Study | Hotel Branding: Using Online Research To Drive Innovation

Hotels cater to a wide range of guests and offer services and amentities to individuals with an infinite number of desires and expectations. Due to the diverse population of travelers, it would be no surprise if one hotel brand were perceived very differently from another. However, a recent Brandimensions analysis of online traveler discussion between January 1 and October 31, 2005 shows the opposite - guest perceptions toward different hotel brands are similar, leading to the belief that travelers are not inclined to become loyal to one brand.

Based on an analysis of 2’758 consumer comments, Brandimension found that, in general, hotel corporations such as Hilton and Starwood have an opportunity to further differentiate themselves from their competitors and build more brand loyalty. Hotels are missing out on upwards of $20 billion spend by frequent travelers woh are not loyal to specific brands. Travelers are offered comparable services by multiple hotel brands, all of which aim to provide value to their guests - hotel brands have similar personalities. For example, leisure travelers perceive Hilton is a luxury brand while Holiday Inn is more mid-range. In general, men, women, leisure travelers and business travelers alike have similar experiences at hotels. Furthermore, they frequently discuss the same elements of a hotel’s service offering, such as the performance of the staff and room cleanliness, regardless of whether they stayed at a Hilton or at a Holiday Inn. This demonstrates a lack of differentiation between hotel brands.

THe Internet has provided travelers with a powerful tool for planning their journeys. Prior to making their plans, travelers can use online resources such as Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz to research which hotel would be best in a given city. Hotel marketers can leverage these resources to properly segment their customers and can use the Web as a customer feedback mechanism to help determine which amenities will lead to a differentiated service offering. Furthermore, hotel brands can examine this information to deepen their understanding of the travel behavior of both leisure and business guests.


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