Article Summary

Article Summary

The article Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry : the Role of Customer Satisfaction and Image ' by provides focus for managers how to increase customer loyalty and how to manage global hotels . Nowadays hotel industry is global industry in which the primary focus is expansion abroad . Hotel facilities as , for example , room service and laundry , are not considered luxury as they have become integral part of human life . Therefore , hotel industry is challenged by pace of competition and ever-growing volume . The authors argue that there are to strategies to gain

competitive advantage : offering price discounts and increasing customer loyalty . Loyal customer is defined as a customer who repurchases from the same service provider whenever possible , and who continues to recommend or maintains a positive attitude towards the service provider (p .346

To gain customer loyalty means to finds effective ways to satisfy customers . It is argued that image influences customer loyalty and satisfaction . Therefore , image should be considered when measuring customer loyalty . Developing customer loyalty is said to depend on financial abilities of the hotel to improve service performance and to establish positive image . The hotel image is affected by the following aspects of hotel operation : promotion , place , price , product and people So , one effective idea is to reduce price to attract new customers . The most important factors which affect customer loyalty are willingness to offer superior service and hotel rooms . Thus , quality improvement should be focused on ensuring customer satisfaction from room services and housekeeping . Other important factors are reception , food , beverages and price . Nevertheless , researchers claim that attempts to reduce prices may negatively impact hotels ' long-term profitability . Therefore , the authors conclude that quality of service should differentiate hotel from its competitors : Hotel organizations must constantly strive to develop and maintain their customers ' loyalty or , as is true in the majority of relationships , risk losing it someone else (p .351

References

Kandampully , J Suhartanto , Dw (2000 .Customer Loyalty in the Hotel Industry : the Role of Customer Satisfaction and Image . International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management , 12 , 6 , 346-351

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