Customer Satisfaction Effects on Hotel Brand Performance: Mediated by Brand Popularity?

Abstract

Existing research tells us a lot about the consequences and importance of customer satisfaction in the hotel industry. However, we know little about the extent to which brand-level effects of customer satisfaction on hotel sales and prices are mediated by brand reputation/popularity. Analysis of brand-level data in this study indicated that hotel brand occupancy, average daily rate, and revenue per available room increase with customer satisfaction, but that brand popularity is unrelated to all of these other variables. These findings support the idea that customer satisfaction affects demand directly rather than indirectly through hotel brand reputation. The practical implications of these findings for hotel brands and for property owners are discussed.