Japanese Travelers' Service Preferences in U.S. Hotels

Abstract

This empirical study identifies specific preferences of Japanese visitors staying in U.S. hotels. Relevant literature is reviewed in an attempt to identify guest services which Japanese visitors prefer. This paper offers hotel operators suggestions about what they need to understand in order to attract and retain Japanese visitors. The results of the study will help hotel operators select appropriate products and services in order to better serve Japanese customers.     

Japanese Visitors to Guam: Lessons from Experience

Abstract

Naisbitt (1994) notes that 60 percent of the world's radio broadcasts, 70 percent of the worlds' mail, 85 percent of international phone calls and 80 percent of computer data are in English (pp. 24-25). Perhaps a similar preponderance exists in tourism literature. But beyond this language orientation there is a “Western” orientation of thought regarding tourist behavior and culture that might influence survey design and research methodology. This may leave researchers less able to understand the heterogeneous Asian travelers that are traveling in increasing numbers. It is important to understand the culture of the sending country when analyzing tourist behavior and motivation. This paper illustrates how understanding Japanese culture enhances the development of survey instruments as well as the interpretation of survey results. Examples are taken from the quarterly visitor exit surveys conducted on the island of Guam, a U.S. territory that serves as one of the major short-haul destinations for Japanese travelers.     

Japanese female travelers ‐ a unique outbound market

The rapid growth of Japanese female travelers underscores the importance of understanding the market. Focusing on the differences between the Japanese female and male travelers on their travel attitudes, motivations, trip‐related attributes, and socio‐demographic characteristics, this paper provides empirical evidence that gender is a viable characteristic that can used in marketing activities targeted at the Japanese market. The study findings indicate that the female and male segments of Japanese outbound travelers are significantly differentiated in fifteen out of twenty‐two factors of travel attitudes and motivations. The two segments also differ in a number of trip attributes and socio‐demographic characteristics. Therefore, Japanese female travelers constitute a unique outbound market.     

The Situational Influence of Travel Group Composition

Abstract

A substantial amount of statistics and articles in travel magazines indicated that family vacation travel is one of the major worldwide trends. However, very limited empirical research has been dedicated to this special market segment. This study examined Japanese family travelers to Taiwan by comparing and contrasting them with other travel companionship groups including traveling with friends and traveling alone. The importance of travel group composition segmentation was explained and conceptualized through the understanding of the value of social groups from sociology perspective. The results indicated that Japanese family travelers exhibited unique characteristics when traveling. Family travelers tended to be more motivated by learning oriented themes and participated enthusiastically in activities that facilitated experiential learning as well as total physical relaxation. The “traveling with friends” and “traveling solo” segments tended to be seeking more of activities that had strong entertaining and socializing undertones. The traveling solo group appeared to be the most evasive or the least understood in what their needs and preferences were. Marketing implications were discussed.     

Group/Convention Cancellation Policies in the U. S. Hotel Industry

Abstract

This study looks at the group/convention cancellation policies of various U. S. hotels and how they are implemented. It first gathers general information about the cancellation policies that hotels are currently operating, then presents the differences in the group/convention cancellation policies of U. S. hotels in terms of property profiles, such as size, location, type of ownership/management pattern, and percentage of group/convention business in the property.     

A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Travel Push and Pull Factors

Abstract

Tourism marketers are confronted with the dilemma of whether standardization or the tailoring of services, products and marketing programs for specific markets is more effective and efficient. It remains to be addressed in tourism research whether travelers from varying cultural backgrounds seek different travel benefits and have different preferences for travel products and services, and to what extent they are similar in their travel behaviors. This research study used national household travel surveys conducted by the Canadian Tourism Commission and U.S. Tourism Industries for a cross-cultural comparison of two different countries, the United Kingdom (U.K.) and Japan. Results showed that travelers from these two countries had different travel motives and benefit-seeking patterns. From a marketing perspective, the branding and positioning of a destination for U.K. and Japanese long-haul travel markets will be more effective if the destination marketing organization (DMO) projects different images within its advertising campaigns. These images should reflect the different travel motivations and benefits desired by the two groups of travelers.     

Packaging a Resort: An Analysis of Japanese Ski Holiday Package Tour Brochures

Summary

This paper examines the characteristics of contemporary Japanese package tourism, through an analysis of tour brochures. The brochures are analyzed in terms of functional components of the tours, as well as the visual images that are represented. Drawing on a sample of 15 brochures that contain winter ski package holidays for Japanese travelers in Whistler, British Columbia (Canada), this study identifies several key elements in the promotion of Japanese package tourism. These elements include the lean and flexible nature of the functional components of package tours, and the use of both concrete, and abstract images of tourists and tour experiences in the brochures.     

Positioning a tourism destination to gain a competitive edge

Positioning is a form of market communication that plays a vital role in enhancing the attractiveness of a tourism destination. This article describes the different parts of the positioning process and applies it to the case of positioning a U.S. destination to Japanese visitors.     

Environmental knowledge and consumers’ intentions to visit green hotels: the mediating role of consumption values

ABSTRACT

The aim of this research is to explore the effect of environmental knowledge on consumers’ intentions to visit green hotels through consumption values. The research data was collected using the questionnaire survey. The results showed that environmental knowledge is significantly related to consumption values of consumers, which in turn has significant impacts on the visiting intentions. Moreover, this study also found that consumption values mediate the relationship between environmental knowledge and the intentions to visit green hotels. According to the results, the implications, limitations, and the directions of follow-up research were discussed.     

Using Lifestyle Analysis to Develop Lodging Packages for Staycation Travelers: An Exploratory Study

When the U.S. economy experienced a downturn in 2008, an alternative to travel known as a “staycation” became popular. This study investigated the lifestyle profiles of staycation travelers by using Activities, Interests, and Opinions statements to segment staycation travelers. Because the largest percentage of staycations is taken by the Millennial generation, students at a university in northeastern Ohio were surveyed. An exploratory factor analysis revealed six factors followed by a cluster analysis, which revealed four clusters. Travel packages that hotels could create to market to members of the four clusters were created. Limitations and future research are discussed.     

Retention of Hourly Hotel Employees

Abstract

The major objective of this study was to explore the reasons behind hourly employee turnover in the hotel industry. Data was collected from 230 hourly employees in ten small and medium-size hotels located in the Southeast U.S. The results empirically confirmed that hourly employees' retention was predicted by self-fulfillment and working conditions rather than monetary rewards. More specifically, employees who were more likely to stay with their current employer: were not interested in finding another job, had a positive experience with their hotel's company policies, were satisfied with their current job, attributed a higher level of importance for paid vacation, had a positive experience with regard to their hotel's humane approach to employees, and did not attribute a high level of importance for having a fun and challenging job.     

Luxury hotels going green – the antecedents and consequences of consumer hesitation

Abstract

Luxury hotels might hesitate to operate in a more environmentally friendly way because they worry such practices will harm their performance. However, hotels can have a significant impact on the natural environment. Building on protection motivation theory, this study examines consumers’ evaluations of luxury hotels that are becoming more environmentally friendly by investigating the influences of perceived risks (i.e. functional, financial, hedonic, and self-image risks) on consumers’ hesitation and subsequent purchase intentions. Additionally, the moderating effect of consumers’ green hotel knowledge on the influences of perceived risks on hesitation is examined. Questionnaires were completed by 548 participants from Taiwan and revealed that perceived risks can significantly influence hesitation, which can in turn affect purchase intentions. Furthermore, green hotel knowledge moderates the influence of perceived functional and hedonic risks on hesitation. This study’s contributions to the luxury product consumption literature and sustainable tourism studies are discussed.     

Brand personality of Airbnb: application of user involvement and gender differences

ABSTRACT

In this study we utilized the concept of brand personality to determine how travelers perceived Airbnb as a lodging brand and investigated the effect of involvement level (low versus high) on view of brand personality. As a viable segmentation variable, this study also utilized the interaction effect to examine how gender affects consumers’ involvement level. Significant differences were observed between travelers with high and low involvement in terms of the dimensions of sincerity, excitement, competence, and ruggedness. In addition, we found the interaction effect to be significant, indicating that level of involvement is higher in female travelers than in male travelers. This research will provide meaningful marketing insights for target marketing and positioning based on consumer involvement and gender within the context of Airbnb.     

The Importance of Hotel Attributes in Contributing to Travelers' Satisfaction in the Hong Kong Hotel Industry

Abstract

This study surveyed 402 international travelers to explore their satisfaction levels towards service and facility quality in three Hong Kong hotel market segments, High-Tariff A, High-Tariff B and Medium Tariff. Six perception dimensions were extracted from 33 hotel attributes by a factor analysis. All six dimensions had a significant impact on the overall satisfaction of travelers with service quality and facilities in the three Hong Kong hotel market segments. Quality of Staff Performance was the most influential factor followed by Quality of Room Facilities, Value for Money, Variety and Efficient Services, Business Related Services, and Safety and Security respectively. It was found that travelers had the lowest satisfaction level towards the Medium-Tariff hotel segment. By identifying the most influential hotel dimension in influencing travelers' satisfaction levels, hoteliers will be in an advantageous position to formulate tactics to meet the changing needs and expectations of travelers. Implementing human resources training that emphasizes the fact that service quality is part of each employee's job should have a significant impact on guest re-purchase intention. The importance of value segmentation cannot be overlooked by hoteliers. Travelers will continue to expect hotels to provide more value-for-money services and facilities and they are expected to shift their purchasing decision to an economic value basis.     

Staying with the ingroup or outgroup? A cross-country examination of international travelers’ home-sharing preferences

This paper examines the joint effect of host’s cultural identity (i.e., ingroup vs. outgroup), presence of a travel companion, and consumer’s country of origin on international travelers’ evaluations of home-sharing services. A quasi-experimental design was implemented to collect data from U.S. and Chinese consumers. Results indicate a significant three-way interaction: In a culturally different destination, Chinese consumers prefer home-sharing services provided by ingroup hosts whether traveling alone or with a companion, whereas American consumers only show ingroup preference if they travel alone; when traveling internationally with a travel companion, American consumers prefer home-sharing services provided by an outgroup host. Further, psychological closeness and perceived experience authenticity are found to be the mediators underlying international travelers’ home-sharing preferences. Findings of this study offer new insights to the research and management of sharing economy.     

Exploring asymmetric effects of attribute performance on customer satisfaction in the hotel industry

Understanding the asymmetric effects of attribute performance (AP) on customer satisfaction (CS) is important for the managers in the hotel industry. Although several studies concerning this issue have been conducted, the varies of asymmetric effects across different market segments have not been revealed. To this end, this study aims to explore the asymmetric effects of AP on CS with respect to different market segments, including different types of hotels, different types of travelers and travelers from different regions. Four theories, i.e., expectation-disconfirmation paradigm, three-factor theory of CS, customer delight theory and prospect theory, are adopted to explain the formation of CS from the perspective of different market segments. The penalty–reward contrast analysis (PRCA) and asymmetric impact-performance analysis (AIPA) are used to analyze 1,547,869 user-generated ratings collected form TripAdvisor posted by the travelers from 140 countries concerning 9,596 hotels from 75 capital cities around the world. The results suggest that the asymmetric effects of AP on CS may vary across different market segments, including different types of hotels, different types of travelers and travelers from different regions. In addition, the priorities of hotel attributes for each type of hotel with respect to different types of travelers and travelers from different regions are also analyzed by AIPA. The obtained results will be valuable for researchers to conduct further studies and hotel managers to formulate improvement strategies.     

Buyer Decision-Making Behavior in International Tourism Channels

Summary

Despite the development and maintenance of effective channel relationships in international tourism markets being critical to a firm's success, little research has been undertaken in business-to-business relationships in cross-national markets (March 1997a; Crotts, Aziz & Raschid 1998). This research paper offers insights into the decision-making behavior of a critical intermediary in international tourism channels, the inbound tour operator (ITO). In an exploratory study, the purchasing attitudes of ITOs, in their functions as purchasers of tourism products on behalf of overseas clients, are examined. Respondents were asked to assess the importance of a number of supplier attributes for three types of tourism products: hotels, coach companies and restaurants. Twenty-six inbound tour operators specialising in the Asian or Japanese inbound markets into Australia were surveyed; though small in number these firms handled over 800,000 visitors to Australia in 1998 (including 82% of the entire Japanese market). The results from a 43-item questionnaire, designed after preliminary discussions with ITOs, reveal differences between the attitudes of Japanese-market and Asian-market ITOs in their purchase decision-making behavior and in buyer attitudes toward different product types. The findings offer useful lessons for suppliers in the management of their relationships with inbound tour operators.     

Travel motivations and destination choice: A study of British outbound market

Abstract

Knowledge of people's travel motivations and its association with destination selection plays a critical role in predicting future travel patterns. The objectives of this study were to uncover the underlying push and pull factors of motivation associated with British outbound pleasure travelers as well as to identify key motivational factors that have significant effects on destination choice. Six push factors and five pull factors were found. “Knowledge seeking” and “cleanliness & safety” were perceived as the most important push and pull factors respectively. The results of logistic regression analyses snowed that the British tend to visit the U.S. for “fun & excitement” and “outdoor activities,” Oceania for “family & friend togetherness,” and Asia to seek a “novel experience.” The findings of differential motivational factors across seven destinations suggest that a destination can capitalize on its strengths with an optimal combination of push and pull factors to attract and retain the British travelers.     

Business Traveler Satisfaction with Hotel Service Encounters

Abstract

This study examines customer satisfaction with a series of hotel services. Five service encounters were examined in a sample of business travelers (n = 140) who had stayed in Hong Kong hotels. Overall satisfaction and repurchase intention were differentially impacted by the various service encounters. Business center encounters had the greatest effect on business traveler satisfaction, followed by check-out and check-in encounters. Interestingly, room and restaurant encounters had the least impact on satisfaction. The delivery of good core services alone cannot guarantee customer satisfaction. Hotels must also pay attention to peripheral service delivery, because these encounters help to shape the customer's overall level of satisfaction and repurchase intention.     

The Japanese Travel Life Cycle

Summary

This paper offers an alternative way of segmenting a non-western travel market, namely, the Japanese outbound market. The segmentation schema comprises several institutionalised forms of travel likely to be undertaken by a Japanese individual in the course of his or her life. Coined the ‘travel life cycle,' the concept fits Japanese society well due to the highly organized and group-oriented patterns of travel that have emerged over the past one hundred years. While this form of segmentation is unlikely to be usefully applied to western travel markets, its application in the Japanese context may suggest that it has relevance when examining the travel patterns of other tradition-bound and group-oriented Asian travel markets such as Korea, China or Indonesia. The paper's conceptual contribution lies in the implicit suggestion that particular cultures may develop and exhibit unique forms of consumption behavior that lie outside the conceptual framework normally adopted by western academics and marketing practitioners. Manageri-ally, the paper suggests ways by which tourism operators and tourism promotion bodies can more efficiently and effectively target Japanese travellers according to the stage of travel life cycle.