, but not completely unreasonable. It is quite as bad as exchanging your villa for points.

Suzanne Clarke's Welcome E-Mail said:

Congratulations on your decision to purchase with Starwood Vacation Ownership. Because we are excited to have you as a member of the Starwood family, we are delighted to present you with the following exciting opportunity.

...

Sincerely,
Suzanne Clark
Vice President
Owner Services (pronounced "Owner Leveraging Services")
*****

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That is indeed an “exciting opportunity.”

Speaking of which, I’m surprised Suzanne is using the clichéd term “exciting opportunity” in her email. If my weekly unsolicited e-mail marketing promotions from SVO are any indicator, “surprise and delight” is the new “exciting opportunity” of today. In a rare case, SVO also makes do with “extraordinary opportunity,” but its use is limited to particularly bad deals like $27,000 African Safaris.

In light of this, I think that it is safe to assume that Suzanne may have not personally written that notice to you. She’s way too up on the current marketing buzzwords to have let that slip by.

-nodge

Nodge, you make life so much more interesting.