Case Study — Koningsdag “Spin-to-Win” Experience for Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam

Project delivered by Planet Polaris
Date of activation: 21 April 2024 (sx days before Koningsdag)
Location: Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam, NL

1. Client Overview

Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam is a five-star luxury hotel housed in a 15th-century landmark building at the heart of the Dutch capital. Known for its impeccable service and curated guest experiences, The Grand continually looks for innovative ways to surprise and delight its international clientele.

2. Opportunity & Objectives

Koningsdag (King’s Day) is the Dutch national celebration, turning Amsterdam into a city-wide festival awash in orange. The hotel wanted an on-property activation that would:

1. Engage guests in a fun, locally themed activity while they were on-site.

2. Collect GDPR-compliant guest data (emails & permissions) for future marketing.

3. Reinforce the Sofitel Legend brand through a premium look-and-feel.

4. Operate flawlessly on hotel Wi-Fi and guest devices without app downloads.

3. Solution in a Nutshell

Planet Polaris designed and built a mobile-first, browser-based “Spin-to-Win” game, a digital wheel of fortune skinned in royal-orange Koningsdag visuals. Guests entered their details, and spun the wheel for a chance to win curated prizes. A secure back-office dashboard captured every interaction in real time.

4. Key Features

Feature	Description
Responsive UI	Adaptive design using CSS Flexbox & Bootstrap, ensuring flawless play on phones, tablets, and lobby touch-screens.
Real-Time Win Logic	PHP-driven algorithm balanced prize probability & inventory to avoid over-redemption.
Secure Back-Office	Two-factor-authenticated portal for marketing staff to monitor spins, export CSVs, and toggle prizes.
GDPR & PCI Compliance	AES-256 encryption at rest, SSL/TLS in transit, plus optional double-opt-in email flow.
Automated Email Follow-Up	Seamless API bridge to Salesforce Marketing Cloud triggered personalised ‘Congratulations’ emails.
Analytics	Live charts on total spins, unique players, conversion funnel, and prize inventory.

5. Technical Stack

• Backend: PHP 8.2 (Laravel) with MySQL 8, Redis cache for session storage.

• Frontend: jQuery, Vanilla JS, GSAP for wheel animation, SCSS compiled to CSS.

• Security: OWASP-10 hardening, Web Application Firewall, rate limiting.

8. Lessons Learned & Next Steps

• Scalability: The modular codebase means future seasonal activations (e.g., Christmas Wheel) can be launched in < 2 weeks.

• Personalisation: Integrate PMS data to tailor prize pools based on room category or stay length.

• Loyalty Tie-In: Connect spins to ALL – Accor Live Limitless points for deeper engagement.

Why It Matters

This project demonstrates how Planet Polaris blends creative gamification with rock-solid engineering to drive measurable ROI for luxury hospitality brands.

Looking to turn your next guest activation into a data-driven experience? Let’s talk.