Hotel guest history as the foundation for database marketing: Embracing a pilot survey of UK hotels

Abstract

The recent emphasis on retention marketing and its impact on more traditional market segmentation methods is considered. In this context, the value of hotel guest history systems as a basis for database marketing is explained and a number of examples of applications in several industries, including hospitality, are cited. The methodology of a pilot study of UK hotels is presented together with a descriptive discussion of the results. The paper concludes that database marketing applications are increasing and will continue to grow, although hotels often fail to make full use of valuable data retained in their guest history files.