The willingness to pay and the attributes preferences on hotel choice decisions

Abstract

                The fast-growing number of small and medium size hotels in Thailand leads to a fierce competition in hotel industry. Old strategies such as price cutting may be obsolete. Business should identify niche customers by targeting the right market and employ some limited resources with corresponding strategies. Thus, this paper aims to examine the preferred attributes on hotel choice decisions for Thai baby boomer travelers. Researchers applied the conjoint analysis technique to explore how qualified respondents perceive the relative importance of cleanliness, monetary value, sleep quality, location, facilities, and amenities quality in the selection of small and medium hotels under the operation of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) entrepreneurs. Despite the complication in collecting the samples of the technique, an innovative board game is created correspondingly to simplify the process and to visually mimic the trade-off situation in a process of consumer's evaluation. The findings suggest that application of the most preference profile card: (1) Clean bedding, (2) Free Breakfast, (3) Adjustable temperature, (4) Green surroundings, and (5) Fast-heated water heaters should be put in priority in regard to the willingness to pay. There are 3 groups of respondents: (1) Female Traveling with family (2) Male Traveling with family (3) Female Traveling with friends. In the next research SMEs hotel entrepreneurs targeting baby boomer travelers could adjust the attributes to the outcomes accordingly in order to be competitive.