Predictors of positive reviews on hotels: hoteliers’ perception
| Date | 09 April 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/OIR-08-2016-0234 |
| Pages | 146-160 |
| Published date | 09 April 2018 |
| Author | Javier Perez-Aranda,María Manuela Guerreiro,Júlio da Costa Mendes |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Collection building & management,Bibliometrics,Databases,Information & knowledge management,Information & communications technology,Internet,Records management & preservation,Document management |
Predictors of positive reviews on
hotels: hoteliers’perception
Javier Perez-Aranda
Economía y Administración de Empresas, Universidad de Malaga,
Málaga, Spain, and
María Manuela Guerreiro and Júlio da Costa Mendes
Universidade do Algarve Faculdade de Economia, Faro, Portugal
Abstract
Purpose –The advent of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communities and review sites has strongly
affected the tourism industry, changing the way hotels and accommodations build credibility and a good
image. Few studies have tested, among eWOM communities, the predictors and factors that directly affect
positive eWOM reviews. Using a directory of Spanish hotels in TripAdvisor, the purpose of this paper is to
critically discuss and examine the predictors of positive eWOM, from the hoteliers’perspective.
Design/methodology/approach –Afterthe literature review on eWOM, hypothesesregarding predictorsof
positiveeWOM were developed. Correlationand regression analyseswere conducted to empiricallyvalidate the
relation betweenhotel and personal characteristicsand positive eWOM among a population of335 hotels.
Findings –Results suggest that commitment and competence are factors affecting positive eWOM.
The study found that hoteliers do not perceive hotel characteristics (category, size, and type of ownership) or
the use of the review site as predictors of positive valence. Instead, they perceive commitment and competence
as the main predictors.
Research limitations/implications –The identification of the predictors of positive valence is important
to get better eWOM valence. It would allow hotels to improve some factors that affect positive eWOM. In this
way, the hotel resources and efforts would be better targeted.
Practical implications –The identification of the predictors of positive valence is important to get better
eWOM valence. It would enable hotels to improve some factors and characteristics that affectpositive eWOM.
In this way, the hotel resources and efforts would be better targeted.
Originality/value –This paper investigates the factors affecting positive reviews on hotels, from the
hoteliers’perception. The study will help researchers to understand positive eWOM formation. Moreover, this
study will provide marketers with information on how to improve efforts to obtain positive reviews.
Keywords Social media, TripAdvisor, Electronic word-of-mouth (WOM), Positive valence, Review sites,
User-generated-content (UGC)
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communities and review sites have changed the way
people consume around the world, particularly the way consumers gather information
(i.e. prices and recommendations) about a product or service before purchasing (Hennig-Thurau
et al., 2004). The need for information increases in the case of the tourism product, especially
due to its intangible and inflexible nature (O’Connor, 2008).
As the tourist becomes more independent and the traditional travel agency is replaced by
information available in specialized online communities, a new increasingly popular
medium develops, providing apparently reliable and credible information: user-review sites
( Jeacle and Carter, 2011).
The importance of personal recommendations, known in the marketing literature as
word-of-mouth (WOM) communication (Amdt, 1967), is long established in the tourism
industry (Cohen, 1972; Tan and Chang, 2015). Furthermore, the relationship between
Online Information Review
Vol. 42 No. 2, 2018
pp. 146-160
© Emerald PublishingLimited
1468-4527
DOI 10.1108/OIR-08-2016-0234
Received 29 August 2016
Revised 3 May 2017
5 May 2017
Accepted 9 May 2017
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/1468-4527.htm
This paper forms part of a special section on Information flow and Wom in Social Media and Online
Communities. This paper is financed by National Funds provided by FCT –Foundation for Science
and Technology through project UID/SOC/04020/2013.
146
OIR
42,2
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