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Survey: Hotel guest willing to pay more to get more

June 19, 2012 | Hotel Marketing

Are you satisfied with the service you get when you travel? If so, you’re more likely to be flying JetBlue than United, staying at a Hilton rather than a Wyndham hotel and eating at a Papa John’s or Red Lobster over Chili’s or McDonald’s.

Those are among the findings of the latest American Consumer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) report, an annual consumer survey that ranks companies on a scale of 1 to 100.

Released on Tuesday, this year’s survey shows airlines as a group posting their highest score in a decade (67 vs. 65 last year), hotels holding steady (77) and limited-service restaurants catching up with full-service ones for the first time (80).

The overall results suggest that fliers don’t expect their flying experiences to be particularly pleasant to begin with. And with little to differentiate those experiences, they’re opting for lower costs at the expense of higher quality.

That’s just the opposite of what’s going on in the hotel industry, where consumers are willing to pay more to get more. The chains that are charging more and where customers are perceiving that they’re getting a better-quality experience are the ones that are doing better.

This year, those chains include Hilton (80) and Marriott (78), both of which scored above the industry average of 77. Of the brands that earned individual rankings, Wyndham brought up the rear at 70.

Get the full story at msnbc.com

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