Co-branding hotel owners and operators to increase willingness to pay

Whalen, Elizabeth A; Sisson, Annamarie D

Abstract

Although hotel brands are well established in the industry, customers have not been educated about the different kinds of properties, nor has hotel structure been utilised as a functional marketing tool. Drawing on previous studies, the purpose of this study is to evaluate consumer branding preferences and willingness to pay because of co-branding and informed ownership, operational, or franchise branding. This two-part study looks at consumer awareness and consumer preferences in the first part through semi-structured interviews, and in the second part, an experimental survey. Results reveal that most travellers do not understand the difference between a corporate-owned and -managed hotel and a franchised hotel. Co-branding efforts for management and ownership companies were not significant in both value perceptions and willingness to pay. However, co-branding efforts by ownership companies with parent companies increased their guests’ willingness to pay.

Citation

Whalen, E. A., & Sisson, A. D. (2022). Co-branding hotel owners and operators to increase willingness to pay. Research in Hospitality Management, 12(2), 151-159. https://doi.org/10.1080/22243534.2022.2133172

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Nov 21, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022
• Deposit Date: Aug 12, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 14, 2023
• Journal: Research in Hospitality Management
• Print ISSN: 2224-3534
• Electronic ISSN: 2415-5152
• Publisher: National Inquiry Services Centre
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 151-159
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/22243534.2022.2133172
• Keywords: consumer awareness, differentiation, franchise, hotel structure, value perception