Hotel Websites Research Articles

An Investigation of Gen-Y's Online Hotel Information Search: The Case of Hong Kong

The Internet has made searching for hotel room information and making online reservations common practices among hotel guests. Despite constantly changing consumer behavior and widespread application of online hotel information sources, limited studies have been conducted to examine the online sources used frequently by customers and the related attributes of such sources. As such, drawing from an online questionnaire survey with 205 respondents, findings in this study indicate that there are no socio-demographic effects on future purchase intention of Generation (Gen) Y travelers. Moreover, websites of suppliers (e.g. official websites of hotels), travel intermediaries (e.g. Hotels.com), and social media (e.g. TripAdvisor) are the three major types of websites used by Gen Y hotel guests. Travel intermediary websites are often used to search for hotel information, whereas social media websites are used to make reservations. Based on these findings, implications for hotel managers are discussed.

The Greening of Hotels in the UK and Italy: A Cross-cultural Study of the Promotion of Environmental Sustainability of Comparable Corpora of Hotel Websites

The increase in environmental awareness over the last decade has led to the progressive greening of consumers in all sectors. The rise of environmental consumerism has forced all types of businesses and industries to promote products and services which are eco-friendly. Given the consolidated effects of the greening processes on the tourism industry, the hospitality sector, in particular, is making an effort to persuade tourists of their environmental responsibility.The purpose of this article is to analyze the discourse used by hotels when promoting the green practices put forth by the companies to express their environmental concern. The analysis conducted on comparable corpora of British and Italian hotel websites highlights the companies’ attempt to promote their ecological awareness by adapting different linguistic strategies which are influenced by the dominating cultural orientations.

Target frames in British hotel websites

<div class="page" title="Page 1"><div class="layoutArea"><div class="column"><p>This article centres on four-word phrase frames in British hospitality websites. Our aim is to identify those frames that are specific to this website genre, which we call target frames. Each phrase frame represents an identical sequence of words except for one variable word, that is A*BC or AB*D. The words that fill the slot, marked with an asterisk, are called fillers. We used a corpus-driven approach using KfNgram software to identify the phrase frames in our corpus (COMETVAL). We regard phrase frames as genre-specific when they are significantly more frequent than those found in the written section of the BNC, which represents General British English. We further filtered our selection of phrase frames by eliminating those which were not semantically homogenous with regard to the variable words they contained. Only in this way could the 76 phrase frames we identified be classified according to their primary discourse function. We contend that our study is a valuable addition to the literature on phraseology and can be of use in pedagogical and professional settings.</p></div></div></div>

The effectiveness of embedded social media on hotel websites and the importance of social interactions and return on engagement

Purpose The main purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of embedded social media channels and determine whether the embedded social media channels enhance the overall experience of travelers using the hotel Web sites. Design/methodology/approach A true-experimental, between-group and post-test-only design was used to address the primary research questions. Two privately accessible complete versions of the Web site (one with embedded social media channels and one without them) were designed for the experiment. The uses and gratifications approach was used to test the proposed hypotheses. Data were analyzed using ANOVA. Findings The results of this study revealed that embedded social media channels on the hotel Web site enhanced travelers’ social gratifications of perceived social interaction. Apart from these benefits for travelers seeking social gratifications, embedded social media channels did not enhance the overall experience (content and process gratifications) of travelers using the Web site. Practical implications In the case of embedded social media on hotel Web sites, this study suggests that hotel managers measure return on engagement to examine the effectiveness of embedded social media, instead of return on investment. Social implications The study revealed that the emergence of embedded social media channels and their integration on hotel Web sites will have significant influence on travelers who seek social gratifications. Originality/value The findings of this study offer new empirical evidence that embedded social media channels enhance only travelers’ perceived social interaction during their first visit to the hotel Web site.

Comparing Reservation Channels for Hotel Rooms: A Behavioral Perspective

ABSTRACTThis paper studies the customers’ selection of different sales channels for booking hotel rooms. Direct (hotel website) and indirect channels were considered, in which the latter were distinguished according to online travel agencies, destination marketing organization (DMO) website, and DMO call center. A multinomial logit model was estimated to investigate the influencing factors among a specific set of variables of interest (associated with either customer or hotel). The role of DMO as a third-party actor in booking hotel rooms was also investigated. Results indicated that hotel guest profile and hotel characteristics have different effects on the four analyzed sales channels. The active role of DMO in booking hotel rooms was found to be beneficial to the hotel industry as it attracts specific segments of customers, thus creating additional marketing opportunity. Relevant managerial implications were also outlined.

Present and future hotel website marketing activities: Change propensity analysis

The objective of this study is to examine and predict website marketing activities of US hotels. An online survey is conducted to collect data from members of three major hotel associations located in the US. Change propensity analysis is utilized to evaluate future trends of website marketing activities. The results demonstrate that current website exploitation by the US hotels is relatively limited, with a focus on information dissemination. It is suggested that a number of transaction and relation-building activities will emerge in the near future. Implications based on the results are discussed.

Impact of hotel website quality on online booking intentions: eTrust as a mediator

Growing competitiveness in the marketplace pushes hoteliers to fully take advantage of their websites as a marketing tool. This study proposed that a trusting relationship with customers could be developed by investing in hotel website development. A research model that incorporates hotel website quality, eTrust, and online booking intentions was put forward. The software AMOS 20.0 was adopted to analyze the proposed inter-variable relationships. Statistical results demonstrated that hotel website quality is a strong predictor of eTrust which then also mediates the relationship between website quality and consumers’ online booking intentions. Implications were offered for practitioners based on the results.

Evaluating hotel websites as a marketing communication channel

The purpose of this paper is to assess hotel websites as a marketing communication tool using Kent and Taylor’s (1998) dialogic principles. This study was executed qualitatively using content analysis of 42 hotel websites in Ghana. The results of the study show that hotels in Ghana are adequately utilising websites as a marketing communication tool. The findings further show a preponderant use of the principle of conservation of visitors and the dialogic loop principle by the sampled hotel websites. However, the majority of the sampled websites performed rather poorly on the return visit principle. The research contributes to the scarce literature on hospitality management in an emerging economy context.

Do Low Price Signals Influence Online Purchases of Tourist Accommodation Services? The Moderating Role of Gender

Based on an experimental design applied to online purchases of hotel bookings, this study analyzes the influence of three low price signals and the distribution channel on perceived value and behavioral intentions. Positive influences on perceived value and buying intention were found for price beating guarantee and always low price signals but the distribution channel was only found to have an effect on behavioral intentions. Also, it has been seen that gender plays a moderating role on both perceived value and buying intention. Finally, the most effective low price differ in function of the type of enterprise that is transmitting the information to the consumers: price beating guarantee is the best option for hotel website but always low price guarantee is better for electronic intermediaries.

Online coopetition between hotels and online travel agencies: From the perspective of cash back after stay

In the online marketplace, many hotels are concentrating on increasing their market share by establishing cooperation with online travel agencies (OTAs). Meanwhile, hotel websites and OTAs are marketing the hotel rooms at the same price as a result of the strong competition for the same pool of customers. Therefore, it is necessary to balance the cooperation and competition between hotels and OTAs. This study investigates the online coopetition (cooperation and competition) through an economical game analysis of an online supply chain consisting of a hotel and an OTA. It first provides an optimal solution to determine the unit commission fee of the hotel to maintain the cooperation. Afterwards, it studies the pricing process of the OTA to determine the cash back value for the customers with respect to the OTA's maximal profit. Moreover, the deeper analysis of the cooperative model demonstrates that a quantity discount contract based on the revenue sharing could eliminate the competition and coordinate the participants in the online supply chain.

Investigating the Success Factors of Hotel Websites: The Case of Egyptian Hotels

Abstract The use of web as a marketing channel is on the rise rapidly worldwide. The majority of businesses across all industries including hotels, adopt web usage in order to satisfy their customers. Hotels adopt this new environment to communicate directly with travellers and offer customers who are willing to search for information the opportunity to book accomodation online. The study used a questionnaire to collect data from 311 hotel customers about their perceptions on Egyptian hotel websites. It employed structural equation modelling, an advanced multivariate technique to measure the dimensions of e-service quality of hotel websites and their effect on website competitiveness. The study’s findings can help hotel marketing managers address defects in their websites and support their business competitiveness.

Signaling eco-certification

Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to use an eco-friendly service concept framework to demonstrate the effect of credible eco-certification signaling.Design/methodology/approach– The authors examine a cross-sectional data set consisting of 2,481 hotel sites across the US. The authors measure the performance of the operations component of eco-friendly service by operations-driven resource efficiency (ODF), and the performance of the marketing component by customer-driven resource efficiency (CDF). A series of multivariate regressions compare these two resource efficiency measures between credibly eco-certified hotel sites and others.Findings– The results indicate that credible eco-certifications achieve the signaling effect. Eco-certified hotels outperform others in both ODF and CDF measures; and eco-certified hotels still achieve higher CDF after controlling for ODF.Practical implications– The findings suggest that eco-friendly service design requires not only eco-friendly operations but also a built-in credible signaling mechanism. This mechanism engages the customers in eco-friendly service coproduction and in doing so integrates the operations and marketing components of eco-friendly service strategy through eco-certifications.Originality/value– This study is among the first to demonstrate empirically the signaling effect of credible eco-certifications in services. It increases understanding of eco-friendly service design and delivery by exploring the role of credible eco-certifications in linking customer benefits with the service organization's strategic intent.

Do hotel companies communicate their environmental policies and practices more than independent hotels in Dubai, UAE?

Purpose– This paper aims to ascertain how hotels in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), engage in environmental sustainability and what benefits and negativities can be incurred from such activity, and to determine the extent to which hotels use their own corporate websites to disseminate information pertaining to their environmental sustainability.Design/methodology/approach– The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in business has infiltrated since the latter half of the twentieth century. The hotel industry claims to engage in environmental sustainability due to the impact hotels have on the environment and considering the benefits that can arise from being environmentally friendly, such as positive corporate image and awareness of company’s stakeholders regarding company’s policies, practices and initiatives. A literature review regarding the current, most commonly used environmental practices and policies of hotels was conducted and content analysis was carried out in websites of companies and independent hotels in Dubai, UAE.Findings– Key findings showed that the environmental practices and policies which were the cheapest and easiest to implement were the most commonly used among hotels, and that hotel companies provided more corporate online environmental information than independent hotels. Overall, currently, hotels in Dubai do not effectively use online environmental reporting to their stakeholders, which should be an area of improvement by 2020.Research limitations/implications– Further research should be conducted in small and medium enterprises to identify benefits and challenges of and create awareness of the importance of online environmental reporting preparing for Expo2020.Originality/value– The analysis presented aims to highlight the importance of online environmental reporting by hotels and to compare and contrast ways of communicating CSR activities between hotel companies and independent hotels in Dubai, UAE.

Using Online Hotel Customer Reviews to Improve the Booking Process

e-commerce field has developed to the point that more and more hotel companies provide online booking services to travelers as an integral part of their business model. Increasing numbers of hotel companies now provide such services as an integral part of their business model and their guests' experiences with their hotel. Some third-party services allow customers to add comments on each hotel at the affiliated website. The current search tool features at hotel websites are based on fixed properties, allowing companies to take advantage of the huge number of available customer reviews to provide relevant information to consumers considering new services. The present research focuses on the possibility of linking customer reviews with search tools for online hotel booking and dividing the customers into categories based on their travel aims. This shall be accomplished by: 1) extracting customer reviews using opinion mining and finding hotel features that are frequently mentioned in the reviews, and 2) then analyzing those features to achieve the goal of enhancing booking processes by adding new characteristics, based on customer preferences. This research should improve online hotel booking by building a customized tool that utilizes available customer reviews at the Agoda website and matches them with users' preferences based on survey results.

On the China Tourist Hotel E-Business Management

Along with the market competition intensifying, the hotel industry has begun to pay more attention to how to create new competitive advantage to increase or maintain the hotel's comprehensive competitiveness, and the development of modern information technology, to create new competition carrier for the hotel industry, so the Tourist hotel to implement electronic business management is the trend of The Times. At present China's hotel industry to carry out the practical effect of electronic business is far from the ideal requirements compared. From three aspects to build and perfect the hotel e-Business is the overall framework of the management model is very necessary: one is set up and improve the customer relationship management system as the center, based on hotel resource planning system of hotel management information system; Second, supply chain management system, set up and improve the hotel in order to realize the hotel e-business B to B mode; Three is to establish and perfect the hotel website or homepage, build hotel network e-business platform to achieve the hotel e-business B to C mode.

How does hotel attribute importance vary among different travelers? An exploratory case study based on a conjoint analysis

Travel review websites, along with online travel agencies and hotel websites, are salient components of a travel sector positioned at the top echelon of e-commerce categories. This study investigates the comparative salience of six hotel attributes (value, service, rooms, sleep quality, location, and cleanliness) in accordance with (1) an overall travelers group, (2) five different trip-purpose groups (business, families, friends, couples, and solo), and (3) two different country-of-residence groups (domestic and foreign travelers). A conjoint analysis was applied to a total of 405 reviews on one particular hotel from the website of TripAdvisor. The results of the study indicate that “value” and “rooms” are the most important attributes that contribute to a high overall rating for the hotel. In addition, large differences in hotel attribute importance are revealed among various types of traveler groups. Three major and ten minor propositions are postulated from the discussion of the study.

Online Marketing Cooperation and Competition between Hotels and Online Travel Agencies: From the Perspective of Cash Back After Stay

In the online marketplace, many hotels are concentrating on increasing their market share by establishing cooperation with online travel agencies (OTAs). Meanwhile，hotel websites and OTAs are marketing the hotel rooms at the same price as a result of the strong competition for the same pool of customers. Therefore, it is necessary to balance the cooperation and competition between hotels and OTAs. This study investigates the online coopetition (cooperation and competition) through an economical game analysis of an online supply chain consisting of a hotel and an OTA. It first provides an optimal solution to determine the unit commission fee of the hotel to maintain the cooperation. Afterwards, it studies the pricing process of the OTA to determine the cash back value for the customers with respect to the OTA’s maximal profit. Moreover, the deeper analysis of the cooperative model demonstrates that a quantity discount contract based on the revenue sharing could eliminate the competition and coordinate the participants in the online supply chain.

Lexical bundles and phrase frames in the language of hotel websites

Hotel websites have been researched from the perspective of vocabulary and discourse. However, little attention has been paid to lexical bundles and phrase frames in these text types. In this paper, I show by means of an empirical analysis that such word sequences characterise these sites as a highly specialised domain. With this aim in mind, I have analysed a corpus of British hotel websites containing 242,000 words from a database, currently being compiled by the research group COMETVAL. I show that bundles and frames follow very similar principles but differ in flexibility. Moreover, the existence of frames shows collaboration between the idiom and open-choice principle. In fact, most bundles in my corpus are instances of phrase frames.

E-Marketing and the Hotel Industry

In today's world, as online consumers become more price sensitive, less brand loyal and more sophisticated, e-Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and e-marketing becomes a strategic necessity for attracting and increasing consumer's patronage. This manuscript traces the evolution of e-marketing and demonstrates the relationship between the Web Presence Index (WPI) of the hospitality sector across a set of hotels. Here WPI of a particular hotel brand is a function of the total web presence across the Website, FaceBook Page, YouTube, Twitter and MakeMyTrip.com. Subsequently, a positive relationship is visible between the Web Presence Index (WPI) for each hotel and further, it's Alexa traffic volume indicates the total online user traffic. This manuscript demonstrates the web presence of hotels through WPI, Alexa, traffic volume, and their weighted calculated score on the basis of the above parameters. The Web Presence Index is indicative of the usability, credibility and persuasiveness of a consumer in the context of hotel websites. It further depicts how hotels can build better relations with customers by recognizing their needs, preferences, complaints and so on.

An investigation of factors affecting customer selection of online hotel booking channels

When there are more and more online hotel bookers, it is important for industry players to know why travelers prefer one online booking channel among others. To have a better understanding of the channel selecting criteria, a purchase intention model was proposed and verified by a quantitative questionnaire survey with 437 valid samples. This study reveals how product related factors and channel related factors will affect online hotel bookers and compares the perceptions of online hotel bookers toward two types of channels (hotel websites and online travel agent websites) to help industry players on better positioning of their own websites. An updated version of influential factors specifically for the large China market is provided and the result shows that online travel agent website are performing better in most of the aspects while hotel websites are only competitive in website quality.