Measuring brand loyalty in the hospitality industry in South Africa

Abstract

Brand loyalty development is an important part of a company's marketing strategy. Empirical data on the influences of brand loyalty in the South African hospitality industry is non-existent. Moolla and Bisschoff developed an empirical tool for measuring twelve influences of brand loyalty in, originally, the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry. The model has since been validated and the reliability of the data confirmed for various industries such as agri- business, banking and pharmaceutical industries. The twelve influences the model test are; customer satisfaction, culture, brand performance, brand relevance, relationship proneness, brand affect, repeat purchase, perceived value, commitment, involvement, switching cost and brand trust. An adapted Moolla and Bisschoff model is employed in the hospitality industry, and more specifically the hotel sector, which aims to determine the role each influence plays on brand loyalty. Questionnaires were distributed to guests at various branded hotels in South Africa of which 187 patrons responded positively. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure indicated sample adequacy and suitability for factor analysis, where after the questionnaire was validated and the data found to be reliable. According to the respondents' perceptions, customer satisfaction is regarded as the single most very important brand loyalty influence in the hospitality industry. Brand trust, repeat purchase, involvement, perceived value, relationship proneness, brand affect, brand relevance and brand performance can also be seen as important factors. Switching cost, commitment and culture were not considered to be very important brand influences. Sub-factors were identified for the influences of perceived value and relationship proneness. A new conceptual framework for brand loyalty in the hospitality industry was therefore suggested. The results of this study concluded that the adapted Moolla and Bisschoff model is indeed a valuable tool for measuring brand loyalty influences in the hospitality industry. This study also contributed to the knowledge base regarding brand loyalty of the South African hospitality industry in South Africa.