What Is Intangibility in Tourism and Hospitality Industry?

By Robert Palmer

Intangibility is a crucial concept in the tourism and hospitality industry. It refers to the fact that services in this industry cannot be touched, tasted, or seen before they are purchased.

This means that customers have to rely on other cues, such as reputation, brand image, and word of mouth. In this article, we will explore how intangibility affects the tourism and hospitality industry.

What Is Intangibility?

Intangibility is a characteristic of services that makes them different from physical products. Services are intangible because they cannot be measured or quantified like goods can.

For example, you can touch and feel a pair of shoes before you buy them, but you cannot touch and feel a hotel room before you book it.

This intangibility makes it difficult for customers to evaluate the quality or value of a service before they purchase it. This is why reputation and brand image are so important in the tourism and hospitality industry.

How Does Intangibility Affect Tourism and Hospitality?

1. Reputation

Since services are intangible, customers rely heavily on reputation when making purchasing decisions.

They may look for reviews online or ask friends for recommendations before choosing a hotel or restaurant.

This means that companies in the tourism and hospitality industry must work hard to maintain a positive reputation. They need to provide high-quality services consistently so that customers will recommend them to others.

2. Brand Image

Brand image is another important factor in the tourism and hospitality industry.

Companies need to create strong brands that customers can trust and relate to.

A strong brand image can help companies stand out from their competitors and attract more customers. This is why many hotels and restaurants invest heavily in branding activities such as advertising, social media marketing, and sponsorships.

3. Word of Mouth

Word of mouth is another important factor in the tourism and hospitality industry.

Customers are more likely to trust the recommendations of friends and family members than they are to trust advertising or other marketing materials.

This means that companies need to provide high-quality services consistently so that customers will recommend them to others. They also need to encourage satisfied customers to leave positive reviews online and share their experiences on social media.

Conclusion

Intangibility is a crucial concept in the tourism and hospitality industry. It affects how customers evaluate services, how companies build reputations and brand image, and how word of mouth spreads.

Companies that understand intangibility and work hard to provide high-quality services can gain a competitive advantage in this industry.