The effect of online reviews on hotel booking intention: The role of reader-reviewer similarity |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 17 Science, Museum Road, TST East, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China;2. Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau, SAR, China;1. School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 West Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001, China;2. School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA;1. University of Central Florida, Rosen College of Hospitality Management, 9907 Universal Blvd, Orlando, FL 32819, United States;2. SEO/SMO Manager, Travel Click, United States;1. School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China;2. School of Hotel and Tourism Management, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong;1. Faculty of Business Administration, Centre for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, University of Macau, E22-3037, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR, China;2. Faculty of Business Administration, University of Macau, E22-G031, Avenida da Universidade, Taipa, Macau SAR, China;3. School of Hotel & Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 17 Science Museum, TST East, Kowloon, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;4. School of Tourism Management, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China;1. University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain;2. University of Reading, Reading, UK |
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| Abstract: | Due to the experiential nature of travel-related products, online reviews have become an increasingly popular information source in travel planning and have a profound effect on consumers’ buying decisions, particularly in hotel booking. On the basis of homophily and similarity-attraction theory, we posit that review valence is positively related to consumers’ hotel booking intentions, and expect this relationship to be moderated by surface- (demographic) and deep-level (preference) similarities. The findings from two experiments conducted in Germany and Macau indicate that review valence significantly affects hotel booking intention, and that reader-reviewer demographic similarity moderates this effect. This three-way interaction reveals a substituting moderation effect between demographic similarity and preference similarity. One practical implication is that travel websites should find methods of exposing users to reviews written by those with either similar demographic characteristics or preferences, which facilitate travelers’ decision-making processes. |
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| Keywords: | Review valence Booking intention Homophily theory Demographic and preference similarity |
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