Examining the differential effects of social and economic rewards in a hotel loyalty program

Abstract

This study aims to explore how differently social and economic rewards of a hotel loyalty program impact program loyalty and further examine how the differential impact produces relational behaviors. Findings suggest that economic rewards drive program loyalty more strongly than social rewards because members tend to stay with a loyalty program due to its economic reward. However, social rewards facilitate relational behaviors more than economic rewards, given that social rewards intrinsically motivate members to actively defend and support a program provider through affective commitment. The results provide loyalty program operators with insight into how to balance social and economic rewards in designing loyalty programs and suggest how hotels amplify relational value to establish sustainable relationships with customers.