From guests to Owners: The power of reactive personalization in shaping perceived ownership in hotels

Abstract

Personalization is a valuable strategy for enhancing hotel guests' perceived ownership by creating the impression that services are tailored to their needs. While proactive personalization is typically based on provider recommendations, reactive personalization involves adjusting services based on real-time customer preferences. Since guests tend to value services more when they feel a stronger sense of ownership, this study examines how two types of personalization influence perceived ownership and how their interaction with different technologies and data types can further shape ownership and build trust in hotels. According to the results, reactive personalization enhances perceived ownership more than proactive personalization. This positive effect is especially pronounced when guests engage with unfamiliar technologies and ethically sensitive data, such as biometrics, during the personalization process. This research highlights how personalization strategies can transform guests into owners of their hotel experience while fostering trust in hotels that adopt in-room technology-based personalized services.