Low-cost pricing strategies in leisure markets

The practice of dynamic pricing typical of low-cost carriers is generally regarded as a form of price discrimination between “leisure” and “business” travellers on a single flight or route. The same may not be true across different routes because of the different incidence of business travellers. If price increases in the 15 days prior to departure are meant to discriminate business demand, leisure demand should account for earlier price variations. In the present study, we used a database containing the daily fare over the 3 months prior to each flight operated by easyJet during 2009. For each route, we defined the “leisure index” as the difference between the price rates of change during the 90 days and 15 days prior to departure. Overall, “business” routes had lower average prices per km, while “leisure” routes showed less dynamic price behaviour, with higher minimum and lower maximum prices per km.     

Effects of concealing vs. displaying prices on consumer perceptions of hospitality products

This study was designed to empirically test the psychological consequences of concealing (vs. displaying) the prices of hospitality products on perceptions of expensiveness, quality, value, and purchase intention. To achieve this objective, seven hypotheses were proposed and a series of four experimental studies were conducted. It was found that a cafe that did not (vs. did) display price information was evaluated relatively highly in terms of perceived expensiveness, but relatively low in perceived quality, value, and purchase intention. Specifically, we found that the heightened perception of expensiveness of a price-concealing cafe, along with relatively weak change in quality perception, negatively influenced both perceptions of value and purchase intention in Studies 1 and 2. Further, we found that these relationships are moderated by the consumer personal trait of price consciousness (Study 3) and mediated by price fairness (Study 4).     

Eye movements on restaurant menus: A revisitation on gaze motion and consumer scanpaths

Menu designers have based design tactics on roughly applied psychological foundations. In particular, attention and memory-based design placement strategies are founded upon assumptions which necessitate a clear idea of consumer eye movement sequences across restaurant menus. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, a review of academic and practitioner literature is presented to frame the current discussion on gaze motion patterns as applied to restaurant menus. Second, the results of an eye-tracker study are presented as an empirical and more quantitatively analyzed replication of past restaurant gaze-motion studies. Results offer an average menu scanpath, show that observed consumer scanpaths differ from those anecdotally espoused by industry, and suggest traditional menu “sweet spots” may not exist.     

Do price promotions drive consumer spending on luxury hotel services? The moderating roles of room price and user-generated content

Price promotion, as price information, and user-generated content (UGC), as non-price information, play an important role in generating luxury hotel revenue. This study empirically investigates how price promotion influences actual consumer spending on luxury hotel services except room price, by considering the contingency role of room price and volume and valence of UGC. Combined data of daily settlements and Tripadvisor customer reviews of a regional luxury hotel chain are used for the analyses. The results indicate that, overall, price promotion negatively influences consumer spending on luxury hotel services and its negative effect is strengthened when the room is higher priced or the valence of UGC is high. Furthermore, a larger volume of intrinsic attribute-related UGC–amenity and location–with price promotion leads to more consumer spending than a larger volume of extrinsic attribute-related UGC–food and staff. The findings provide hotel managers with important insights into pricing and UGC management.     

Price bundling presentation and consumer's bundle choice: The role of quality certainty

As bundling has become a prevalent marketing strategy, the existing literature has focused on how to present price discount information for bundled products. To further understand bundling in restaurant operations, this study examined the moderating role of consumer quality certainty on the relationship between the effects of price bundling and consumers’ bundle choices. This study analyzed different bundling phenomena from an acquisition–transaction utility theory perspective in order to investigate the effects of price presentation and quality certainty manipulation on consumers’ bundle choices. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that quality certainty had a significant moderating effect. The less confident a consumer is about the quality of the bundled food products, the more likely it is that price presentation strategies will affect his or her willingness to order a bundle menu. The results also showed that transaction utility becomes significant as price discount information is segregated and as consumers are more certain of the quality of the bundled products. Managerial implications for restaurant operations are also discussed.     

Fairness of prices,user fee policy and willingness to pay among visitors to a national forest

Imposing user fees in Nature-Based Tourism (NBT) contexts has been a controversial issue. Based on the notions of justice and fairness, this study extended previous work examining the relationship between attitudes toward user fees and spending support. In a proposed structural model of price fairness, fee spending support, and willingness to pay (WTP), this paper identified the antecedents of WTP user fees, and empirically examined to what extent the data fit the model. Furthermore, the moderating role of place attachment in the model was investigated by using multiple-group structural equation modeling. Subjects (n = 562) were recreational tourists to a forest area in the southeast U.S. Results revealed that spending support partially played a mediating role in the relationship between perceived price fairness and WTP user fees. A multiple-group invariance test also demonstrated that while the degree of place identity moderated the effect of price fairness on spending support, the degree of place dependence did not influence the relationships among the antecedents of WTP.     

The search for the best deal: How hotel cancellation policies affect the search and booking decisions of deal-seeking customers

This study examined cancellation policies and their role in shaping travelers’ deal-seeking behavior, exploring the impact of cancellation fees and deadlines on three, mutually exclusive, customers’ hotel booking behavior categories: “Book”, “Book and Search”, and “Search”. 291 subjects, who participated in a week long online “booking game”, attempted to book a room in a virtual hotel and get the best deal. The results were tested using small sample t-test for comparing proportions between two independent populations, non-parametric multiple pairwise comparisons, and multinomial logit regression models. The findings indicate that the cancellation deadline affected participants’ behavior while the size of the cancellation fee had no statistically significant impact. In addition, there was no significant difference between lenient cancellation deadline and no cancellation policy.     

Price premiums for organic menus at restaurants: What is an acceptable level?

This study identifies acceptable premium price levels that customers would be willing to pay for organic menu items at restaurants in the United States. Previous literature indicates that health-related and socio-demographic characteristics significantly influence consumers’ intentions to purchase organic food. To advance our understanding of how different consumers respond to changes in organic food prices, this study examines the moderating effects of the level of health consciousness (high versus low), gender (male versus female), and age (young versus old) on the relationship between premium price levels and purchasing intentions. In addition, this study further investigates acceptable premium price levels for different consumer segments at two types of restaurants (casual dining versus fine dining). The results of this study provide guidelines for menu design and strategies for restaurateurs to devise effective price premiums for organic menu options.     

Customer complaints in restaurants: Do they differ by service stages and loyalty levels?

Complaints by dissatisfied customers provide managers with an opportunity to learn about problems and take appropriate corrective action to ensure that mistakes do not recur. The authors investigate whether restaurant consumers respond differently to service failures at different service stages and loyalty levels. A survey of 289 customers in the United States found that customers are likely to complain at any service stage following a service failure. Highly loyal customers showed a significantly higher willingness to complain than less loyal customers when a service failure occurs during the greeting/seating and order taking/delivery stages (service stages 1 and 2). Four consumer groups with distinct willingness to complain and levels of loyalty emerged from this study: “silent potential,” “pure complainer,” “silent supporter,” and “loyal voicers.” Among those groups, the silent supporter group (high affective loyalty and low propensity to complain) showed the highest behavioral intentions, whereas the pure complainer group (low affective loyalty and high propensity to complain) showed the lowest behavioral intentions.     

Market structure and demand-side substitutability of chained urban hotel segments

This study analyzes how the demand in hotel markets is divided amongst chained hotel segments. Hypotheses regarding consumers’ switching behavior due to changes in income levels and relative prices are tested using data from 25 major urban markets in the United States, encompassing segments ranging from luxury to economy over 43 quarters. The effects of differentiation and market concentration are also investigated in this context. The results suggest that leisure and individual consumers of the low-scale segments may be trading “up” to higher scales when their income increase, but that upscale segments’ corporate consumers are not necessarily trading “down” when Corporate Income fall. In addition, only low-scale segments appear to be substitutes to upscale segments, but the inverse seems not to be true. Also, properties in mid-range segments are found to be the only ones benefiting from a high market concentration, while low-scale properties turn out to be the ones gaining from differentiation through price.     

An investigation of perceptions of social equity and price acceptability judgments for campers in the U.S. national forest

In spite of the significance of social equity in determining appropriate fee levels for activities such as camping in public nature-tourism resources, there has been little understanding of the mechanisms that (a) influence the debate over scale and (b) the conditions that are used in fee determination. The main objective of this study is to investigate the decision making process that predicts social equity judgments and price acceptability of user fees for activities such as camping in protected areas (including parks) and outcome the variables. In this study of Wasatch-Cache National Forest in northeastern Utah using conjoint analysis the results indicated that the extent of public input was the most prominent predictor of social equity judgment at p < 0.01. The second highest part-worth coefficient was obtained in support of low user fees (a hypothetical scale of $3.00 vs. $8.00). The magnitude of the part-worth coefficients for price acceptability showed that the highest part-worth coefficient was a fee level of $3.00. The next highest part-worth coefficient was in support of revenue being used to maintain the quality of the site. It was also found that that “extensive public input” was an important predictor of social equity.     

Does bureaucracy kill individual initiative? The impact of structure on organizational citizenship behavior in the hospitality industry

In their quest for improved service quality, hospitality organizations face a paradox. Standardization and centralization are generally perceived as essential to maintaining high service standards. These bureaucratic mechanisms, however, are suspected to have a negative impact on spontaneous “organizational citizenship” behaviors, which are equally essential for flawless service delivery. Empirical results from the Swiss hotel industry suggest that “helping” behavior is more widespread than “voice” behavior among hotel employees. The results also provide support for the hypothesis that “helping” and “voice” behaviors are negatively affected by a centralized organization structure. Theoretical and practical implications of these results are discussed.     

Understanding attributes affecting meal choice decisions in a bundling context

This study examined attributes that contribute to consumer meal choice decisions within a prix fixe menu. Drawing on typologies of consumer purchase behavior, factors potentially influencing consumers’ meal choice are identified and empirically tested. The results showed that consumers consider value for price as the most important consideration for their meal bundle choices. The results also indicated that familiar and healthy foods also contribute to the selection process. However, consumers tend to avoid the risk of choosing new menu items.     

产品外部属性对跨境购物意愿的影响

最近几年, 中国人跨境购物的热情持续高涨, 但国内却鲜有学者关注跨境购物这一现象。文章采用情景实验的方法, 以广东消费者为研究对象, 探讨在粤港两地不同购买地市场环境下, 产品外部属性对购买意愿的影响。研究结果表明, 购买地这一因素对于消费者购买搜索和体验产品的决策影响十分有限, 消费者并没有对粤港两地市场产生明显偏好。对于体验产品而言, 消费者对西方外国品牌的购买意愿高于国内品牌, 且这种偏好不会受到价格和购买地的影响。对于搜索产品而言, 价格与品牌原产国会对消费者的购买意愿产生交互作用。     

Price placebo effect in hedonic consumption

Given the widespread use of premium pricing strategies as a marketing practice, how consumers evaluate premium pricing actions is an interesting issue for both marketing researchers and practitioners. Thus, the objective of this study was to examine perceptions of premium prices and the role of prices, which act as a cue that improves consumers’ experiences in an upscale café setting. Indeed, the results indicated that both price–quality schema and prestige sensitivity were significant factors that induce a positive overall perception of quality at luxury cafés, including coffee, service, and atmosphere. Thus, this study evidences that a price placebo effect exists in hedonic consumption settings. To better understand consumers’ mental accounting based on their income source, the study examined the moderating effect of the origin of the respondents’ income as well. The results revealed that the price tag generates positive consumer responses to café quality.     

Interactive effects of message framing and information content on carbon offsetting behaviors

This study examines the effects of message framing and information presentation on tourists' carbon offsetting behaviors within the theoretical framework of heuristic-systematic processing. The interactive effects of message framing and information presentation are assessed on both static and dynamic outcome variables employing a mixed between-within group methodology utilizing two sets of data through a longitudinal 2 × 2 × 2 experimental design. The results reveal that a gain-framed messaging combined with objective climate change information and objective carbon offsetting information results in significantly more positive impacts on changes in purchase intention of carbon offsetting products and increases willingness to pay for carbon offsetting. Conversely, the combination of loss-framed messages and subjective information presentation are shown not only to be ineffective in increasing carbon offsetting behavior but results in declines in tourists’ purchase intention of carbon offsetting products and willingness to pay for carbon offsetting.     

Effect of Price Change Alert on Perceptions of Hotel Attribute-based Room Pricing (ABP) versus Traditional Room Pricing (TRP)

Aside from marketing information on traditional room rates, hotels and online travel agents (OTAs) are trying a new pricing technique based on the attributes of guestrooms. This research investigates how attribute-based room pricing (ABP) differs from traditional room pricing (TRP) in influencing consumer reactions when consumers receive a price change alert before (vs. after) sales. Through a series of experiments, we found that TRP and ABP result in similar alert attitude, brand attitude, and visit intention for presale price change alert. However, ABP leads to more favorable results for postsale price change alert. We examined the underlying mechanism and found that perceived fairness mediates the effect of pricing strategy on brand attitude, price alert attitude, and visit intention for postsale alert only. This research provides hotel managers and OTA marketers with guidance on when to send either type of price change message to consumers.     

Working onboard - Job perception, organizational commitment and job satisfaction in the cruise sector

This paper focuses on the perceived work environment and its influence on organizational commitment and job satisfaction in the cruise sector. Two focus group interviews were conducted in addition to one survey among the crew in an upmarket cruise line. The focus groups elicited responses concerning crew experiences of working onboard. Based on this information, a questionnaire was constructed to measure job perceptions among crew members. The results indicate that all of the experience domains were related to job commitment and job satisfaction, but that the strongest effects were found to be perceived “Respect”, the “Social atmosphere”, and “Food and living quarters”.     

Understanding leisure travel motivations of travelers with acquired mobility impairments

The purpose of the study was to understand what motivated people with mobility impairments to travel frequently. Two focus groups were conducted and results were analyzed in light of Crompton’s (1979) push/pull conceptual framework exploring pleasure travel motivation. Results showed that although travelers with acquired mobility impairments shared many similar motives with travelers not identified as having mobility impairments, they also had unique motivations including “Independence”, “The Desire of Being in a Natural Environment”, “Adventure/Risk”, “Do It Today”, and “Accessibility.” Findings and limitations of the study are discussed and implications of the results are suggested.