Hotel award schemes as a measurement of service quality—an assessment by travel industry journalists as surrogate consumers

Abstract

The paper presents the results of a postal questionnaire from fifteen travel industry journalists in the United Kingdom. The methodology and response rate are examined followed by the employment profiles of the respondents. The journalists define the determinants of service quality supported by examples. Their evaluation of the qualitative award schemes is considered and how they perceive them as a recognition of service quality. The final section explores any new dimensions of assessment not previously examined, the respondents provide comments on their own ideas for methodologies which might be employed in the assessment of qualitative awards or grading. As it is often misleading to discuss qualitative service encounters in abstract terms, the respondents present examples of ‘good’ and ‘poor’ routine and non-routine service encounters.