Consumer Behaviour and Insight: A Study of Hospitality Sector

This report investigates consumer behavior and insights within the hospitality sector, focusing on the Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG). It examines various cultural, social, personal, and psychological factors influencing consumer behavior and attitudes, along with the evolving consumer trends due to digital technology. The report maps the stages of the consumer decision-making journey for hospitality services, emphasizing the importance for marketers to understand this process. A comparison is made between B2C and B2B decision-making in hospitality, using specific examples. Furthermore, the study evaluates different market research approaches and methods used to understand the decision-making process and assesses how marketers can influence the various stages of hospitality decision-making, providing specific hospitality examples, highlighting how the IHG can leverage these insights.

Hospitality
Consumer Behaviour
and Insight

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY ..................................................................................................................................3
P1 Investigate the different cultural, social, personal and psychological factors that influence
consumer behaviour and attitudes with a hospitality context......................................................3
P2 Explore how consumer trends are changing due to the impact of digital technology............5
P3 Examine the stages of the consumer decision- making journey and map a path to the
purchasing for a given hospitality service...................................................................................6
P4 Explore why it is important for marketers to map a path to purchase and understand
consumer decision-making in the hospitality sector....................................................................7
P5 Compare and contrast the key differences of the hospitality decision-making process in the
context of B2C and B2B using specific hospitality examples.....................................................7
P6 Evaluate the different approaches to market research and methods of research used for
understanding the decision making process.................................................................................9
P7 Evaluate how marketers can influence the different stages of hospitality decision-making
process giving specific hospitality examples.............................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Consumer behaviour is the study of the decisions that a consumer make during purchase
to satisfy their needs wants and desires. The study of consumer behaviour help the business to
adapt the consumer decision-making and change into their offering according to the consumer
need and wants. The consumer insight is understanding of consumer behaviour, data and
feedback, interpreting them into conclusion for product development and consumer support.
Hospitality means providing services to the consumers in such a way that makes them feel good.
The hospitality industry is very wide it includes Food & beverages, Accommodation, travel and
tourism, Restaurants etc. Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) is a British multinational
hospitality company headquartered in Denham, Buckinghamshire, England. The IHG Hotels &
Resorts is one of the leading companies in the world operating in more than 100 countries
(Bartosik-Purgat, and Filimon , 2022.). This study tells us about the different factors affecting the
consumer behaviour, technology affecting consumer trends, consumer decision-making journey
and importance of consumer decision-making for marketers, how the marketers can know the
consumer decision-making process and influence it.
MAIN BODY
P1 Investigate the different cultural, social, personal and psychological factors that
influence consumer behaviour and attitudes with a hospitality context
Consumer behaviour is affected by different factors. Some factors that can influence the
consumer behaviour of intercontinental hotel group is as follows-
1. Cultural Factors- It is the most important factor that influences consumer behaviour.
Culture includes moral values, religion, traditions, nationality, race etc. can influences the
value, perception behaviour of a person. From hospitality point of view the decisions can
be based past cultural influences what they eat, where they prefer to stay economy or
premium hotels how they communicate etc. the company can work on the different

culture based experience like different food according to their culture, multilanguage
skilled staff for better communication with consumers, different welcome gestures for
different regions. These experiences can influence the consumer behaviour and company
can provide better value to the consumer (Sigala , 2018.).
2. Social Factors- Social circle represents the groups, family, friends, co-workers,
neighbours etc. These groups can manipulate the behaviour of the consumer in the
hospitality industry as the people considers suggestions, opinions, word of mouth
publicity by these social groups. The company should make sure that they provide
satisfactory experience to everyone, their complaints are resolved timely as these can
help in the marketing of the hotel. If the people had great experience they would suggest
that hotel again to their circle (Baziana, and Tzimitra-Kalogianni , 2019.).
3. Personal factors- Personal factors includes Age, occupation, income, lifestyle etc.
These factors varies form person to person. For the hotel industry the company can
provide different experience for different consumers for instance for income factor they
can provide premium rooms, suits, budgeted rooms for their consumers. The better sight
viewing , bright and loud coloured rooms for young people, and for aged people subtle
designs rooms or the lower floors rooms, single and double bed rooms according to the
need of the consumer. All these factors are considered by the person before visiting the
places by the consumers.
4. Psychological factors- These factors influences the person psychologically and drives
his actions to seek satisfaction. This includes Motivation, Perception, Loyalty, Attitude
and beliefs. In references to the hotel industry these factors derives the consumer
behaviour in this manner; loyalty is the most important in deciding the hotels the hotels
can create loyalty in consumers by tackling the expectations of the consumer, the
company can offer reward points, discounts on frequent check-in. This will also motivate
the consumer to visit the hotel and it will increase the booking of the hotel. The IHG can
change the psychology of the person by telling the hotel features in story form or
promotional ads (Dalgic, and Unal , 2018.).

P2 Explore how consumer trends are changing due to the impact of digital technology.
The digital technology is part of everyone's life and it is changing the consumer trends.
The consumers are able to order, view, or check information easily on the smartphones online.
The digital technology changing the consumer trends in relevance of hotel industry is as follows-
 Technology Adoption- In today's world most of the population has the access to internet
or a smartphone. The technology adoption of the consumers is very high. In hotel
industry People now can use online modes for booking, payment, inquiries, vacation
planning, availability of rooms, prices etc. The company can make these convenient and
easy to use for the consumers. The IHG can provide these services on the website of the
product or service was useful or not. In the case of hotel if hotel room experience has
matched the expectations of the customer, it will result in word of mouth publicity and it
can increase the potential customer base. The IHG should make sure it is matching the
need or expectations of the consumers. company or they can provide the application
(Tillmanns , 2020.).
 Smart Room Keys- The hotels are using smart room keys that allows consumers to
unlock the hotel room with the help of their smartphone or a card swipe at the door pad of
the room. The IHG can further provide a keyless entry by providing fingerprint unlocking
room entry systems.
 Feedback on Social Media- The companies are using social media in the hospitality
industry for their advantage and promotions. The companies can request consumers to
share their experience on social media like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Thus with
the positive reviews hotel's social media engagement will rise resulting in more
customers. And hotel can also resolve the complaints (Drolet and Yoon , 2020.).
 Research and Product Comparisons- The digital technology has changes the way of
consumer in research and product comparison. In hospitality industry people now can
compare the prices, reviews, quality, comfort, offerings on the different websites. The
IHG can manage these by making presence on different comparison websites for inquiry.
 Privacy Concerns- It is a major concern for consumers now a days. The privacy of their
data like credit cards, debit cards, security . In the hotel industry the safety of consumers
information, their identity. The IHG hotel group should protect the data of the consumers.

 Smart Room Service- In the context of hotel's the company can come up with smart
systems that enable consumers to ordering food, room cleaning service. IHG can also use
this data for future personalized suggestions. These an effect the consumer preference for
the hotels (Youn ,and et. al., 2020).
P3 Examine the stages of the consumer decision- making journey and map a path to the
purchasing for a given hospitality service
The consumer decision making process is a five step process that involves Need
recognition, Information Search, Alternative evaluations, Purchase decisions and Post purchase
behaviour. By this process the consumers make their purchasing decision.
1. Need Recognition- It is the first step of the process where consumer recognises the need
for the product or service. The IHG can influence the need of the consumer when a
consumer is searching for hotel the company should make sure the information is
available and answer the needs of consumers. Hotels can show them promotions or ads,
motivate them to plan a vacation and generate the need of the consumer or fulfilling the
consumer need (Ellis, and Mattison Thompson, 2018.).
2. Information Search- In this modern day the consumers are more aware about the
technology. They do a lot of research about pricing, competition, extra offerings before
buying. The company can use their USP what makes them different to attract the
consumers. The IHG creates unique experience for every consumer. IHG can use
different sources to provide information like advertisements, campaigns, magazines.
3. Evaluation of Alternatives- In this step consumer evaluates the some options that they
selected from the search. In relevance of hotel industry the hotels are generally evaluated
on the basis of location, quality, experiences and reviews. The IHG can ensure that they
have the engagement with the customers, motivate them to share their experience on
social media.
4. Purchase decision- When consumer pass these above stages, the consumer finally
decides to purchase a product. The purchase decision is influenced by above evaluations
and finally arrives at a logical conclusion. The IHG can provide convenience to the
consumers to book the hotel rooms online and offer multiple payment options.
5. Post purchase behaviour- After purchase decision the consumer evaluates weather the
product or service was useful or not. In the case of hotel if hotel room experience has

matched the expectations of the customer, it will result in word of mouth publicity and it
can increase the potential customer base. The IHG should make sure it is matching the
need or expectations of the consumers.
P4 Explore why it is important for marketers to map a path to purchase and understand
consumer decision-making in the hospitality sector
Mapping a path to purchase is the effort to anticipate the different steps that a consumer
takes to purchase the product so that marketer can interact with them along the way and
influence the buyers decisions in favour of the company. Consumer decision making process is a
series of steps that a consumer that a consumer goes through while when they consider buying a
product. It is important to identify the market challenges and opportunity. For IHG hotel and
resorts because
 It provides advantage against the other hotel brands.
 It is crucial to match marketing efforts with the steps that consumers attempt to
determine what to buy.
 It allows the company to anticipate the need of the consumer. And company can plan
marketing strategy according to the those needs.
 By understanding the consumer decision-making process it provides knowledge about
the consumer base. What channels they use search or comparing the hotels.
 When company understands how customer perceives a need the company can provide
more relevant marketing and increase the sales and the consumer base.
 It allows companies to check the actual experience against the expectations of the
consumer (Hashemi , .and et, al., 2020.).
P5 Compare and contrast the key differences of the hospitality decision-making process in the
context of B2C and B2B using specific hospitality examples.
Basis B to B B to C
Need Recognition In case of, Business to
business it recognizes the need
of different organisation for
goods and services . Needs of
In case of Business to
costumers channels the
decision making process
involves the recognition of the

an organisation can be affected
by the various environmental
factors or through the
requirement of internal
operations and actions.
needs and preferences of
individual customers. Hence in
B to C model, preferences are
given to the demand of the
individuals in the marketplace.
Information search This stage requires the
business to gather all the
relevant information which are
necessary to understand
different alternatives to fulfil
their demand and preferences.
Business can rely on past
interactions with products and
various other factors.
In business to customers
channel, the customers
actively gathers and utilise
information from external and
internal sources and their past
experiences with different
brands services, which helps
the customer to make better
purchase decision (Hsu,
Robinson and Scott , 2018.).
Pre- purchase evaluation This stage involves the
organisation to analyse and
assess their demands
efficiently and whether the
goods and services satisfies
their needs and demands. It is
the process of evaluation of
different alternatives and
selecting the best with satisfies
the needs and demands.
In business to consumers
channel, the customers have
determined their demands and
what they are looking for in
the products and services,
which will help the customers
to identify from the various
alternatives the products and
services which will fulfil
their demands.
Purchase In context to business to
business, their purchases are
high in quantity in comparison
to B to C. After making the
B to C purchase decisions
involve the purchasing of
goods and services by
customers out of the various

purchase, the customers have
limited ability to change
suppliers because of lack of
alternatives, time consuming
or expensive process. Hence B
to B Purchasing decision
involve are more risky (Zalani,
, 2018.).
alternatives that are available
in the market. It helps the
businessman to identify the
needs and expectations of the
customers, which will help the
business to attain a competitive
edge in the marketplace.
Post purchase evaluation It involve the evaluation by the
business whether the products
and services acquired by the
suppliers are in accordance
with the market demand and
trends and whether they
ensures profitability to the
business by satisfying the
needs and expectation of the
market demand.
It ensures whether the product
and services received by a
costumer delivers and satisfies
the needs and expectations of
the costumers. A positive
customers experience will
ensure the brands a long term
benefit.
P6 Evaluate the different approaches to market research and methods of research used for
understanding the decision making process.
There are different approaches and methods of research which can be used for
understanding the decision making process which helps the organisation to satisfy the needs and
preferences of the individuals. In context to Inter continental hotel group, consumer decision
making process is essential which will help the organisation to maintain hospitality by delivering
the services as per their expectations and great experiences with the hotel. There are various
techniques of market research which are adopted by the hotel which are discussed as follows-
 Social Media Data collection: This method focuses on collection of data through
different social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and more. There are
reliable sources of information to gather real time data. Inter continental group uses the

digital platforms to bring innovations and to understand the preferences of the customers
which will help the hospitality industry in decision making that help them to grow and
attain a competitive edge (Huang , .et, al., 2020.).
 Surveys: This is a qualitative research tool and method, surveys offers the best
intentional details of the customers. It involves how your customer think about your
product and services. Online surveys will help the hotel to identify the expectations and
demand of the customers and can attain hospitality in their organisation by providing
their customers lifetime experience and enjoyable surrounding.
 Observations to Discover Audience: For carrying out observations target audience
should be discovered because you need to invite them in your observation processes, it
helps the hotel to identify how they use products and services. This will help Inter
continental hotel group to make marketing plans to bring hospitality towards their
customer group.
 Focus Groups: Inter continental hotel group uses this method to identify a particular
group of target audience by communicating and interacting with them to achieve their set
objectives. (Preziosi, .et, al., 2019.). E-commerce marketplace : Inter continental hotel group uses, different e-commerce
platforms to make their customers known about the different product and services that
they are offers and innovation and technological advancement they use in their processes
which will help the hotel to make relevant decisions.
P7 Evaluate how marketers can influence the different stages of hospitality decision-making
process giving specific hospitality examples
Marketers have the tendency to influence the behaviour of the customers, consumer
behaviour is the study of factors that impact the individual and organisations to purchase certain
goods and services. Inter continental hotel group uses various strategies and tactics that can
influence the behaviour of the consumers which can help the organisation to achieve their
objectives and can lead to growth and success.
 Audience emotional response: The marketing campaign of intercontinental hotel group
are successful because consumers react to them. The more consumer reacting to the
marketing campaign, They will talk about it. And it will increase the chances of buying
the product.

 Brand imagery and messaging: The company is attracting corporates and the upper
class people by engaging them into their marketing campaign and attracting the people's
attention to the brand, this way people can relate to your product.
 Audience memories: This is an another way of affecting the consumer behaviour, In this
way the company relates the marketing campaign with the older childhood memories of
the consumer.
There are certain more ways though which the intercontinental hotel group have the
opportunity to influence the stages of consumer behaviour process which are as follows;
 Advertisements- This is the most important for company to appear in the customer's
initial solution search or need recognition, the company can use advertisements to
become visible to consumers (Kim and Ariza-Montes, 2021.).
 Emails- In the research phase the automated emails can help company to connect and
pitch unsure customers. The company can use strong messaging and value providing
content to influence the consumer during purchase decision-making.
 More Social media engagement- The intercontinental hotel group can use more social
media campaigns to engage the loyal customers and potential customers involving them
into the brand.
 Audience segmentation- the company can segment the customers and offer them
different specific type of purchase, for instance the company targets young people by
showing a party oriented or exciting things.
 Present an cot benefit analysis- the people seek to save money and get more benefit in
less cost. The intercontinental group can show how their room cost is justified with
showing the cost benefit analysis or highlighting the specialities (Nusair , Butt, and
Nikhashemi , 2019).
CONCLUSION
According to above study this has been analysed that there are certain factors that can
affect the consumer behaviour for intercontinental group. The company can reduce the influence
by providing different culture experience, providing everyone a great experience and increase the
loyalty in consumers. The consumer trends are changing now a days the company can increase
the technology in hotels also company can focus on different social media platform to increase
the engagement and resolving the complaints. There are different stages in consumer decision-

making process that a consumer follows to book a hotel. it is important for company to map the
path of consumer decision making process to take advantage against the competition, anticipate
the needs of the consumer and ultimately increase the sales. The company has used different
methods of Data collections, Surveys, Observations and Focus Groups to understand the
consumer behaviour. The company is using marketing campaigns to increase the consumer
engagement on various social media platforms. The company could also use the different ads,
emails and segmenting the audience to influence the consumer behaviour.