"The influence of User Generated Content on hotel room bookings"

Abstract

The presence of User Generated Content (UGC) in the online platforms of hotel room booking operators is changing the way consumers book a hotel room and the practices of management in the hotel industry. This study attempts to investigate the factors that impact the booking of hotel rooms. Accordingly, after a review of the technology acceptance models, we identify the variables that will be used to predict the performance of online hotel room bookings. Based on an online survey to 624 users of the website Booking.com, applied during March 2016, a linear regression model was built. The results show that attitude towards UGC and the perceived ease to use of UGC are important determinants in the decision making of the process of booking a hotel room. This result shows the relevance of UGC (ratings and reviews) for online booking operators, as UGC could influence the booking of a particular hotel room. Further, the result also brings important implications for hotel managers that pay less attention to the feedback of the customers.

Keywords: User-generated content; technology acceptance models: online booking; hotels management.

J. Freitas Santos

Susana Bernardino

José Cadima Ribeiro

André Freitas

[Resumo de comunicação apresentada no 58th ERSA Congress, subordinado genericamente ao tema ´Places for People: Innovative, Inclusive and Liveable Regions`, que decorreu na University College Cork, Cork, Irlanda, entre 28 e 21 de agosto de 2018]