Travelers' Choice

This research report article explores the effects of adver- tising and prior stay on travelers' choices of lodging products. Since most travelers make their own overnight arrangements, a traveler's decision regarding which hotel to use is directly related to that traveler's ability to recall specific brand names, which in turn is influenced by previous experience (both good and bad) and advertising. Surprisingly, there is little influence on chain-name recall of either prior stay without ad exposure or ad exposure without prior stay. In the case of frequent travelers, ad exposure alone can have a negative effect on the evoked sets of brand names. But the combined effect of ad exposure and prior stay is great, in favor of recalling the product name. Since a satisfied guest is more likely to be a customer in the future than is a traveler who has never stayed at a particular chain, the lessons to be learned are: (1) it's worth pursuing repeat business, and (2) it's worth offering inducements to encourage first-time stays. Spending on advertising alone may not be effective.