Best Western and La Quinta Inn Earn Top Customer Experience Ratings for Hotels, According to Temkin Group

WABAN, Mass., March 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Best Western and La Quinta Inn deliver the best customer experience in the hotel industry, according to the 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings, an annual ranking of companies based on a study of 10,000 U.S. consumers.

Best Western took the top spot for the first time this year, earning a 69% rating and placing 102^nd overall out of 268 companies across 19 industries. La Quinta Inn maintained its second-place position from last year with a rating of 67% and a rank of 119^th overall. At the other end of the spectrum, Motel 6 and Super 8 tied for the lowest-ranking hotel chain, both landing in 260^th place overall with a rating of 47% each.

"We saw customer experience in the hotel industry take a nosedive this year, it's time for hotels to reevaluate their customer experience," states Bruce Temkin, managing partner of Temkin Group.

Here are some additional findings from the hotel industry:

• Overall, the hotel industry averaged a 60% rating in the 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings and placed 15^th out of 19 industries. The hotel industry was one of only four industries that declined in the ratings between 2013 and 2014, decreasing its average by 5.4 points, the largest change in any industry's average rating.
• The ratings of all hotel chains in the 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings are as follows: Best Western (69%), La Quinta Inn (67%), Sheraton (65%), Marriott (64%), Holiday Inn Express (64%), Courtyard by Marriott (64%), Hampton Inn (63%), Hilton (62%), Comfort Inn (62%), Fairfield Inn (61%), Holiday Inn (60%), Hyatt (58%), Westin (54%), Residence Inn (53%), Days Inn (51%), Crowne Plaza (50%), Motel 6 (47%), and Super 8 (47%).
• Days Inn (+3 points) and Fairfield Inn (+1 point) were the only hotels that improved their ratings between 2013 and 2014.
• Marriott (-11 points), Hyatt (-9 points), and Hilton (-8 points) were the hotels whose ratings declined the most between 2013 and 2014.

Now in its fourth year of publication, the 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings examines the quality of the customer experience delivered by 268 organizations across 19 industries: airlines, appliance makers, auto dealers, banks, car rental agencies, computer makers, credit card issuers, fast food chains, grocery chains, health plans, hotel chains, insurance carriers, Internet service providers, investment firms, parcel delivery services, retailers, software firms, TV service providers, and wireless carriers.

To generate these ratings, Temkin Group asked consumers to evaluate their experiences with a company across three dimensions: functional (can you do what you want to do?), accessible (how easy is it to work with the company?), and emotional (how do you feel about the interactions?). Temkin Group then averaged these three scores to produce a company's Temkin Experience Rating.

In these ratings, a score of 70% or above is considered "good," and a score of 80% or above is considered "excellent."

The 2014 Temkin Experience Ratings, along with other ratings, can be accessed at the Temkin Ratings website, www.TemkinRatings.com.

The free report "2014 Temkin Experience Ratings" is available for download at the Customer Experience Matters^® blog (ExperienceMatters.wordpress.com) and at the Temkin Group website, www.TemkinGroup.com.

About Temkin Group: Temkin Group is widely recognized as a leading customer experience research and consulting firm. Many of the world's largest brands rely on its insights and advice to steer their transformational journeys, and Temkin Group accelerates their results by combining customer experience thought leadership with a deep understanding of organizational dynamics. Rather than layering on cosmetic changes, Temkin Group helps companies embed practices within their culture by building four critical competencies: Purposeful Leadership, Employee Engagement, Compelling Brand Values, and Customer Connectedness. The firm's ongoing research identifies leading and emerging best practices for engaging the hearts and minds of customers, employees, and partners. For more information, contact Bruce Temkin at 617-916-2075 or send an email.

*Customer experience matters is a registered trademark of Temkin Group.

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SOURCE Temkin Group