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Customer Satisfaction Measurement Practice in United Kingdom Hotels

University of Surrey

Stefan Horsnell

University of Surrey

Competition in the service industries has been intensifying throughout the past two dec ades and shows little sign of decelerating in the near future. This trend, combined with in creasing consumer sophistication and unparalleled media focus, has made the interrelated issues of service quality and customer satisfaction the key marketing weapons in the battle for competitive differentiation and customer retention. As part of this competition, guest satisfaction measurement has become common practice; however, the cathartic experi ence of a mediocre or poor stay in a hotel is not being assessed adequately. Paradoxically, research reveals that most managers realize that quality customer service is essential for their organizations' health, leading to the question of why the legacy of seeming incapaci tation persists. This article offers further evidence of current practice, setting out a check- list criterion against which U.K. hotels in the mid to luxury categories are assessed as to their guest comment card design and policy.

Key Words: service quality • customer satisfaction • differentiation • customer reten tion • hotels • measurement techniques.

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