Understanding critical success factors and customer expectations for Indian travelers after COVID-19

Abstract

This research examines the identity of critical success factors (CSFs) in the leisure lodging segment and growth in India, coming out of the perspective of the domestic travelers representing the demand side of the lodging segment. Understanding the distinctions in CSFs deems to be critical to the growth of the leisure lodging segment. With the help of 319 questionnaires, the results identified eight dimensions of CSFs (i.e., Physical Product, Hotel Room Policy, Value-added Facilities, Room Booking channel, Brand Image, Services Quality, Food & Beverage services, and COVID-19 Safety) as being the most important that travelers will look in hotels/budget hotels and luxury hotels before making a reservation. However, the level of significance of each dimension differed, where Brand Image and Food and Beverage service show the least importance. The principal component analysis also highlights that the top three CSFs for Indian travelers show the highest variance inflexible checkout time, Design/Look of the guestroom, and online reservation system. It gives insight into how the Indian lodging industry must not overlook these three critical success factors to regain trust, earn back loyal customers, and ultimately become profitable.