PHOENIX, Ariz. – May 4, 2017 – Dorothy Dowling, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Best Western Hotels & Resorts, has been named the recipient of the Silver Stevie Award in the Marketing Executive of the Year category. The awards are part of the 15th Annual American Business Awards℠. With more than 3,600 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry, Dowling was selected for her 30-plus years of dedication to hospitality marketing, and for leading Best Western’s notable achievements in 2016 including: the brand’s iconic refresh, the revamp of its industry-leading Best Western Rewards® (BWR®) loyalty program, and it’s coveted industry partnerships known for driving innovation and business activation and delivering superior guest experiences.
“Dorothy is an outstanding member of Best Western’s executive leadership team, and one that we are grateful to have leading our marketing and sales initiatives” said President and CEO for Best Western, David Kong. “Dorothy’s receipt of this award is well deserved, as it reflects her tremendous work ethic, deep industry experience, and unwavering commitment to the forward direction of our brand.”
“It is an incredible honor to be recognized with this award, as it is a true testament to the hard work and dedication of the entire team,” said Dowling. “We are committed to listening to the voice of the customer, and this voice is our guiding force at Best Western. I am thrilled with what our brand was able to accomplish together in 2016, especially our historic brand refresh and the ongoing enhancements to our award-winning BWR program. On a personal level, it is quite fulfilling to see those programs – and our innovation – be recognized in this way.”
Dowling played a central role in the 2016 Best Western Hotels & Resorts brand refresh, helping develop the brand’s re-energized identity and enhancements to their hotel portfolio, including the establishment of the individualities for each of the core brands to best showcase the $2 billion product investment by hotel owners. Dowling’s efforts helped her earn a promotion as Chief Marketing Executive in 2016 – where she now oversees Best Western’s loyalty program (Best Western Rewards), brand partnerships, consumer and field marketing activities, advertising and public relations, social media, B2B marketing and global sales. Dowling is also responsible for an $80 million marketing budget and used the budget effectively to implement an array of enhancements within the company. These initiatives include:
- Award winning partnership with AAA®/CAA® (8X Partner of the Year)
- Global brand refresh
- Best Western Rewards (BWR) refresh
- Business activation of global distribution partnerships
- Award winning promotions with Disney® Media Group
- First mover brand partnership with the Google® VR platform
- Business Travel News® (BTN) recognition 3x over
- Launch of You Must Be Trippin’ (YMBT) blog
- Launch of global group platform with HotelPlanner®
The American Business Awards are the nation’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small. More than 190 professionals worldwide participated in the judging process to select this year’s Stevie Award winners.
“Each year the judges find the quality and variety of the nominations to be greater than the year before. The 2017 competition was intense and every organization that has won should be proud,” said Michael Gallagher, president and founder of the Stevie Awards.
Nicknamed the Stevies for the Greek word meaning “crowned,” the awards will be presented to winners at a gala ceremony at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York on Tuesday, June 20. Additional details about The American Business Awards and the list of 2017 Stevie winners are available at www.StevieAwards.com/ABA.
