Title: Factors influencing e-word-of-mouth adoption among consumers availing travel services

Authors: Sanjay Kumar Singh; Lalit Mohan Kathuria

Addresses: International Sales and Marketing, EMMBI Industries Limited, Mumbai, India ' School of Business Studies, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India

Abstract: Globally, digital tools are increasingly being used for planning travel services. Prospective travellers have found a new way of gaining information through electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM). Online travel portals comprise a majority of the digital commerce share. A large number of consumers now read e-WOM information before purchasing the product or service. This study was undertaken to explore the use of e-WOM information, and to examine the adoption of e-WOM information among consumers availing travel services. Data were collected from 240 respondents of three Indian cities using a structured questionnaire. Analysis was undertaken using exploratory factor analysis, and multiple linear regression. The study highlighted that respondents use online reviews for gaining information about travel destination, selecting the place of destination, choosing hotels and the place(s) to eat, etc. Consumers opined that using online reviews reduced the chance of making a bad decision about pleasure trips, and helped them plan trips in a better way. Factors like 'attitude', 'perceived usefulness', 'perceived risk', and 'perceived value' significantly influence e-WOM adoption among consumers.

Keywords: electronic word-of-mouth; e-WOM; travel; tourism; factors; adoption; attitude; perceived usefulness; perceived risk; perceived value.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTP.2019.102652

International Journal of Tourism Policy, 2019 Vol.9 No.2, pp.155 - 173

Received: 09 Feb 2019
Accepted: 19 Jun 2019
Published online: 30 Sep 2019 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article