IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/infott/v21y2019i3d10.1007_s40558-019-00143-4.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The impact of word of mouth when booking a hotel: could a good friend’s opinion outweigh the online majority?

Author

Listed:
  • Martin Gellerstedt

    (University West, School of Business, Economics and IT)

  • T. Arvemo

    (University West, School of Business, Economics and IT)

Abstract

Online user generated reviews are transforming business and customer behavior and could have a major impact on sales. The primary aim of this study was to measure the impact of online reviews in comparison with the impact of a good friend’s opinion. The question in focus was: to what extent could a single review made by a good friend compensate the opinion of the online majority? Subjects were randomly allocated to different versions of guest reviews of a fictive hotel: either constituting a positive or a negative online majority. After reading the reviews, respondents were asked about their booking intention. The respondents were also asked to re-evaluate booking intention given the additional information that a good friend has given a recommendation or an advice against booking the hotel. The study design was experimental and based on a survey which included 1319 respondents who were randomized to the different versions of guest reviews. The results showed that the overall valence of reviews is crucial for booking intention, also the latest two reviews were important even though the effect was much smaller. If the overall valence was negative the latest two reviews had no importance, no matter if these were positive or negative. But, if the overall valence was positive, then the booking intention could be diluted if the two latest reviews were negative. Concerning the primary aim of the study, it is concluded that a good friend’s word of mouth could outweigh the online majority. This means that a negative online majority could be outweigh by a good friend’s recommendation and that a positive online majority could be outweigh by a goods friend’s recommendation against booking the hotel.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin Gellerstedt & T. Arvemo, 2019. "The impact of word of mouth when booking a hotel: could a good friend’s opinion outweigh the online majority?," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 289-311, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:infott:v:21:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s40558-019-00143-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s40558-019-00143-4
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s40558-019-00143-4
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s40558-019-00143-4?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chrysanthos Dellarocas, 2006. "Strategic Manipulation of Internet Opinion Forums: Implications for Consumers and Firms," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 52(10), pages 1577-1593, October.
    2. Sparks, Beverley A. & So, Kevin Kam Fung & Bradley, Graham L., 2016. "Responding to negative online reviews: The effects of hotel responses on customer inferences of trust and concern," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 74-85.
    3. Orlikowski, Wanda J. & Scott, Susan V., 2015. "The algorithm and the crowd: considering the materiality of service innovation," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 57601, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Chris Forman & Anindya Ghose & Batia Wiesenfeld, 2008. "Examining the Relationship Between Reviews and Sales: The Role of Reviewer Identity Disclosure in Electronic Markets," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 19(3), pages 291-313, September.
    5. Viglia, Giampaolo & Abrate, Graziano, 2014. "How social comparison influences reference price formation in a service context," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 168-180.
    6. Filieri, Raffaele, 2016. "What makes an online consumer review trustworthy?," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 46-64.
    7. Phelps, Joseph E. & Lewis, Regina & Mobilio, Lynne & Perry, David & Raman, Niranjan, 2004. "Viral Marketing or Electronic Word-of-Mouth Advertising: Examining Consumer Responses and Motivations to Pass Along Email," Journal of Advertising Research, Cambridge University Press, vol. 44(4), pages 333-348, December.
    8. Wendy W. Moe & David A. Schweidel, 2012. "Online Product Opinions: Incidence, Evaluation, and Evolution," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 31(3), pages 372-386, May.
    9. Sparks, Beverley A. & Browning, Victoria, 2011. "The impact of online reviews on hotel booking intentions and perception of trust," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 1310-1323.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sharma, Mahak & Antony, Rose & Sehrawat, Rajat & Cruz, Angel Contreras & Daim, Tugrul U., 2022. "Exploring post-adoption behaviors of e-service users: Evidence from the hospitality sector /online travel services," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    2. Inmaculada Rabadán-Martín & Francisco Aguado-Correa & Nuria Padilla-Garrido, 2020. "Online reputation of 4- and 5-star hotels," Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of Rijeka, Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management, vol. 26(1), pages 157-172, June.
    3. Ali, Mazhar & Amir, Dr.Huma & Shamsi, Dr.Aamir, 2021. "Consumer Herding Behavior in Online Buying: A Literature Review," MPRA Paper 107435, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Liu, Jing & Li, Lingyue & He, Lingling & Ma, Xiaozhi & Yuan, Hongping, 2024. "Consumers or infrastructure firms? Who should the government subsidize to promote electric vehicle adoption when considering the indirect network and herd effects," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 163-176.
    5. Weizhao Huang & Jingna Wang & Jinbo Jiang & Jinwen Tang, 2021. "The role of procedural, financial and relational switching costs in the Chinese online hotel booking market: antecedents and consequences," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 439-470, September.
    6. Inmaculada Rabadán-Martín & Francisco Aguado-Correa & Nuria Padilla-Garrido, 2019. "Facing new challenges in rural tourism: signaling quality via website," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 21(4), pages 559-576, December.
    7. Gelashvili, Vera & Martínez-Navalón, Juan Gabriel & DeMatos, Nelson & de Brito Correia, Marisol, 2024. "Technological transformation: The importance of E-WOM and perceived privacy in the context of opinion platforms," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dipankar Das, 2022. "Measurement of Trustworthiness of the Online Reviews," Papers 2210.00815, arXiv.org, revised Nov 2023.
    2. Harrison-Walker, L. Jean & Jiang, Ying, 2023. "Suspicion of online product reviews as fake: Cues and consequences," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    3. Khim-Yong Goh & Cheng-Suang Heng & Zhijie Lin, 2013. "Social Media Brand Community and Consumer Behavior: Quantifying the Relative Impact of User- and Marketer-Generated Content," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 24(1), pages 88-107, March.
    4. Dominik Gutt & Jürgen Neumann & Steffen Zimmermann & Dennis Kundisch & Jianqing Chen, 2018. "Design of Review Systems - A Strategic Instrument to shape Online Review Behavior and Economic Outcomes," Working Papers Dissertations 42, Paderborn University, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics.
    5. Ketron, Seth, 2017. "Investigating the effect of quality of grammar and mechanics (QGAM) in online reviews: The mediating role of reviewer crediblity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 51-59.
    6. Theodoros Lappas & Gaurav Sabnis & Georgios Valkanas, 2016. "The Impact of Fake Reviews on Online Visibility: A Vulnerability Assessment of the Hotel Industry," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 27(4), pages 940-961, December.
    7. Young Joon Park & Jaewoo Joo & Charin Polpanumas & Yeujun Yoon, 2021. "“Worse Than What I Read?” The External Effect of Review Ratings on the Online Review Generation Process: An Empirical Analysis of Multiple Product Categories Using Amazon.com Review Data," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-22, September.
    8. Xitong Li, 2018. "Impact of Average Rating on Social Media Endorsement: The Moderating Role of Rating Dispersion and Discount Threshold," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 29(3), pages 739-754, September.
    9. Christoph Schneider & Markus Weinmann & Peter N.C. Mohr & Jan vom Brocke, 2021. "When the Stars Shine Too Bright: The Influence of Multidimensional Ratings on Online Consumer Ratings," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(6), pages 3871-3898, June.
    10. Jiang, Guoyin & Shang, Jennifer & Liu, Wenping & Feng, Xiaodong & Lei, Junli, 2020. "Modeling the dynamics of online review life cycle: Role of social and economic moderations," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 285(1), pages 360-379.
    11. Pera, Rebecca & Viglia, Giampaolo & Grazzini, Laura & Dalli, Daniele, 2019. "When empathy prevents negative reviewing behavior," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 265-278.
    12. Zhu, Yongmin & Liu, Miaomiao & Zeng, Xiaohua & Huang, Pei, 2020. "The effects of prior reviews on perceived review helpfulness: A configuration perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 484-494.
    13. Raffaele Filieri & Elisabetta Raguseo & Claudio Vitari, 2018. "When are extreme ratings more helpful? Empirical evidence on the moderating effects of review characteristics and product type," Post-Print halshs-01923243, HAL.
    14. Mingwen Yang & Zhiqiang (Eric) Zheng & Vijay Mookerjee, 2019. "Prescribing Response Strategies to Manage Customer Opinions: A Stochastic Differential Equation Approach," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 30(2), pages 351-374, June.
    15. S. Cicognani & P. Figini & M. Magnani, 2016. "Social Influence Bias in Online Ratings: A Field Experiment," Working Papers wp1060, Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Universita' di Bologna.
    16. Yabing Jiang & Hong Guo, 2015. "Design of Consumer Review Systems and Product Pricing," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 26(4), pages 714-730, December.
    17. King, Robert Allen & Racherla, Pradeep & Bush, Victoria D., 2014. "What We Know and Don't Know About Online Word-of-Mouth: A Review and Synthesis of the Literature," Journal of Interactive Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 167-183.
    18. Peiyu Chen & Lorin M. Hitt & Yili Hong & Shinyi Wu, 2021. "Measuring Product Type and Purchase Uncertainty with Online Product Ratings: A Theoretical Model and Empirical Application," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 32(4), pages 1470-1489, December.
    19. Akbari, Morteza & Foroudi, Pantea & Zaman Fashami, Rahime & Mahavarpour, Nasrin & Khodayari, Maryam, 2022. "Let us talk about something: The evolution of e-WOM from the past to the future," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 663-689.
    20. Raffaele Filieri & Elisabetta Raguseo & Claudio Vitari, 2018. "When are extreme ratings more helpful? Empirical evidence on the moderating effects of review characteristics and product type," Grenoble Ecole de Management (Post-Print) halshs-01923243, HAL.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:infott:v:21:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s40558-019-00143-4. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.