Premier Inn, Hilton Hotels & Resorts and Holiday Inn have retained a brand advantage in the market, according to the latest Hotel Guest Survey.

Airbnb also made its presence felt in terms of brand recognition, particularly with business travellers. 

BVA BDRC’s Brand Margin research reports on how much more or less a consumer would pay for a branded product, against a competitor or unbranded alternative, measuring what a brand can add to a hotel. Brand Margin combined with how familiar the brand is to the consumer creates a Brand Advantage score.

Premier Inn, Hilton Hotels & Resorts and Holiday Inn were identified as having solidified their positions within their respective tiers – economy, upper full service, and mid-market - and gained a strong competitive advantage.

Fiona von-Hinten, director, BVA BDRC, said: “This study illustrates the power of having an established brand and how, once entrenched, it can be hard to dislodge from the mind of the consumer. Premier Inn has been able to capitalise on the hard work it has put into its brand through high rates of direct booking; a clear route to profit. 

“We are now seeing home-sharing platform Airbnb challenging the traditional hotel brands, coming third behind Premier Inn and Travelodge as a leading choice for a business stay. The company has worked hard to push its brand to the consumer and, despite having no consistency of product or loyalty programme, is seeing success through recognition. 

“Understanding how guests perceive the value of hotel brands is a key metric to evaluating a hotel brand’s performance and its appeal to investors. This includes its competitive position in the market, the strength of its brand equity and its investment attractiveness. For brand stables, being able to prove the premium a brand can generate is a route to future growth.”

The highest brand margins were found in the luxury segment, led by Raffles and Mandarin Oriental, with Gen Y and Boomers attributing the highest brand margins across the age groups. 

Von-Hinten said: “Recent years have seen a focus on the the luxury sector from the global branded hotel operators, who are looking to higher fees earned as they move away from operations and deeper into asset-light growth.

“This study serves as a reminder of the value of a successful brand to all those making development decisions.”