CRITICAL IN-FLIGHT AND GROUND-SERVICE FACTORS INFLUENCING BRAND PRESTIGE AND RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN BRAND PRESTIGE, WELL-BEING PERCEPTIONS, AND BRAND LOYALTY: FIRST-CLASS PASSENGERS

Abstract

This study (1) proposes optimal in-flight and ground services for maximizing the brand prestige of passengers taking first-class flights; (2) investigates the relationships between brand prestige, passengers' well-being perception, and brand loyalty; and (3) tests the moderating effect of status consumption. To empirically test the proposed conceptual model, a survey was conducted using a sample of passengers who experienced first-class flights with any airline by an online market research firm in the United States (US), and data collected from 205 passengers were analyzed through structural equation modeling. The results reveal that (1) all five in-flight service factors and three of four ground-service factors played crucial roles in the formation of passengers' brand prestige perceptions;, (2) brand prestige had a significant effect on well-being perceptions and brand loyalty; and (3) status consumption had a significant moderating effect on the relationship not only between brand prestige and well-being perceptions, but also on the relationship between brand prestige and brand loyalty. These results have important practical implications for first-class service managers as well as theoretical implications for luxury marketing in the context of brand prestige.