Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to prioritize service quality dimensions (SQDs) using importance-performance analysis (IPA) and to compare the results for the customer groups segmented by data envelopment analysis (DEA). Design/methodology/approach – Customers of three four-star hotels located in Isfahan have been asked to report on their expectation of service prior to receiving it as well as their perception of the service after receiving it. Afterwards, DEA has been used to assign the customers into two groups of fastidious (with relatively high expectations but low perceptions) and ordinary (with relatively low expectations but high perceptions). Next, IPA has been exploited for prioritizing SQDs in each group. Eventually, the prioritized SQDs in each group have been compared and insightful information has been extracted for further research and practical purposes. Findings – Findings imply that despite occasional similarities, there is a significant difference in the way the two groups value SQDs. Also, the segmented groups have different priorities of SQDs. Research limitations/implications – Findings revealed that in order to decrease the ambiguity of customer voice in prioritizing SQDs, it might be helpful to first segregate the participants based on their attitudes towards the quality of service to have a more congruent sample and then, to analyze the data. Practical implications – In this study, a smarter approach for prioritizing SQDs based on the data of two major groups of customers has been proposed, which can help hoteliers in devoting their resources more efficiently. Originality/value – The combination of DEA and IPA in homogenizing the sample and prioritizing SQDs for each homogenized group within the sample seems relatively novel.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify customers’ critical demands through evaluating and prioritizing service quality dimensions (SQDs) based on service quality (SQ) gaps. Design/methodology/approach The customers of four-star hotels were asked to report on their expectations and perceptions about the service they were receiving. Afterwards, the gap between the customers’ expectations and perceptions was calculated. Eventually, the three sets of data were exploited to prioritize SQDs through analytic network process (ANP). Findings Findings suggest that security and confidentiality, price, and tangibles are the most crucial factors. Practical implications The results can provide hotel managers with insightful hints about those aspects of service that form their customers’ perception of SQ in order to assign their invaluable, but restricted, resources appropriately to offer a more competitive service to the customers through paying attention to those dimensions. Originality/value The innovativeness of the methodology was in that the authors proposed a noble method in filling out the difficult-to-complete ANP matrix. The authors also managed to consider the mutual relationship between SQD criteria, which is difficult to do in ordinary methods.

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