The influence of tourists' expectations on purchase intention: Linking marketing strategy for low-cost airlines

Drawing on an integrated framework of marketing strategy, this study develops and tests a novel perspective for low-cost airline tourists that explicates the critical attributes of service quality through which Corporate Reputation (CR) and Word of Mouth (WOM) are associated with purchase intention. The study also examines the buffering role of empathy in tourists' purchase decision making processes. In a sample of 535 international and domestic tourists, this study found service quality to be related to increased purchase intention by boosting tourists' positive evaluations for airlines' corporate reputations and word of mouth received from other tourists. Additionally, the results demonstrated a positive correlation quality of service and WOM, depending on tourists' levels of empathy. Specifically, they suggested that WOM was positively related to purchase intention when high levels of empathy from tourists were perceived for the low-cost airline.     

The effect of community attachment on cultural festival visitors' satisfaction and future intentions

This paper explores the characteristics of multicultural festival visitors on the basis of their attachment to a certain culture or a cultural community, and examines the influences of this attachment on levels of overall satisfaction and future intentions. Two distinctive types of visitors to cultural festivals are recognised based on their attachment to the culture of the festival. A total of 420 valid questionnaires from three multicultural festivals in Korea were collected. This study found that community attachment, defined as an attachment to a certain culture or a cultural community, had significant impacts on intention to revisit and positive word-of-mouth (WOM). Visitors who are attached to an ethnic culture or a cultural community are more likely to revisit and spread positive WOM than people who are not attached. The paper concludes that community attachment influences cultural festival visitors' future intentions, and can be used as a predictor of the relationship between satisfaction and future intentions. From the results of the study, strategic marketing and management implications, based on community attachment, are suggested to increase repeat visitation and attract more visitors through positive WOM.     

Big mountain,big name: globalised relations of risk in Himalayan mountaineering

The paper explores how visitors' perception of a destination's heritage management affects satisfaction with actual visits to the sites and overall perception of the destination's cultural image, using Macao as the case setting. The study will also look at how site visit satisfaction influences the intention to revisit and recommend to others. The findings indicated that perception of the quality of heritage interpretation was significantly associated with destination cultural image and site visit satisfaction. However, associations between site visit satisfaction and intention to revisit and recommend were weak. The findings also led to a discussion on whether the labels ‘cultural’ versus ‘non-cultural’ tourists remain stable over time.     

Influence of perceived service fairness on relationship quality and switching intention: an empirical study of restaurant experiences

Restaurants and dining out are an important part of the tourism industry and are a major business in their own right. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between perceived service fairness, relationship quality, and switching intention in fine dining restaurants. Data were collected through a convenience sampling method from 164 customers from only fine dining restaurants in the northern region of West Malaysia (Kedah, Perak, Penang, and Perlis States). Unlike all previous studies which have focused exclusively on the role of justice in service failure and recovery, this study considers all-inclusive service delivery contexts. The results of this study showed that all the dimensions of perceived service fairness have a significant relationship with switching intention. In addition, perceived service fairness has a positive relationship with trust in all dimensions except for outcome fairness. Moreover, the results found that among the perceived service fairness dimensions, only procedural fairness and interactional fairness had a positive relationship with commitment and price fairness; outcome fairness was not related to commitment. Finally, the results confirmed the negative and significant relationship between relationship quality (trust and commitment) on switching intention. Managerial implications of these findings are briefly discussed.     

How airline service quality determines the quantity of repurchase intention - Mediate and moderate effects of brand quality and perceived value

Drawing on an integrated framework of service quality theory, this study develops and demonstrates a mediation-moderation model of airline service quality that influences the repurchase intentions of passengers. This model associates service quality with individual behavioral and perception—brand awareness and perceived values and examines the buffering role of brand attractiveness and experience in the decision-making processes. In a sample of 451 passengers, somewhat as expected, airline service quality enhances the positive effect of repurchase intention on airline company service because it fosters a positive link between brand awareness and perceived value. Unsurprisingly, brand attractiveness and memorable brand experiences are found to strengthen the positive effect of brand awareness and perceived value. Several alternative models were used to check the robustness of our findings. Patterns of moderated mediation modeling for theoretical and empirical implications are discussed.     

The impact of social media and offline influences on consumer behaviour. An analysis of the low-cost airline industry

This study analyses the impact of social media as well as offline environments upon tourist online purchase and recommendation behaviour of low-cost airline services. Drawing on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), this research considers the effect of offline social influences (interpersonal and external influences) and analyses online Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C) information exchanges as a driver of customer attitude towards online purchases. We propose that these factors improve online repurchase intentions and positive word-of-mouth communication (WOM and e-WOM) in low-cost settings. Using structural equation modelling, the conceptual model is tested with a sample of 441 Spanish Internet buyers of low-cost airline services. Interpersonal offline influences (e.g. friends, relatives, and family) have a significant effect on online repurchase intentions and WOM but do not affect e-WOM. External offline influences (e.g. media and experts), however, only affect consumer intentions to recommend future purchases of low-cost airline services on social networking travel sites and have no effect on online repurchase intentions or WOM. Findings also show that online C2C information exchanges influence attitude which, in turn, has a significant effect on repurchase intentions WOM and e-WOM.     

The impact of service quality and price on passengers' loyalty towards low-cost airlines: The Southeast Asia perspective

The objective of this study is to examine the impact of service quality by adopting AIRQUAL model and price on passengers' loyalty through the linkage of passengers' satisfaction toward low-cost airlines from the perspective of Southeast Asia. With 200 questionnaires analyzed, the results suggest that service quality and price have a positive significant impact on passenger satisfaction, and as a result lead to passengers’ loyalty. Besides, the findings of this research also confirm the mediating role of customer satisfaction between service quality and loyalty, price and loyalty separately, which implies that customer satisfaction is a vital factor for an LCCs to survive in such a highly competitive aviation market.     

Customer perspective on overbooking: The failure of customers to enjoy their reserved services,accidental or intended?

Overbooking is widely applied in the service industry to hedge against undesirable situations, such as cancellations and no-shows. However, during the implementation of overbooking, service providers may turn down some customers when the number of arrivals exceeds their capacity on the target date. Therefore, this paper examines overbooking from the customers' perspective to offer them a clear perception on the possibility for their reservations to be denied by the service provider. By establishing a Stackelberg model between a service provider and an online travel agency, we explore how optimal overbooking strategy is developed by the service provider. Afterward, by analyzing the obtained optimal overbooking pad, we calculate the probabilities of denied service under different levels of monetary compensation that is paid to denied customers. A higher monetary compensation guarantees a higher chance of successful service. This paper also provides customers with some reference when booking services.     

Up in Smoke? The Impact of Smog on Risk Perception and Satisfaction of International Tourists in Beijing

This research explored the perceptions of on‐site international tourists towards the smog in Beijing. A scale measuring the degree of tourists' concern about smog conditions was developed. The links among smog concern, risk perception, trip satisfaction and destination loyalty were tested with a structural equation model. Direct relationships were found for the hypothesized effects of smog concern on risk perception and satisfaction. Further, the influence of risk perception on reducing satisfaction as well as the role of satisfaction in forming revisit intention (loyalty) was identified. The broad concerns of this study are applicable across all key Chinese tourism cities visited by international tourists. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Value-of-time distributions and competitive bus services

The effect of value-of-time (VOT) distributions on price and quality competition among differentiated bus services in a simple corridor is investigated. Three travel modes are considered: private car; higher-quality, higher-fare minibuses; and lower-fare, lower-quality conventional buses. With a given continuous distribution of VOT, users are assumed to minimize individual generalized trip cost and divide themselves among the three travel modes that are differentiated in travel time and monetary cost. Competitive equilibrium is established in terms of each bus firm's optimal frequency and optimal fare; also, the profitability of the two types of bus service is examined.     

Assessing the effects of perceived value (utilitarian and hedonic) in LCCs and FSCs: Evidence from South Korea

In the airline industry, passengers choose and buy service based on their perception of which airline delivers better value. Thus, it is important to compare two types of airlines, Low Cost Carriers (LCCs) and Full Service Carriers (FSCs), to measure how much their product or service is worth and the effect of perceived value on passengers' purchase decisions. This study examined the relationship between perceived value, satisfaction, and purchase intention in both FSCs and LCCs. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were performed for data analysis. Our findings reveal that passenger satisfaction in LCCs is affected by hedonic value and utilitarian value, but passengers' future purchase intention is not dependent on satisfaction even when passengers are satisfied. In FSCs, moreover, utilitarian value is not a significant factor for satisfaction and purchase intention. This research provides implications for airline marketers and directions for future research.     

Supply chain network competition in price and quality with multiple manufacturers and freight service providers

In this paper, we develop both static and dynamic supply chain network models with multiple manufacturers and freight service providers competing on price and quality. The manufacturers compete with one another in terms of price and quality of the product manufactured, whereas the freight service providers compete on price and quality of the transportation service they provide for multiple modes. Both manufacturers and freight service providers maximize their utilities (profits) while considering the consequences of the competitors’ prices and quality levels. Bounds on prices and quality levels are included that have relevant policy-related implications. The governing equilibrium conditions of the static model are formulated as a variational inequality problem. The underlying dynamics are then described, with the stationary point corresponding to the variational inequality solution. An algorithm which provides a discrete-time adjustment process and tracks the evolution of the quality levels and prices over time is proposed, and convergence results given. Numerical examples illustrate how such a supply chain network framework, which is relevant to products ranging from high value to low value ones, can be applied in practice.     

A Structural Model for Examining how Destination Image,Perceived Value,and Service Quality Affect Destination Loyalty: a Case Study of Orlando

The primary objectives of this study were to investigate and develop a theoretical relationship among destination image, service quality and perceived value and to empirically test the constructs that are likely to affect tourist satisfaction, which in turn influence revisit intentions and word‐of‐mouth referrals. The results of empirical study indicated that destination image influences service quality and perceived value. In addition, the findings revealed that perceived value has a significant effect on satisfaction and loyalty. These research findings contribute to an extant knowledge in this domain, specifically focused on a family‐oriented destination where it was not studied yet with these relationships. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Judging a book by it's cover: the relationship between service and safety quality in US national and regional airlines

The general public perception is that service quality among US airlines has declined significantly since deregulation, however, there is continuing debate among experts on the effect of deregulation on safety quality. Unlike safety quality, service quality is more visible to the traveling public. It is not clear, however, whether service quality is a good indicator of safety quality. We addressed this issue by examining the service and safety quality of 20 US regional carriers for 1991–1997. Service and safety rates were calculated for each carrier. Then carriers were ranked on service and safety quality. Spearman's rho correlations were calculated on these lists. The results indicate that for four of these seven years the Spearman's rho was significant indicating that service quality is an excellent indicator of overall safety quality among US national and regional carriers.     

Taiwanese Cruise Tourist Behavior during Different Phases of Experience

This study examined the influences on the decisions and experiences of Taiwanese cruise tourists during different phases of leisure experience. The study results demonstrated that trip price and duration were the two main influences on tourist decisions during the anticipation phase of planning their trip. During the on‐site experience phase, the determinants of tourist reasons for using different services during their cruise varied. Notably, price only slightly influenced total tourist satisfaction and re‐purchase intention during the recollection phase, whereas service quality exerted a major influence. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Modelling user perception of bus transit quality

This article evaluates how bus users perceive the quality of their public transport service. In particular it looks at how perception of quality varies according to the available information. The experiment compares an overall evaluation of service quality before and after making passengers reflect on the importance of certain fundamental system variables which they may not have previously considered.Focus groups were used to individualise the most relevant variables. A quality survey was carried out both on-board buses and at bus stops and the overall service quality was related to the aforementioned variables using ordered probit models. The perception of quality is shown to change with the category of user and that there tends to be more criticism towards variations in overall quality until the users are stimulated into thinking more deeply about other influential variables. The application of this methodology may provide operating companies with valuable information for planning marketing policies aimed at different categories of user, in order to improve the service quality and attract more passengers to using public transport.     

Lowest price guarantees on airline websites: Perceived believability,perceived value,and purchase intentions

Although lowest price guarantees (LPGs) are common on airlines’ official websites, a deeper understanding of how customers evaluate these guarantees is lacking. This study examines the effects of two LPG terms—depth of refund and refund conditions—on customer perceptions and purchase intention. An experiment with a 2 × 2 factorial design was conducted with a sample of 282 adults, and structural equation modelling was used to test the model. The results show that refund depth increases customer purchase intention by enhancing perceptions of the believability and value of the LPG. Strict refund conditions enhance customer purchase intention by increasing the believability of the LPGs.     

A dynamic panel analysis of urban metro demand

A dynamic panel model is used to estimate the effect that fares, income and quality of service have on demand for a sample of 22 urban metros. The estimated price elasticity is −0.05 in the short run and −0.33 in the long run. The estimated long run income elasticity is small but positive (0.18), indicating that metros are perceived as normal goods. The quality of service elasticities are positive and substantially higher than the absolute value of fare elasticities. The implication is that quality of service improvements, rather than fare reductions, may be more effective in increasing metro patronage.     

Slow-food-seeking behaviour,authentic experience,and perceived slow value of a slow-life festival

This study examines the antecedents and consequences of perceived “slow” value in a structural model – specifically, the role authenticity plays for visitors who seek slow food and participate in slow-life-related programme activities. Data were collected from participants in a slow-life festival in South Korea. Results show that slow-food-seeking behaviour has a significant effect on the authentic experience, and both concepts affect the perception of “slow” value of the event. Attitude and the intention to revisit were significant consequences of “slow” value. This study extends the knowledge about tourist behaviour in slow-life-related activities, particularly in a non-Western context, and suggests that a slow-life-related event should consider visitors’ preference for slow food and a programme that stages authentic experiences.     

Perception and attitude of Hong Kong hotel guest‐contact employees towards tourists from Mainland China

In recent years, the majority of arrivals to Hong Kong, which were once dominated by the Western and Japanese markets, were replaced by arrivals from Mainland China. The number of tourists from Mainland China has overtaken others to become the largest single market for the territory. With its increasing significance, providing quality service to these visitors becomes crucial to the success of the tourism industry and of the hotel industry in particular. Unfortunately, the satisfaction rating of the Mainland visitors on hotel services in Hong Kong is reported to be relatively low when compared to those given by other major markets. It is suspected that the perception and attitudes of the service staff may influence their behaviour in serving customers. As such, this study conducted a survey questionnaire with 228 guest‐contact employees of hotels in Hong Kong. Results indicate that most respondents have a fairly positive perception towards the Mainland tourists in relation to the economic and financial benefits that they bring to Hong Kong. However, a majority of the respondents express negative perception and attitudes towards these tourists in respect to their appearance, personalities and behaviour. Despite some respondents indicating that they exhibit different service behaviour towards visitors from Mainland China and other countries, no major significant differences in their perception and attitudes were found in this study. It is recommended that various types of cross‐cultural training, such as sensitivity training and role playing, would be helpful to guest‐contact employees in enhancing their ability to be more objective and more tolerant of other people's behaviour. This study concludes that hotel employees, especially those who work as front‐line staff, must remain aware of their subjective judgments when dealing with guests and be more accepting of others. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.