Choice Hotels ’ chief customer officer , Sarah Searls , is helping marketing and loyalty programs evolve with the guest .
PROFILE
Choice Hotels ’ chief customer officer , Sarah Searls , is helping marketing and loyalty programs evolve with the guest .
Contributed by ALICIA HOISINGTON
otel companies often tout their
H commitment to putting guests first . But what exactly does that mean ? Choice Hotels International wants to build a strategy around just that . And Sarah Searls , who stepped into the newly created role of chief customer officer in November , is the woman for the job .
“ Successful marketing delivers messages in ways that are relevant to customers — which in turn drives awareness , consideration and ultimately incremental bookings ,” Searls says . “ With our growing portfolio of brands , we need to connect with different customer segments .”
To do this , Searls says the Rockville , Marylandbased company needs to truly understand its guests , their travel occasions and travel mindsets in order to create relevant campaigns and messaging . At the same time , it needs to leverage technology and data to ensure customer targets are being reached efficiently and at the right times .
In a way , Searls , 48 , has been preparing for this role for most of her career . She was hired by Choice in 2009 to build out marketing analytics capabilities and then broader enterprise analytics . In 2015 , she
44 hotelsmag . com April 2020
IN TO
LEANING LOYALTY