QUALITY OF SERVICE AND HOMESTAY CUSTOMER SATISFACTION USING THE SERVQUAL MODEL

The homestay industry is part of the tourism services industry. It is important for homestay operators to provide services that can meet the needs and satisfaction of customers. However, there are some problems related to the quality of services provided by homestay operators that affect customer satisfaction. Problems arise due to a lack of knowledge of the dimensions that can be used to provide quality services. There are five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model that are associated with service quality characteristics and are able to influence homestay customer satisfaction, namely tangible, empathy, responsiveness, reliability, and assurance. This study was conducted with the aim of finding out the relationship between the five dimensions of SERVQUAL service quality with homestay customer satisfaction and identifying the dimensions that most affect customer satisfaction. This study uses quantitative methods and distributed a total of 384 questionnaires to respondents who are local tourists staying at the Hulu Selangor homestay. The results of the study found that the dimensions of tangible, empathy, responsiveness, reliability, and assurance have a positive relationship to customer satisfaction. There are two main dimensions that most affect the satisfaction of homestay customers, namely reliability and assurance. This customer satisfaction is influenced by the treatment received while dealing with homestay employees. Friendly and courteous homestay workers make customers happy and comfortable to get help when needed. Homestay's that provide services efficiently without any errors from the early stage is also able to affect the level of customer satisfaction. Each homestay operator who are concerned with five dimensions and implement them in homestay services will strive to enhance and maintain the quality of the image as the best homestay.