The role of customer delight and customer equity for loyalty in upscale hotels

Abstract

Abstract This study aims to assess relationships among hotel guest experience, delight, equity, and loyalty. An empirical model is developed to examine a) effects of experience on delight and equity, b) impacts of delight on equity and loyalty, c) effects of equity on loyalty, and d) mediating effects of equity on relationship between delight and equity. Data was collected from 564 guests at five-star upscale hotels which are located on the Haeundae beach in South Korea and was analyzed with a structural equation modeling (SEM). First, affective experience has a significant impact on delight whereas cognitive experience has a positive influence on equity. Social and behavioral experiences were more related to equity than delight. Second, delight has more powerful influence on loyalty than equity. Last, customer equity has a positive influence on loyalty and partly mediates the relationship between delight and loyalty. The finding of this study can provide the opportunity for hotel managers to categorize different experiences that drive customers to their delight or equity in upscale hotels. Researchers also can understand mediating role of equity between delight and loyalty and grasp value of equity for cognitive evaluation that is differed from satisfaction in upscale hotels.