NEW YORK, August 3, 2022 – Hospitality & theme parks ranks 16th out of 19 industries studied in MBLM’s Brand Intimacy 2022 Study, the largest study of brands based on emotions, now in its 12th year. The enhanced 2022 study combines MBLM’s proven Brand Intimacy model with the power of AI and big data to analyze over 600 brands, assessing how consumers bond with the brands they use and love. Disney Parks tops hospitality & theme parks, followed by Warner Bros. World and Marriott. MBLM found that the top keyword for Disney Parks was “Love.” Warner Bros. World’s top keyword was “Fun” and Marriott’s was “Endorse.”
The remaining brands in the top 10 for hospitality & theme parks are: Hilton, Four Seasons, Norwegian Cruise Line, Hyatt, Universal, Jumeirah Hotels & Resorts, and Celebrity Cruises. Consistent with previous years, MBLM also found that top intimate brands outperformed Fortune 500 top brands across profit, revenue, and stock performance.
“It’s not surprising that hospitality & theme parks did not perform well in our study due to COVID’s negative impact on brands in the industry, which is undeniable given the strict restrictions they faced,” stated Mario Natarelli, managing partner at MBLM. “However, we feel that the consumer keywords associated with the industry – focused on enjoyment and fun – and the industry’s Brand Intimacy archetype strengths indicate that brands can do a better job at creating and maintaining strong emotional connections with customers, which would also help them weather future challenges.”
The industry has an average Brand Intimacy Quotient of 28.9, which is below the cross-industry average of 36.8. However, the industry does outperform the cross-industry average for three Brand Intimacy archetypes: fulfillment (performance, exceeding expectations), identity (aspirational image or shared values), and indulgence (centered around moments of pampering and gratification).
MBLM further explored the industry in an article released today entitled, “Hospitality & Theme Park Brands Today: Deconstructing Today’s Associations with Hotels, Theme Parks, and Cruise Brands.” It analyzes the pandemic’s impact on hospitality & theme parks brands and discusses the industry’s performance in the study. MBLM also compares the top-performing theme park (Disney Parks), hotel (Marriott), and cruise line (Norwegian) across its Brand Intimacy measures.
The Brand Intimacy 2022 Study contains the most comprehensive rankings of brands based on emotion. The scale of the study included more than 600 brands and more than 1.4 billion words analyzed over 2021.
To download the Brand Intimacy 2022 Study or explore the rankings click here.
