How servicescape unleash customer engagement behaviors through place attachment: an investigation in a non-Western context

Abstract

Little empirical research has delved into the impact of servicescape on customer attachment and customer engagement behaviors. This study investigates two main research questions in a non-Western country. First, this research asks how upscale hotels’ servicescapes influence customer engagement behaviors, and second, it investigates how place attachment mediates the relationship between servicescape and customer engagement behaviors. Questionnaires were distributed to 405 guests from upscale Egyptian hotels and resorts, and the responses were analyzed with structural equation modeling. The findings support our proposed model and prove the mediating role of place attachment. The servicescape, directly and indirectly, influences customer engagement behaviors, given that place attachment plays a partial mediating role. The findings provide considerable insight to help hotels unleash customer engagement by creating servicescapes that encourage customer attachment.

Keywords

• Servicescape
• place attachment
• customer engagement behaviors
• willingness to suggest (WTS)
• word-of-mouth (WOM)
• upscale hotels and resorts