Now that Paris Hilton has been released from jail, pundits are wondering whether there will be any fallout for the Hilton hotel brand name. Research in marketing suggests that those wannabe consumers who closely identify with Paris Hilton will not be put off by her distasteful antics and criminal behavior; however, for those who find her on the sorry side, those negative perceptions may transfer to the brand.
This may not be much of an issue for current Hilton hotel consumer loyalists - elite members especially may not care either way, especially if a hotel upgrade is in their future. However, for current customers who have more of a choice, Starwood and Marriott should be looking even better about now.
Yet, the biggest problem is down the road. The Hilton brand is shopworn and tired. A key tenet of marketing is to match your product to your target segment. Let’s take a look at Hilton’s problem. For fun, we can segment the coveted 18-36 demographic into Paris Hilton lovers and Paris Hilton haters.
Research suggests the lovers - who have no problem with Paris Hilton the “bad girl” (indeed, they may strive to be just like her) - won’t think badly of Hilton the hotel. Research also suggests the haters may develop negative attitudes toward the hotel thanks to the bad behavior of the heiress. But let’s examine the implications. The lovers may sample the hotel only to find it in no way meets their expectations (”W” Hotel anyone?) and the haters would rather die than set foot in a Hilton hotel.
(BTW, if this type of research interests you and you want to make a difference in the way companies do business with their customers, check out the UCR eLab panel.)
So, where does that leave us? Paris Hilton needs to rehabiliate her image, and fast. And Hilton hotels? Think facelift, updating, and some fancy sheets. It has been reported that Paris may become a brand consultant for the Learning Annex - her namesake company might be a good first project.
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Donna, I thought you might find this interesting:
Too Much Paris? America Thinks So
PROVO, Utah — June 26, 2007 — Do you feel that there has been an excessive amount of news coverage about Paris Hilton lately? If so, you’re in good company. A recent poll shows that 89 percent of Americans agree — and yet here we are, still talking about her.
Qualtrics, a leader in the survey software industry surveyed respondents from all 50 states in an attempt to discover the public’s point of view on Paris’s recent media hype — with unflattering results for the billionaire heiress.
“We wanted to know how the American audience felt about this story’s coverage — if they were sick of hearing about it, or if they wanted more,” said Ryan Smith, Qualtrics Director. “We knew they would have an opinion, but I don’t think we expected it to be as strong as it turned out to be.”
Although precedent may demonstrate that her treatment was unfair, only 16 percent of respondents felt that Paris’s sentence was excessive compared with that of others who committed the same offense. Even those living the simplest of lives can figure out that easy math — 84 percent of Americans feel the Simple Life co-star deserved what she got.
Those surveyed continued to judge harshly, voting 26-year-old Paris the worst role model for today’s youth, even when pitted only against other party-hopping, limelight celebrities Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, and Nicole Richie.
For the two percent of the population who find the press coverage of Paris’s sentence “lacking,” there seem to be plenty of media outlets doing their best to keep you satisfied, even when the rest of the world can’t take another second of it.
“It’s interesting to see how opinionated people are when it comes to celebrities,” Smith laughed. “I think there are costs and benefits associated with being famous — and sometimes the costs outweigh the benefits.”
Qualtrics is a market leader in Internet-based, electronic survey software creation, analysis and distribution. More than 30,000 customers prefer Qualtrics for their market research and survey software needs, including representatives from 10 percent of Fortune 500 companies and half of the nation’s top business schools. Learn more about Qualtrics by visiting www.qualtrics.com or calling 1.801.374.6682.
In June, Paris Hilton’s was dropped by her record label after lackluster sales of debut pop album Paris failed to impress music execs. The blonde beauty was said to be devastated over the decision.
It’s kind of crazy, but it seems like in this day and age, all press is good press. I don’t think there will be any drop in business at the Hilton Hotels as a result of the bad decisions made lately by Paris.
The Hilton chain was bought out for $26 Billion and the Hilton family made bank.
Problem solved.
Interesting you mention “W” Hotel and Paris in the same story. Paris and her Brother almost never stay in a Hilton hotel. Most of the time they actually Choose the W hotel as their premier choice.
I am afraid to say (sadly) that I believe behavior of those in the limelight is not as big an issue as it was just 20-30 years ago. Bill Clinton was not damaged at all by his be behavior and was paid well as a speaker after his presidency. Hillary in my opinion has not been damaged at all in her presidential bid by Bill’s actions.
Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers survived his antics with a young woman in a hotel room and still makes millions per year.
It almost seems like people would be disappointed if Paris and Brittany Spears didn’t miss behave in some way.
I don’t believe the public will judge the Hilton Hotel by the actions of Paris. The young people that love Paris likely love the hotel and those that don’t like Paris likely don’t hold it against the hotel
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