The Influence of Negative Online Word-of-Mouth on Consumers’ Hotel Purchase Intention in China: taking TripAdvisor as an Example
Peng, Wensi (2017)
Turun ammattikorkeakoulu
2017
All rights reserved
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017091715165
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2017091715165
Tiivistelmä
Purpose: The aim of this research is to investigate the influence of negative e-WOM on Chinese consumers’ hotel purchase intention, taking TripAdvisor as an example.
Methodology: Questionnaire surveys were used to collect quantitative data. The respondents of the questionnaires should have some browsing experience on TripAdvisor. Questionnaires were collected online through a survey platform – Questionnaire Star. A total of 93 questionnaires were valid, and SPSS software was used for data analysis.
Findings: Chinese consumers believe that negative reviews should have some influence on their hotel purchase intentions. The five most influential factors are negative star rating, volumes of negative reviews, negative visual cues and reviewers’ expertise (e.g., their user level on TripAdvisor). They believe that reviewers can express their opinions freely online as a result of the anonymity system of TripAdvisor, which can improve the usefulness of these negative comments. When it comes to the volumes of negative comments, they believe that a moderate (30-50%) amount of negative reviews can be influential. However, the personal experience of the review readers, negative aspect of anonymity and the tie strength between the reviewers and review readers appears to have little effect on the influence of negative reviews on consumers’ hotel purchase intention. The research also found that youths (below 30) and high-education groups (with bachelor degree or higher) are more likely to be influenced by negative reviews than those middle-aged or low-education groups.
Research limitations: The sample size of this research is small (93), which might not be a representation of the characteristics of the entire population (i.e., all Chinese customers who have browsing experience on review websites such as TripAdvisor).
Methodology: Questionnaire surveys were used to collect quantitative data. The respondents of the questionnaires should have some browsing experience on TripAdvisor. Questionnaires were collected online through a survey platform – Questionnaire Star. A total of 93 questionnaires were valid, and SPSS software was used for data analysis.
Findings: Chinese consumers believe that negative reviews should have some influence on their hotel purchase intentions. The five most influential factors are negative star rating, volumes of negative reviews, negative visual cues and reviewers’ expertise (e.g., their user level on TripAdvisor). They believe that reviewers can express their opinions freely online as a result of the anonymity system of TripAdvisor, which can improve the usefulness of these negative comments. When it comes to the volumes of negative comments, they believe that a moderate (30-50%) amount of negative reviews can be influential. However, the personal experience of the review readers, negative aspect of anonymity and the tie strength between the reviewers and review readers appears to have little effect on the influence of negative reviews on consumers’ hotel purchase intention. The research also found that youths (below 30) and high-education groups (with bachelor degree or higher) are more likely to be influenced by negative reviews than those middle-aged or low-education groups.
Research limitations: The sample size of this research is small (93), which might not be a representation of the characteristics of the entire population (i.e., all Chinese customers who have browsing experience on review websites such as TripAdvisor).