Miyoung Jeong

Adaptation of an information quality framework to measure customers’ behavioral intentions to use lodging Web sites

Abstract The information quality of commercial Web sites is becoming a focal point in the current consumer behavior literature. A consumers perceived quality of information for products and services on the Web is believed to be the most salient factor for predicting his/her decision behavior. Combining the concepts of information quality and consumer decision behavior, this study tested a framework to evaluate the information quality of simulated lodging Web sites. Two hundred and forty conference attendees evaluated the information quality of one of eight hypothetically designed lodging Web sites. Results indicated that the adapted information quality model could be a useful framework for evaluating information quality on lodging Web sites. Of the four constructs of information quality, perceived usefulness and attitudes were found to be significant indicators to predict the customers’ purchase behavior using the lodging Web sites.

Conceptualizing Web site quality and its consequences in the lodging industry

Abstract While an increasing number of lodging companies pay attention to new business opportunities on the Web, little research has addressed how to develop and maintain Web sites that can create such opportunities. Building on emerging literature on Web site quality and e-commerce behavior, this study conceptualizes Web site quality and proposes information satisfaction and purchase-related behavioral intentions as potential consequences of Web site quality in the lodging industry. Conceptual efforts paralleled in four lodging segments (i.e., luxury, upscale, mid-scale, and economy). Data collected through an electronic survey generally indicate that information satisfaction is a powerful determinant of behavioral intentions on the Web and that Web site quality is an important antecedent of information satisfaction. Discussions include implications for the lodging industry and future research.

Psychographic characteristics affecting behavioral intentions towards pop‐up retail

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore relationships between consumer innovativeness, market mavenism, shopping enjoyment, and beliefs, attitude, and patronage intentions toward pop‐up retail.Design/methodology/approach – A survey technique using a national sample of consumers resulted in 869 usable responses. Structural equation modeling is used to test the hypothesized relationships among variables.Findings – Findings show that consumer innovativeness and shopping enjoyment influence beliefs about the importance of hedonic elements of pop‐up retail (novelty/uniqueness factor) and attitude toward pop‐up retail, which affects patronage intentions.Practical implications – Findings provide support for the effectiveness of pop‐up retail, an experiential marketing strategy, at enhancing the appeal of a retail venue to consumers exhibiting higher tendencies in innovativeness and shopping.Originality/value – This paper provides an investigation of consumer psychographic characteristics and their effe...

Roles of negative emotions in customers’ perceived helpfulness of hotel reviews on a user-generated review website: A text mining approach

Purpose This paper aims to explore how emotional expressions embedded in online hotel reviews influence consumers’ helpfulness perceptions. In particular, this study develops and tests hypotheses analyzing empirical data with a text-mining method in the context of hotels to investigate how review valence influences the perceived helpfulness of online hotel reviews and to examine the role of negative emotional expressions embedded in online consumer reviews with respect to perceived helpfulness. Design/methodology/approach This study collected 520,668 online reviews involving 488 hotels in New York City (NYC) on Tripadvisor.com. Of these reviews, 69,202 reviews (13.29 per cent) that had received helpfulness votes were analyzed by a text mining method and negative binomial regression. Findings This study demonstrates that negative reviews are considered more helpful than positive reviews when potential customers read online hotel reviews for their future stay. However, when intensively negative emotions were expressed, the degree of helpfulness regarding negative reviews was diminished. Originality/value While emotional expressions prevail in online consumer reviews, surprisingly little attention has been devoted to the consequences of emotional expressions in consumers’ information processing and decision-making. Due to the nature of service, given the inseparability of production and consumption, which often hinders the execution of flawless service, consumers tend to be more dependent on reviews to minimize any potential failures they may encounter later on. Therefore, this study fills a gap by demonstrating that negative reviews and emotional expressions play a more crucial role in consumers’ information processing and decision-making.

Evaluating stability of the performance-satisfaction relationship across selected lodging market segments.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to illustrate new methods of examining structural differences among segmented markets beyond comparing merely univariate variable mean scores, so as to help marketers and researchers gain better insights into segment differences for meaningful strategy development.Design/methodology/approach – A comprehensive dataset covering various lodging market segments was constructed from Tripadvisor.com. The data then were sorted into lodging customer segments by star rating, type of operation, and level of price charged. Structural equation modeling with the −2 log‐likelihood difference test was conducted to illustrate how effectively the differences, if any, of market segments could be assessed in contrast to the traditional mean‐score comparison approach.Findings – Guest satisfaction was influenced by the same performance variable to the same magnitude and direction across different lodging segments examined. Such stability in the amount of influence of performance on guest...

Attitudinal and Situational Determinants of Self-Service Technology Use

The authors test an extended technology acceptance model by incorporating two situational and two attitudinal variables as new predictors of self-service technology adoption. The situational variables are waiting line and service complexity, whereas the attitudinal variables are technology trust and technology anxiety. The study employs an experimental approach with hypothetical hotel check-in situations. The authors apply structural equation modeling techniques to provide additional insights into the main effects. They find significant main effects of all situational and attitudinal variables but no interaction effects between the situational and attitudinal variables. The main effects on intention to use self-service technologies occurred primarily through the mediation of perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness. The technology acceptance model needs extension to include nontechnology variables as predictors of new technology adoption.

Evaluating value-added lodging Web sites from customers' perspectives

Abstract As the role of the Web is becoming diversified and specialized in the lodging business, interest has increased in appreciating the values that the Web can create for lodging customers. Based on Hos value/purpose matrix, this study attempted to evaluate 35 lodging Web sites in an effort to identify the values that lodging Web sites are likely to provide to their customers. Results indicate that the majority of lodging Web sites are featuring product promotion, while they are lacking emphasis on motivating potential customers to visit their Web sites for product purchasing.

Understanding Travelers’ Adoption of Hotel Reservation Web sites

The dynamic nature of Internet requires rapid adaptation by both hotel and intermediary companies to utilize their Web sites as major information distribution channels as well as online transaction tools. This study explores the travelers’ usage of hotel reservation Web sites. Overall, it was found that the adoption of hotel reservation Web sites can be predicted by the extended TAM framework. Prior experience, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and perceived playfulness have an impact on attitudes toward using reservation Web sites. Moreover, attitudes and perceived playfulness are key determinants of travelers’ intentions to use these Web sites for reservations.

Customers’ perceived website service quality and its effects on e-loyalty

Purpose This study aims to examine determinants of perceived website quality and associations among consequences of perceived website quality. Adopting the framework of loyalty development, causal links are investigated among the website quality, customers’ perceived service quality, their satisfaction, return intention and loyalty in the context of the lodging industry. Design/methodology/approach An online field survey is conducted with internet bookers. A confirmatory factor analysis and a parameter estimate analysis using structural equation modeling are adopted to analyze the data. Findings The progression of the phases of loyalty proceeds in a linear fashion on a lodging website. Mediation effects of customer satisfaction and return intention are detected. Moderation effects of gender were also detected in the relationships among website service quality and consequences of website service quality. Research limitations/implications Caution is advised in generalizing findings of this study due to convenience sampling, although findings of the study do confirm results of previously conducted studies. Practical implications This study provides practical tips for website development for hospitality management to understand the e-loyalty formation process so that appropriate marketing strategies can be established to accommodate the type and degree of individual customer’s loyalty as well as gender-specific expectations from prospective customers. Originality/value This study demonstrates that customer loyalty formation in both physical and online environments has identical processes in the context of the lodging industry. The male group, compared to the female group, appears to be more sensitive in perceiving the effects of functionality of a lodging website, tends to develop customer satisfaction when perceiving website service quality and inclines to develop customer loyalty when having return intention.

Do customers care about types of hotel service recovery efforts?: An example of consumer-generated review sites

Purpose Focusing on hotel managers’ service recovery efforts to service failures, this study aims to explore effects of different types of service recovery strategies on customers’ trust, satisfaction and behavioral intentions in the context of consumer-generated media. Design/methodology/approach This study conducted a 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects experimental design to examine effects of hotels’ sincere apology, compensation and existing relationship with customers on customers’ subsequent psychological behavior. An online self-administered survey was used to recruit participants who posted their experiences with a hotel on consumer-generated review sites. Findings Results of this study identified that when managers incorporated authenticity and compensation components, customers were more likely to show a higher level of trust, satisfaction and behavioral intentions. Research limitations/implications Derived from the justice theory and the relationship investment theory, this study identified the main effects of three treatments and their interaction effects on customers’ subsequent behaviors. Practical implications Results of this study suggested that service recovery communication processes, in particular, authenticity and compensation, be an integral part of the service recovery strategies in the social media context. Originality/value This paper investigated the importance of hotel managers’ service recovery communication strategies in the social media context.