Sustainability has become one of the key factors for the development of tourism both nowadays and in the future. The need to integrate environmental, socio-cultural and economic factors is a consequence of the evolution of society itself, the introduction of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) and a new way of understanding tourism and the world in general. Tourists increasingly seek a unique quality in their travels and are better informed before deciding on a tourist destination to spend their holidays or leisure time. They want to have unique, memorable experiences, and because of that, they are willing to look for those destinations that can offer them something different. The generation of expectations is no longer the sole responsibility of companies and public and private organizations in destinations, since information may be in the hands of the individuals themselves who can share it in social networks, blogs, or on platforms such as Booking or TripAdvisor, among others. This forces companies and public and private organizations to rethink the way in which and when they relate to tourists in general. With all these considerations, one of the objectives of this study was to analyse the way in which sustainability interrelates with the generation of expectations, experiences and perceptions and the effect on the possibilities of returning to a tourist destination and even recommending it in social networks to friends and acquaintances. For this reason, the destination of Acapulco, Guerrero, Mexico, was chosen, a mature destination of sun and beach that, in recent years, has been immersed in a process of change where one of the axes is sustainability. This study used a convenience survey with 310 valid questionnaires with tourists who stayed more than three days in Acapulco during the months of December 2016 to February 2017. The questionnaires were completed at different points of the destination and by participants over 18 years of age. We used SEM (Structural Equations Modeling) and EQS (Structural Equation Modeling Software) for statistical analysis. The results of the study showed how expectations influenced experiences and the intention to return to the destination and recommend it (WOM), thus, we proposed a series of recommendations for public and private agents that manage this tourist destination.

Purpose: This article studies, from the perspective of relationship marketing, the loyalty behavior of industrial customers in the context of an industrial cluster. Loyalty is a key variable for studying long-term relationships between firms. Research implications: Recent advances in consumer and services marketing consider that perceived value and satisfaction are central to explaining customer loyalty. However, very few business-to-business (B2B) studies explain the antecedents of customer loyalty, where perceived value acquires a multidimensional perspective. This study adopts the relationship marketing approach, and loyalty behavior is analyzed in a specific setting: an industrial cluster. Furthermore, the effect of the number of suppliers is analyzed as a possible moderator in the relationships of the model. Methodology approach: We have chosen the Spanish tile cluster to test a series of hypotheses. Questionnaires were elaborated from primary and secondary information and structural equation models (SEM) have been used for statistical treatment and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Findings: This study highlights the importance of the relationships among perceived value, satisfaction, and loyalty and the importance of the different dimensions of perceived value. Practical implications: The empirical study and the results provide important evidence for managers, specifically, the critical influence of the emotional and social perceived values by the customer on his or her level of satisfaction and on the achievement of final loyalty—the importance in the commercial training programs of this matters. Originality, value, and contribution: This study highlights the importance of the most intangibles dimensions of value for the industrial cluster relations between companies.

The main aim of this paper is to analyze the influence of service companies’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) actions on final customer’s loyalty. A theoretical model of loyalty formation based on CSR was proposed and a sample of 1125 final customers of financial services in Spain was studied. Structural equation models were used to verify the hypothesized relationships. Based on the CSR theory oriented to stakeholders, this work justifies the direct and positive relationship between the perception of CSR actions in the shopping experience and customer trust. We also verified a positive indirect influence on loyalty. The services industry was chosen to conduct this research due to its own particularities (intangibility, inseparability, heterogeneity and perishability). As it is impossible to evaluate a service before its consumption, a high level of trust in the supplier will be necessary to motivate the purchase decision. We conclude that CSR becomes a key strategic asset for determining trust and loyalty among consumers. As major findings, we have verified the special importance of CSR in the services market. CSR improves customer trust in the service provider. Thus, this paper has significant managerial implications. Through CSR strategies, both the perception of the customer’s purchasing experience and trust can be enhanced, resulting in more loyal customers. As a limitation, this research was carried out among financial services. Further research should test the model across different industries and countries in order to determine the generalizability and consistency of the findings of this study.

The tourism sector has been one of the most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to restrictions on mobility and fear of social contact. In this context, business innovation through digital transformation is presented as a great opportunity for the tourism industry and the inclusion of social robots in service tasks is an example. This transformation requires new methodologies, skills and talent that must be promoted to improve the innovative tourism ecosystem. With this research, we try to determine how the inclusion of social or service robots in hotels can improve the image and perception held by clients or guests. For that, we first analyse the degree of knowledge and sentiment generated by social robots through a social listening study in social networks. In addition, we determine whether these perceptions on the subject are in tune with other more formal fields, such as scientific research, or with the strategies followed at a national or international level by companies, agencies and organisations related to the technology and innovation of social robotics. For both objectives, we use the Simbiu social listening tool, a software-based program on Talkwalker, and we obtain interesting results. Basically, people on Twitter have a neutral or positive feeling about the use of social robots, and people who write in English have a more positive attitude towards social robots than Spanish speakers. After COVID-19, are necessary changes in strategic decisions of the hospitality and it is essential to continue investigating the role of social robots in this new context.

Al hablar de la importancia de la marca cabe destacar que se debe tener en cuenta la relación con el cliente, personificada en la marca. La marca jugará un papel determinante en el proceso de decisión de compra del cliente. Es por ello que en el presente artículo se pretende realizar un análisis del concepto de marca y de su evolución a lo largo de los años, teniendo en cuenta los diversos enfoques desde los que se ha analizado. Se verán las distintas perspectivas de análisis del concepto de marca, teniendo en cuenta las opiniones y aportaciones de los distintos autores que han estudiado el concepto. El presente análisis pretende contribuir al estudio de la evolución del concepto de marca desde una perspectiva más enfocada en el producto hasta una más actual que engloba aspectos intangibles y que se centra en la percepción del consumidor.