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Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 144 (2014) 273 279

5th Asia Euro Conference 2014

Memorable customer experience: examining the effects of

customers experience on memories and loyalty in Malaysian resort
hotels
Faizan Alia,*, Kashif Hussainb, Neethiahnanthan Ari Ragavanb
a

International Business School, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, 54100, Malaysia
School of Hospitality, Tourism and Culinary Arts, Taylors University, No.1, Jalan Taylors, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia

Abstract
The objective of this study is to examine the influence of four facets of customer experience on their memories and loyalty. A
convenient sampling technique was used to select the sample. A total of 600 questionnaires were distributed at two tourist spots
of Malaysia i.e., Langkawi and Penang, out of which 450 were returned (75% response rate). The result from the finding suggests
that all four dimensions of customer experience influence their memories and loyalty. Overall, findings of this study validates the
customer experience scale in the context of resort hotels and enhances the theoretical progress on the experience concept in
tourism and offer important implications for resort hotel marketers.
2014
2014 Elsevier
The Authors.
Published
by Elsevier
Ltd. under the CC BY-NC-ND license

Ltd. This
is an open
access article
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of Asia Euro Conference 2014.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the Scientific Committee of 5AEC2014.
Keywords: Customers Experience; Memories; Loyalty; Malaysia; Resort Hotels

1. Introduction
Like tourism industry, resort hotels are also becoming one of the fastest growing segments of tourism attractions
around the world. A report published by Ibisworld (2013) stated that the global resorts industry has rebounded from
a recession-induced decline and experienced positive growth in each of the past four years. This growth was also
seen in Malaysian hotels and resort industry. Tourism Malaysia (2013) stated that in 2012, a total of 25.03 million
tourists visited Malaysia spending 60.6 billion US$ as compared to 24.71 million tourists spending 58.3 billion US$

Corresponding author. Tel.: +6-011-187-746-42

E-mail address: faizanali7@hotmail.co.uk

1877-0428 2014 Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of the Scientific Committee of 5AEC2014.
doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.296

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Faizan Ali et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 144 (2014) 273 279

in 2011. In the recent decade, a drastic increase is observed in the number of people traveling to resort hotels
situated in the natural exotic locations to escape from their daily routine life and to enjoy and entertain themselves
(Ali, Omar & Amin, 2013; Nadiri & Hussain, 2005). In order to cater for the needs of these increasing number of
visitors, an increase in the number and types of accommodation services can also be observed. According to
Malaysian Department of Statistics, the number of establishments in Malaysia increased from 2362 in 2009 to 3129
in 2010. 15.5% of these 3129 accommodation establishments are resort hotels and the number is increasing more
(http://www.statistics.gov.my, 2012). A recent report published by UNWTO (2013) also categorised Malaysia as a
favourite resort destination for tourists from around the world. Although UNWTO highlighted the importance of
resort hotels in tourism and hospitality, yet it has not gained much attention in research (Ali & Amin, 2013). In this
context, Line and Runyan (2012) reviewed 274 articles published in four top hospitality journals published from
2008 to 2010. In their review paper, they state that resort hotels are the least studied comprising only 0.7% of the
total industry studied. However, the presence of research targeting this industry in top hospitality journals suggests
its relevance to the field (Ali et al., 2013).
The rapid development in this tourism sector makes it very competitive and enforces the service providers to
ensure a great and memorable experience for the customers (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2013). Amongst the scholars
who proposed different approaches to evaluate customers experiences, the experience economy concept (Pine &
Gilmore, 1999, 2011) has recently gained attention among hospitality and tourism researchers (Mehmetoglu &
Engen, 2011). However, empirical testing of the 4Es (i.e. educational, esthetic, entertainment, and escapist
experiences) in resort hotels tourism has yet to be undertaken. In fact, the empirical development of the 4Es
application in various facets of tourism and hospitality industry is needed (Hosany & Witham, 2010; Oh, Fiore &
Jeong, 2007).
This study aims to assess guests experience at a resort hotel and its effects on their post-consumption evaluations.
The present study expands understanding of the experience economy by examining how guests memories operate
together with multiple dimensions of their experience at resort hotels to develop their loyal behavior.
2. Conceptual Background of the Study
2.1. Experience Economy
Experience economy is used as an overarching concept for service providers in leisure and recreation industry
whose primary goal is providing high quality experiences (Mehmetoglu & Engen, 2011). Pine and Gilmore (1999)
explored the concept of experiences by coining the term, experience economy, which is the final phase of
economic progression that has developed from commodity, product and service economy. Pine and Gilmore (1999,
p. 12) defined experience as events that engage individuals in a personal way; whereas Oh et al., (2007, p. 120)
define experiences as, enjoyable, engaging, memorable encounters for those consuming these events.
While discussing experience economy, Pine and Gilmore (1998) identified four realms of customer experiences
including entertainment, education, esthetic and escapism. These four dimensions are differentiated across two axes
i.e., the degree of customer involvement and the connection of customer with the surroundings (Hosany & Witham,
2010). The first dimension is entertainment which is developed when passive absorption is observed by the
customer such as watching a theatre performance (Oh et al., 2007). The second dimensions is esthetic where the
customer has a passive participation and immersion in the experience. Examples for esthetic dimensions includes a
beautiful arrangement of historical relics in a museum, an attractive servicescape or ambience in a resort hotel or
experiencing the breath-taking scenery of Niagara Falls (Mehmetoglu & Engen, 2011). The third dimension is
education which refers to an experience where the participant actively participates but is in absorption such as
snorkelling, scuba diving or ski-schools. The fourth and the last dimension is escapism which happens when the
participant is affecting the actual performances in the real or virtual environment for example, by rafting or playing
in a casino (Hosany & Witham, 2010). To summarise, it can be stated that entertainment experience is about feeling,
the educational experience learning, the esthetic experience presence, and the escapist experience doing influence
customers emotions and satisfaction levels (Hosany & Witham, 2010; Mehmetoglu & Engen, 2011).

Faizan Ali et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 144 (2014) 273 279

2.2. Experience, Memories and Loyalty

It has been advised by Pine and Gilmore (2011) that customers consumption experiences revolving around 4Es
result in strong memories and positive behaviours. A limited number of scholars have studied this phenomena and
they support the positive impact of 4Es on consumer memories (Gilmore & Pine, 2002; Quadri-Felitti & Fiore,
2013). In this context, Tung and Ritchie (2011) stated that a hedonic and entertaining experience that can enhance
knowledge of the guests can end up with positive memories and positive behaviours such as revisits and
recommendations to friends and family etc. (Kim, 2010; Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2012). Oh et al., (2007) and Hosany
and Witham (2010) also observed a significant relationship between the 4Es and positive memories and loyal
behaviour of guests in bed and breakfast and cruise ship industry. This supports the following hypothesis:
H1 (a): Educational experience influences memories significantly.
H1 (b): Entertainment experience influences memories significantly.
H1 (c): Esthetic experience influences memories significantly.
H1 (d): Escapism experience influences memories significantly.
H2 (a): Educational experience influences customer loyalty significantly.
H2 (b): Entertainment experience influences customer loyalty significantly.
H2 (c): Esthetic experience influences customer loyalty significantly.
H2 (d): Escapism experience influences customer loyalty significantly.
H3: Memories influence customer loyalty significantly.
3. Research Methodology
The target population for this study was limited to those guests who had stayed at resort hotels in Malaysia for at
least once. The survey was conducted through face-to-face interaction with the guests at two tourist spots of
Malaysia i.e., Langkawi and Penang. A self-administered survey was used to collect the using non-probability
convenience sampling technique. A total of 600 questionnaires were distributed and after deletion of incomplete
responses, 450 questionnaires were deemed complete to use further showing a response rate of 75% from the
original target sample population. Out of these 450 respondents, 58% were male whereas 42% were female. About
3% were between 16-20 years of age, 60% were between 21 and 30 years, 17% were between the ages of 31-40
years and 20% were older than 41 years. About 53% of the total respondents had bachelor degree whereas 37% had
a master degree (See Table 1). The questionnaire was based on 23-items in total. Dimensions of experience were
measured using 4-items each adapted from Hosany and Witham (2010) Memories were operationalized using 3items adapted from Oh et al., (2007) whereas customer loyalty was operationalized also using the 4-items proposed
by Quadri-Felitti and Fiore (2013).
Table 1. Percentages of Demographic Profile of the Respondents (n=450)
Variables
Values
Gender
Male
Female
Age
Less than 20 Years
21 30 Years
31 - 40 Years
Above 40 Years
Education Level
Bachelor Degree
Master Degree
Others

Percentage
58%
42%
3%
60%
17%
20%
53%
39%
8%

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4. Findings and Analysis

For this study, hypotheses were tested based on structural equation modelling using a Partial Least Squares (PLS)
method. In order to conduct the analysis, Smart PLS M3 Version 2.0 (Ringle, Wende & Will, 2005) software was
used. Bootstrapping technique was applied to determine the significance levels of the loadings, weights, and path
coefficients. Following the procedure suggested by Anderson and Gerbing (1988), validity and goodness of fit of
measurement model was estimated before testing the structural relationships outlined in the structural model.
Table 2. Validity and Reliability for Constructs
Measurement Items
Education Experience

Loadings

CRa

AVE b

Ed1
The experience has made me more knowledgeable
Ed2
I learned a lot during my experience
Ed3
It stimulated my curiosity to learn new things
Ed4
It was a real learning experience
Entertainment Experience

0.880
0.880
0.871
0.836

0.924

0.752

En1
En2
En3

0.781
0.858
0.857
0.812

0.898

0.688

I felt a real sense of harmony

Just being here was very pleasant
The setting was very attractive
Es3
Es4
The setting really showed attention to design detail
Escapism Experience

0.842
0.879
0.871
0.834

0.917

0.734

Ec1

0.671
0.673
0.791
0.810

0.827

0.547

E1
I have wonderful memories of my visit to this resort
E2
I wont forget my experience visiting this resort
E3
I will remember many positive things about this resort
Customer Loyalty

0.866
0.849
0.863

0.894

0.739

CL1

I will recommend this resort to others

0.736

0.846

0.578

CL2

I will encourage others to visit this resort

0.777

CL3

I am willing to visit this resort again

0.769

Activities at the resort were amusing to watch and perform

Activities at the resort were captivating to watch and perform
Activities at the resort were entertaining to watch and perform
Activities at the resort were fun to watch and perform

En4
Esthetics Experience
Es1
Es2

I felt I played a different character here

I felt like I was living in a different time or place

Ec2
Ec3
The experience here let me imagine being someone else
Ec4
I totally forgot about my daily routine
Memories

CL4 I will definitely come back to this resort

0.758
a
Composite reliability = (square of the summation of the factor loadings) / [(square of the summation of the
factor loadings) + (square of the summation of the error variances)]
b

AVE = (summation of squared factor loadings)/(summation of squared factor loadings) (summation of

error variances)

For measurement model, all the standardized factor loading of each construct were high (above .671) that ensured
the convergent validity. Composite reliability for six latent constructs was between .827 and .924 that ensured the
internal consistency. The average variance extracted (AVE) from all constructs exceeded the cut-off criterion of .5
(See Table 2), and were greater than the squared correlations between any pair of constructs (See Table 3). Since all
these figures and measurement ensure reliability and validity of the measurement items, therefore, this research
tested the same measurement model for further testing of the structural model and hypotheses.

Faizan Ali et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 144 (2014) 273 279
Table 3. Discriminant Validity
Customer
Satisfaction
Customer
Satisfaction
Education
Emotions
Entertainment
Escapism
Esthetics

0.761
0.599
0.627
0.610
0.587
0.502

Education

Emotions

Entertainment

Escapism

Esthetics

0.867
0.580
0.773
0.617
0.435

0.795
0.630
0.587
0.510

0.830
0.605
0.456

0.894
0.508

0.857

As PLS does not generate overall goodness of fit indices, a diagnostic tool is presented by Tenenhaus, Vinzi,
Chatelin and Lauro (2005) to assess the model fit and is known as the goodness of fit (GoF) index. Hoffmann and
Brinbrich (2012) report the following cut-off values for assessing the results of the GoF analysis: GoFsmall = 0.1;
GoFmedium = 0.25; GoFlarge = 0.36. For the model used in this study, a GoF value of 0.452 is calculated which
indicates a very good model fit.
The result of the structural model showed that all the four facets of customer service experience (4Es) had
positive and significant impact on consumer memories and loyalty intentions. 51.5% of consumers memories can
be predicted by 4Es Moreover, it was also observed that memories developed by 4Es may also influence customer
loyalty and the 4Es and memories together predict 55.4% of customer loyalty. Hence, all the nine hypotheses were
accepted.
5. Conclusions and Implications
Resort hotels are shaping to be a rapidly growing and liked facet of Malaysian hospitality and tourism industry,
where guests travel to these establishments situated in the natural exotic locations to escape from their daily routine
life and to enjoy a memorable experience. Recent scholars have proposed various approaches towards the
assessment of tourist experiences and it can be transformed into a memorable experience. One of these approaches is
the four-faceted conceptualization of experience proposed by Pine and Gilmore (1999). However, empirical testing
of the 4Es (i.e. educational, esthetic, entertainment, and escapist experiences) in resort hotels tourism has yet to be
undertaken. Moreover, despite of the importance of resort hotels indicated by UNWTO, they are somewhat ignored
in the hospitality and tourism literature. Therefore, this study aimed to assess how guests memories operate together
with multiple dimensions of their experience at resort hotels to develop their loyalty. Structural equation modelling
was used to test the hypotheses and the findings revealed that all the four facets of customer service experience
(4Es) had positive and significant impact on consumer memories and loyalty intentions. Moreover, it was also
observed that memories developed by 4Es may also influence customer loyalty. These results are consistent with the
study conducted by Hosany and Witham (2010) and Oh et al., (2007) who observed a significant influence of
dimensions of customer experience over their memories and behavior. The results are also supported by QuadriFelitti and Fiore (2013) who tested the effect of 4Es on consumer memories and behavior of wine tourists. The study
implications are discussed below and future research areas are highlighted.
Results from this study indicate that customer experiences can be classified in four dimensions including
entertainment, education, esthetic and escapism (Pine & Gilmore, 1998). These four dimensions can develop
memories of consumers which can ultimately influence their loyalty behaviours. The first dimension is
entertainment and its importance has been highlighted by Hosany and Witham (2010) in cruiser experiences.
Services providers must focus on the entertainment aspect as it is an integral motivation of tourists visiting resort
hotels. For instance, Gee (2000, p.22) stated that, The core principle of the resort concept is the creation of an
environment that will promote and enhance a feeling of well-being, enjoyment and satisfaction. Experience of the
guests can be much more memorable if the service delivery and performance integrates the sense of escapism. In
this context, Ali et al., (2013) stated that guests travel to resort hotels situated in the natural exotic locations to
escape from their daily routine life. Similarly, Yang and Chan (2010, p. 58) stated, to escape from normal life as
the main motivating factor to visit a resort hotel. Similarly, Oh et al., (2007) postulated esthetics as the main
determinant of experiential outcomes.

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Fig 1. The Result of Structural Equation Model

A service settings physical environment is comprised of a variety of different elements including the esthetics
and ambient factors such as color, air, scent, illumination, facilities, layout (Han & Ryu, 2009). These factors are all
interrelated and they work together to influence consumer memories and behavior (Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2013).
Richardson (2000) identified explained various characteristics of a resort hotel including sufficient indoor amenities
encompassing pleasant physical environment and convenient entertainment facilities where esthetics remain an
integral part (Mill, 2008). With regards to the educational dimension, while various resort hotels offers some
opportunities for the guests to increase their knowledge and skills (e.g., massage techniques, cooking lessons,
swimming and snorkelling etc), such experiences are of importance in developing memories and positive behaviour
(Oh et al., 2007; Quadri-Felitti & Fiore, 2013). Since all these four dimensions of customer experience influence
guests memories and behaviors, marketers should understand their differences while implementing segmentation
and positioning strategies based on experiences of customers (Hosany & Witham, 2010). The scales used in this
study can also help the management of resort hotels to develop suitable promotional and marketing campaigns. For
instance, resort hotels should emphasize the educational, esthetic, escapist, and entertaining values of the stay at
their resort. The pre-consumption performance (advertisements) and during-consumption service performance of the
resort hotels must portray these facets of experiences in order to make it memorable for the guests as these are the
string predictors of customer loyalty.
6. Limitations and Future Research Suggestions
Although the results of the current study have shed light on several important issues, some limitations need to be
considered in future research. Since convenience sampling was used in this study, results cannot be generalized. For
instance the findings should be interpreted with caution when applied to different types of hotels or different
industries. Moreover, this study was only conducted in resort hotels located in two Malaysian popular tourist spots
(Langkawi & Penang). Conducting a similar study on resort hotels guests at other locations in Malaysia may be
conducted. Future research should also examine the proposed relationships in other types of hotels and industries.
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