Keywords
service quality
corporate social responsibility
brand reputation
hotel industry
How to Cite
Abstract
This study aims to examine the impact of service quality and corporate social responsibility (CSR) on customer loyalty in the hotel industry, with a specific focus on a 4-star hotel in Can Tho City, Vietnam. A mixed-methods approach was employed, integrating both qualitative and quantitative techniques. The research model was developed based on three main constructs: overall service quality (measured through reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy, and tangibles), brand reputation, and CSR. Data were collected from 392 valid responses through structured questionnaires. The Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) technique was applied to test the proposed hypotheses. The results indicate that all three factors - service quality, brand reputation, and CSR - have a significant positive impact on customer loyalty. Among them, service quality exerts the strongest influence, followed by brand reputation and CSR. The findings confirm that enhancing service quality remains the most critical determinant of customer loyalty in the hospitality industry. Meanwhile, strengthening brand reputation and CSR activities also play a meaningful complementary role. This study provides practical insights for hotel managers seeking to improve customer retention strategies. Specifically, hotels should prioritise improving service quality dimensions, maintain consistent brand identity, and engage in socially responsible activities to enhance customer trust and loyalty.
References
Aaker, D. A. (1991). Managing brand equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name. Free Press.
Ahmed, R. R., & Streimikiene, D. (2021). Environmental issues and strategic corporate social responsibility for organisational competitiveness. Journal of Competitiveness, 13(2), 5–22. https://www.cjournal.cz/files/402.pdf
Ahmed, R. R., Štreimikienė, D., Alam, S. H., Streimikis, J., & Hanafi, M. R. (2023). Extended signaling theory and the role of corporate social responsibility and brand personality. Inžinerinė Ekonomika – Engineering Economics, 34(4), 470–484. https://doi.org/10.5755/j01.ee.34.4.33348
Alzoubi, H. M., Vij, M., Vij, A., & Hanaysha, J. R. (2021). What leads guests to satisfaction and loyalty in UAE five-star hotels? AHP analysis to service quality dimensions. Enlightening Tourism: A Pathmaking Journal, 11(1), 102–135. https://doi.org/10.33776/et.v11i1.5056
Carroll, A. B. (1999). Corporate social responsibility: Evolution of a definitional construct. Business & Society, 38(3), 268–295. https://doi.org/10.1177/000765039903800303
Cheng, B. L. (2013). Service quality and the mediating effect of corporate image on the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in the Malaysian hotel industry. Gadjah Mada International Journal of Business, 15(2), 99–112. https://doi.org/10.22146/gamaijb.5474
Cheng, B. L., & Rashid, Z. A. (2015). Interrelationships of service quality, customer satisfaction, corporate image and customer loyalty of Malaysian hotel industry. In V. Katsoni (Ed.), Cultural tourism in a digital era (pp. 53–66). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15859-4_3
Cronin, J. J., Jr., & Taylor, S. A. (1992). Measuring service quality: A reexamination and extension. Journal of Marketing, 56(3), 55–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224299205600304
Ehrenberg, A. S. C. (1991). Repeat-buying: Facts, theory and applications. London: Griffin. https://www.empgens.com/wp-content/uploads/2000/06/RB-1-5.pdf
Górska-Warsewicz, H., & Kulykovets, O. (2020). Hotel brand loyalty—A systematic literature review. Sustainability, 12(12), 4810. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12124810
Grönroos, C. (1984). A service quality model and its marketing implications. European Journal of Marketing, 18(4), 36–44. https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000004784
Hair, J. F., Hollingsworth, C. L., Randolph, A. B., & Chong, A. Y. L. (2017). An updated and expanded assessment of PLS-SEM in information systems research. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 117(3), 442–458. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-04-2016-0130
Ho, H. H. (2009). The role of commitment in the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer loyalty in banking industry: Mediating effect of commitment [Unpublished master’s thesis]. University of Maryland University College.
Ibrahim, B., & Aljarah, A. (2018). Dataset of relationships among social media marketing activities, brand loyalty, revisit intention: Evidence from the hospitality industry in Northern Cyprus. Data in Brief, 21, 1823–1828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2018.11.024
Islam, T., Khan, M. M., Ghaffar, A., Wang, Y., Mubarik, M. S., Ali, I. H., & Sharma, A. (2023). Does CSR influence sustained competitive advantage and behavioral outcomes? An empirical study in the hospitality sector. Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science, 33(1), 107–132. https://doi.org/10.1080/21639159.2022.2098157
Khuong, M. N., Ngan, P. L. H., & Phuong, N. T. M. (2015). Factors affecting guests’ satisfaction and their loyalty: A study of luxury hotels in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. International Journal of Innovation, Management and Technology, 6(3), 186–190. https://doi.org/10.7763/IJIMT.2015.V6.599 (in Vietnamese).
Lu, J., Ren, L., Zhang, C., Wang, C., Ahmed, R. R., & Streimikis, J. (2020). Corporate social responsibility and employee behavior: Evidence from mediation and moderation analysis. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 27(4), 1719–1728. https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.1919
Manthiou, A., Kang, J., Sumarjan, N., & Tang, L. (2016). The incorporation of consumer experience into the branding process: An investigation of name-brand hotels. International Journal of Tourism Research, 18(2), 105–115. https://doi.org/10.1002/jtr.2037
Nhan, L. T., Lua, N. T., Sen, C. T., & Dinh, N. V. (2024). Analyze influencing factors on the loyalty of customers to Ninh Kieu 2 hotel in Can Tho City. Journal of Science and Development Economics, 23, 41–52. https://jsde.nctu.edu.vn/jsde/article/view/310 (in Vietnamese).
Noyan, F., & Şimşek, G. G. (2014). The antecedents of customer loyalty. Procedia: Social and Behavioral Sciences, 109, 1220–1224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.12.615
O’Cass, A., & Grace, D. (2003). An exploratory perspective of service brand associations. Journal of Services Marketing, 17(5), 452–475. https://doi.org/10.1108/08876040310486267
Oliver, R. L. (1999). Whence consumer loyalty? Journal of Marketing, 63(4), 33–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429990634S105
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1985). A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research. Journal of Marketing, 49(4), 41–50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224298504900403
Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, V. A., & Berry, L. L. (1988). SERVQUAL: A multiple-item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service quality. Journal of Retailing, 64(1), 12–40.
Rahman, A., & Ramli, M. F. (2017). Do customer satisfaction and service quality predict loyalty in Nigerian hospitality industry? International Journal of Economic Research, 20(14), 1–10.
Rather, R. A., & Camilleri, M. A. (2019). The effects of service quality and consumer–brand value congruity on hospitality brand loyalty. Anatolia, 30(4), 547–559. https://doi.org/10.1080/13032917.2019.1650289
Shahril, A. M., Ashaari, N. A., Hamid, R., Bachok, S., & Baba, N. (2017). The effect of perceived corporate social responsibility initiatives towards loyalty intention among four and five star hotels in Malaysia: The mediating effect of brand preference. Advanced Science Letters, 23(11), 10761–10764. https://doi.org/10.1166/asl.2017.10147
Si, N. V., & Bang, N. V. (2017). Application of spatial regression model in analyzing tourism revenue growth of provinces/cities in Vietnam. Journal of Science, Ho Chi Minh City Open University, 15(2), 39–56. (in Vietnamese).
Štreimikienė, D., & Ahmed, R. R. (2021). Corporate social responsibility and brand management: Evidence from Carroll’s pyramid and triple bottom line approaches. Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 27(4), 852–875. https://doi.org/10.3846/tede.2021.14520
Sürücü, Ö., Öztürk, Y., Okumus, F., & Bilgihan, A. (2019). Brand awareness, image, physical quality and employee behavior as building blocks of customer-based brand equity: Consequences in the hotel context. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 40, 114–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2019.07.002
Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics: An introductory analysis (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Economics and Environment