Best Western’s Dorothy Dowling Named to List of World’s Most Influential CMOs
PHOENIX (PRWEB) November 11, 2015 -- Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president of marketing and sales for Best Western Hotels & Resorts(BW) was named the 18th most influential Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) in the world in the Forbes/ScribbleLive/LinkedIn’s 4th Annual CMO Influence Study.
This study evaluates the most influential CMOs in the world based on an analysis of the top 500 companies from the 2015 Forbes Global 2000 Largest Companies list and the 2015 Forbes Most Valuable Brands lists. The honorees include individuals from top global brands, including Apple, General Motors and Master Card.
BW’s Dowling, who jumped in the rankings from 27th in 2014 to 18th in 2015, is the third highest ranked female CMO on the list and is one of just two hotel marketing leaders on this year’s list. In addition, Dowling and Apple’s Phil Schiller were both named to the list of top ten influencers on the topic of global marketing.
“To be recognized and included in this group of accomplished marketers and thought leaders is an honor,” said Best Western’s Dorothy Dowling. “The success Best Western is experiencing is rooted in the relationships we have cultivated with our customers, partners and colleagues. I take great pride in the powerful partnerships we have created and truly believe they have fueled my personal success and our achievements as an industry-leading brand.”
Dowling joined BW in 2004. During her tenure she has reenergized the Best Western Rewards® loyalty program, grown the brand’s market share and undertaken several groundbreaking initiatives. In 2015 and 2016 Dowling is at the helm of a comprehensive global brand refresh for the iconic Best Western brand, including a complete redesign of the brand’s digital platform, the award-winning bestwestern.com site and the implementation of a “mobile first” strategy.
In recognizing Dowling’s accomplishments, Best Western President & CEO David Kong said, “As Best Western approaches its 70th birthday, Dorothy continues to lead her talented team in contemporizing and energizing the brand through programs that resonate with consumers and keep Best Western relevant in the ever evolving hospitality landscape.”
Best Western has been selected by AAA as the Hotel Partner of the Year every year since 2008, and for the past two years readers of Business Travel News (BTN) selected BEST WESTERN PLUS® as the No. 1 Upper Midprice Hotel Company and BEST WESTERN® in the top three for Midprice Hotel Company.
Direct Making News inducted Dowling into its Marketing Hall of Femme in 2014. Dowling was named vice president of the Global Business Travel Association Allied Leadership Council in 2013. She also serves on the North American board for the U.S. Travel Association. Dowling currently serves on, and is the former chair of, the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Americas Board and is past president of HSMAI Canada. Dowling has twice been listed among HSMAI’s Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Sales in Marketing.
Dowling began her hospitality career in Canada after earning a joint Masters of Arts degree in sociology and leisure studies from the University of Waterloo in Ontario. In 2008, she received the university’s Distinguished Alumni Award.
The complete Forbes/ScribbleLive/LinkedIn 2015 CMO Influence Study can be viewed and downloaded at http://www.scribblelive.com/top-50-cmos-influencers-2015/. The study examines influence, which is ranked by extracting opinions, quotes, and other reactions from hundreds of millions of articles from news, blog, and social media sources. Proprietary ScribbleLive algorithms rank opinion holders based on the influence of the people who react to them, the attributes of the publication or source where the reaction occurs, and the overall quantity of reactions to a single opinion.
About Best Western Hotels & Resorts:
Best Western® Hotels & Resorts headquartered in Phoenix, Ariz., is a privately held hotel brand with a global network of 4,100* hotels in more than 100* countries and territories worldwide. Best Western offers seven hotel brands to suit the needs of developers and guests in every market: Best Western®, Best Western Plus®, Best Western Premier®, Best Western Plus Executive Residency®, Vīb®, BW Premier Collection® and GLō. Now celebrating 69 years of hospitality, Best Western provides its hoteliers with global operational, sales and marketing support, and online and mobile booking capabilities. More than 25 million travelers are members of the brand’s award-winning loyalty program Best Western Rewards®, one of the few programs in which members earn points that never expire and can be redeemed at any Best Western hotel worldwide. The brand’s partnerships with AAA/CAA, Minor League Baseball, and Harley-Davidson® provide travelers with exciting ways to interact with the brand. Best Western continues to set industry records and accolades, including Business Travel News naming Best Western Plus as the best upper mid-price hotel chain, four consecutive Compuware Best of the Web gold awards for best hotel website and seven consecutive AAA/CAA Hotel Partner of the Year awards. More than half of all Best Western branded hotels have earned a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence award.
*Numbers are approximate, may fluctuate and include hotels currently in the development pipeline.
Laura Cherry, Best Western Hotels & Resorts, +1 (602) 957-5668, [email protected]
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