scholarly journals Adopting interoperability solutions for online tourism distribution

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Reino ◽  
Aurkene Alzua-Sorzabal ◽  
Rodolfo Baggio
Keyword(s):  
Distribution Systems ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Evaluation Framework ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Global Distribution Systems ◽  
Tourism Enterprises ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
Business To Business ◽  
Micro Enterprises

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to identify the factors that make the adoption of interoperability solutions for online tourism distribution (OTD) more likely by small operators and to develop an evaluation framework for this solutions. Research identifying these determinants is missing. The resulting evaluation framework is then applied to evaluate a number of extant technological solutions focused on interoperability solutions for OTD. Design/methodology/approach – In an attempt to address this gap of research, this paper undertakes a series of interviews and focus groups of the European tourism industry. Findings – Findings partly aligned with the suggestion made by previous research about technology adoption by micro, small and medium tourism enterprises (SMTEs), they also highlighted some issues which are specific to the adoption of interoperability solutions for OTD. These related to the scarcity of information and communication technology (ICT) applications specifically designed for mini and micro enterprises, the very limited capabilities available for using efficiently ICTs in business-to-business (B2B) operations and the difficulty in collaborating with other companies due to the number of different solutions used in the industry, especially when dealing with large aggregators (global distribution systems (GDSs) or large online travel agencies) and lack of standardization for data. Research limitations/implications – The study has important theoretical implications. It provides a better understanding of issues affecting the adoption of interoperability solutions for OTD by SMTEs, such as the scarcity of ICT applications specifically designed for mini and micro enterprises, the very limited capabilities available for using ICTs efficiently in B2B operations and lack of standardization. Practical implications – It facilitates making decisions about adopting interoperability solutions for online distribution solutions, both by suppliers and destination managers. Originality/value – Limited work has focused on understanding issues affecting the adoption of interoperability solutions for OTD solutions among SMTEs.

Did the context of economic crisis affect the image of Portugal as a tourist destination?

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 466-469
Author(s):  
António Loureiro
Keyword(s):  
Economic Crisis ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Distribution Systems ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Tourist Destination ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Intrinsic Quality ◽  
Global Distribution Systems ◽  
Official Information

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to reflect on how Portugal has dealt with economic crisis with reference to the tourism industry and from the perspective of a global distribution systems (GDS) operator. Design/methodology/approach – The article is based on information drawn from official information sources and relevant data from Travelport. Findings – In recent years, Portugal has developed a positive image in its source markets as a result of a refined strategy and because of the intrinsic quality of its offer and price competitiveness, thus making it an attractive destination. Now the challenge is to maintain the pace and actions in support of Portugal’s image, thereby ensuring its sustainability, with particular attention to security and the maintenance and cleanliness of public spaces. Originality/value – This article presents the perspective of a GDS operator with respect to the impacts of the Portuguese economic crisis on tourism and the responses made to address these challenges, thereby highlighting the resilience of tour operators.

Curvilinear effects of e-loyalty in China’s online tourism industry

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xueyan Yang ◽  
Xiaoni Zhang ◽  
Samuel Goh ◽  
Chad Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Virtual World ◽  
Online Community ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Virtual Community ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Consumer Loyalty ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Travel Industry ◽  
Online Travel

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand e-loyalty in the travel industry. Specifically, this paper aims to examine the curvilinear relationship between predictors and e-loyalty. Design/methodology/approach An empirical study was conducted using an online survey with one of the largest travel companies in China. Structural equation modeling was used to test the models, and pair-wise nested F-tests were used to compare the models. Findings Results show that the curvilinear model has greater explanatory power of loyalty than traditional linear models. The results of pair-wise nested F-tests show that the loyalty model exhibits statistically significant R2 improvement compared to the linear model. However, the R2 improvement in the integrated model is not statistically different from that in the linear model. Confirmation and satisfaction are found to be salient factors influencing loyalty. Research limitations/implications This study makes important contributions to the online community literature by understanding the drivers of loyalty in the travel industry. However, there are limitations. First, this study addressed member loyalty of an online travel community with data collected from one company. Thus, generalizability is limited. Online communities and firms may have different characteristics, resulting in different factors influencing consumer loyalty. The authors plan in the future to collect data from other online travel companies and examine their model with different samples so as to check the generalizability of the current findings. Second, the authors collected a snapshot view on loyalty. Both researchers and managers note that small changes in loyalty and retention can yield disproportionately large changes in profitability (Reichheld et al., 2000). Consumer loyalty may change over time, so to maintain and increase profits, it is important to monitor such change. In the future, the authors plan to conduct a longitudinal study of community members to evaluate their loyalty over time. Practical implications As China seeks to gain additional market share in the global tourism market, travel companies should make use of websites as a marketing tool to attract and retain customers. These actions enable a travel company to enhance its competitiveness. More and more people use the internet for tour deals, bookings and finding tour-related information. Effective use of websites can affect the competitiveness of ecommerce companies. E-vendors could assess and adopt the dimensions recommended in this paper to help better understand areas for improvement. It is common today for consumers to buy travel products online instead of going through a travel agent. Considering the importance of reciprocity in formulating consumer satisfaction and loyalty in the virtual environment, companies should monitor reciprocal behavior on the virtual community. With advancement in technologies, consumer behaviors have changed and more consumers prefer social interactions in the virtual world. Companies can analyze posts in the virtual environment to assess reciprocity and may design a mechanism to foster reciprocal behaviors. By leveraging reciprocity, firms can better connect satisfaction with loyalty. More than 70 per cent of executives surveyed by McKinsey (2012) said that they regularly generate value through their Web communities. In addition, to pay attention to consumer to consumer reciprocity in the virtual world, companies should listen to what customers say in their online community, as this attention is an indication of reciprocity between consumers and companies. The ideas and opinions expressed in the online community tell the company customers’ perception of the value of its products and customers’ needs. Such attention to the voices in the online community will help companies to better tailor products/services to meet customers’ needs. Furthermore, the voices expressed in the virtual community are also effective in developing and maintaining new internet marketing opportunities such as email marketing, giveaways, search engine optimization, pay per click and shopping comparison marketing. Companies interested in retaining and attracting customers should leverage their established virtual communities and pay close attention to online posts and evaluate members’ satisfaction. Such effort will provide tangible benefits. As shown in Ye et al.’s study, traveler reviews produce a significant impact on online sales (Ye et al., 2011), with a 10 per cent increase in traveler review ratings, boosting online bookings by more than 5 per cent. This finding suggests that businesses should link online user-generated reviews to business performance in tourism. Finding incentives for users to share might be one way to improve interactivity and further create stickiness on the part of the website. Originality/value This paper is one of the first studies to address the need to move beyond linear models of e-loyalty and to additionally examine potential curvilinear and interactive effects. This study also identifies key variables such as reciprocity and satisfaction as determinants of e-loyalty in the Chinese online travel and tourism industry.

scholarly journals The effect of novel coronavirus pandemic on tourism share prices

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Venus Khim-Sen Liew
Keyword(s):  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Rapid Decline ◽  
Business Services ◽  
Early Effect ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Share Prices ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Online Travel ◽  
Airline Tickets

Purpose This paper aims to provide swift feedback to readers and investors on the early effect of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak on tourism industry. Design/methodology/approach Three leading consolidators of hotel accommodations, airline tickets and travel services in the tourism industry around the globe, namely, Booking Holdings Inc., Expedia Group and Trip.com Group Ltd. are chosen in this study. First, numerical description is performed on their shares prices and a set of control variables to compare their performances before and during the lockdown because of COVID-19 outbreak. Next, this paper estimates ordinary least squares models with and without exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedastic specification to establish the nature, significance and magnitude of the pandemic’s early effect on the shares performance of these online travel companies (OTCs). Findings This paper discovers a rapid decline in the performance of tourism industry amid the pandemic outbreak, from the perspective of three leading OTCs, which derive their profits from tourists by providing them online hotel reservation, air-ticketing and packaged-tour business services around the globe. These significant adverse direct and indirect effects testify that tourism-related businesses are extensively locked down by the pandemic outbreak. Research limitations/implications Future studies are encouraged to examine each of the tourism sectors for individual effects. Practical implications This paper provides implications for investors to protect their wealth, and for policymakers to ensure sustainability of tourism industry in the pandemic outbreak and in the future. Originality/value From the perspective of corporate finance, this paper empirically quantifies the early effect of COVID-19 on tourism industry for a quick snapshot.

scholarly journals Leveraging inter-tourists interactions via chatbots to bridge academia, tourism industries and future societies

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Davide Calvaresi ◽  
Ahmed Ibrahim ◽  
Jean-Paul Calbimonte ◽  
Emmanuel Fragniere ◽  
Roland Schegg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Proof Of Concept ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Tourism Sector ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Tourism And Hospitality ◽  
Multi Stakeholder

PurposeThe tourism and hospitality sectors are experiencing radical innovation boosted by the advancements in Information and Communication Technologies. Increasingly sophisticated chatbots are introducing novel approaches, re-shaping the dynamics among tourists and service providers, and fostering a remarkable behavioral change in the overall sector. Therefore, the objective of this paper is two-folded: (1) to highlight the academic and industrial standing points with respect to the current chatbots designed/deployed in the tourism sector and (2) to develop a proof-of-concept embodying the most prominent opportunities in the tourism sector.Design/methodology/approachThis work elaborates on the outcomes of a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and a Focus Group (FG) composed of experts from the tourism industry. Moreover, it presents a proof-of-concept relying on the outcomes obtained from both SLR and FG. Eventually, the proof-of-concept has been tested with experts and practitioners of the tourism sector.FindingsAmong the findings elicited by this paper, we can mention the quick evolution of chatbot-based solutions, the need for continuous investments, upskilling, system innovation to tackle the eTourism challenges and the shift toward new dimensions (i.e. tourist-to-tourist-to-chatbot and personalized multi-stakeholder systems). In particular, we focus on the need for chatbot-based activity and thematic aggregation for next-generation tourists and service providers.Originality/valueBoth academic- and industrial-centered findings have been structured and discussed to foster the practitioners' future research. Moreover, the proof-of-concept presented in the paper is the first of its kind, which raised considerable interest from both technical and business-planning perspectives.

scholarly journals Modern marketing technologies as a factor of increasing competitiveness of tourism enterprises

2020 ◽  
pp. 104-108
Author(s):  
O. V. Shpyrnya ◽  
E. Y. Globa ◽  
V. A. Dragina ◽  
V. I. Miroshnichenko
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Competitive Advantages ◽  
Tourism Product ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Tourism Enterprises ◽  
Tourism Services ◽  
Modern Technologies

Promotion of a tourism product and individual tourism services today is impossible without the use of modern marketing technologies. Their application is currently the key to the competitiveness of the tourism industry enterprises in the tourism services market. The article notes the penetration of various technological innovations in the activities of tourist enterprises, the development of information and communication technologies and the digitalization of marketing communications with the internal and external environment. The specifics of the formation of unique competitive advantages of the tourism industry enterprises is considered. Attention is focused on the need to demonstrate the main achievements, the uniqueness of the services provided on the website of the tourism industry enterprise. It is noted that the use of modern marketing technologies should not imply a rejection of classical methods of promotion. It is proposed to use an integrated approach that allows you to most effectively combine the provisions of classical marketing and the potential of modern technologies.

Online Competition in the Distribution Chain

2019 ◽  
pp. 133-143
Author(s):  
Patricia Vieira ◽  
Emese Panyik
Keyword(s):  
Distribution Systems ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Travel Agency ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Travel Agents ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Travel Agencies ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Distribution Chain ◽  
Global Distribution Systems

Until recently, travel agents have been the principal intermediary between travel suppliers and consumers, with information as their primary trade. However, changes to information and communication technology (ICT) and the beginning of the internet have the potential to allow travel suppliers and consumers to interact directly. Today, consumer websites that integrate global distribution systems (GDSs) are no longer only an emerging threat but show fierce global competition between travel agencies and tour operators worldwide. Subsequently, one of the most pertinent questions today is how local, small-scale travel agencies respond to these market changes and what practices do they use to maintain their comparative advantage and offer competitive services? However, despite the relevancy of this issue, literature is generally scarce on travel agency strategies to confront the competition of consumer websites. Thus, in order to address this question, this article provides an analysis on the advantages and disadvantages of new technologies are available to travel agencies and strategies and practices that travel agencies can use to compete with websites.

Holism and social responsibility for tourism enterprise governance

Kybernetes ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (3/4) ◽  
pp. 394-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tjaša Štrukelj ◽  
Metod Šuligoj
Keyword(s):  
Social Responsibility ◽  
Systems Theory ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Theoretical Research ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Policy Governance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Tourism Enterprises ◽  
Governance Innovation ◽  
Enterprise Policy

Purpose – This paper strives for stressing the need for tourism enterprises' (TEs') policy/governance innovation towards more social responsibility for stimulating their competitiveness. The purpose is to develop suggested content-related guidelines for developing social responsible TE policy and to show the practical implementation guidance for implementation of the theoretical research. According to the authors' knowledge, this has not yet been researched in the field of tourism industry (TIN). Design/methodology/approach – The MER model of integral management has been upgraded by Mulej's Dialectical Systems Theory. The authors considered all relevant and only the essential aspects needed for a requisitely holistic approach towards developing the guidelines for innovating the TEs' policy/governance. Findings – Innovation of TEs' policy/governance is possible only with the requisitely holistic and dialectical approach. TEs that will be able to track the suggested guidelines of tourism policy/governance innovation towards holism, systemic thinking, social responsibility, and sustainable tourism are more likely to succeed. Therefore, the stimulating of competitiveness and innovation of the TIN can be achieved through enterprises' policy/governance innovation that the authors suggested. Practical implications – The TEs can establish socially (and otherwise) responsible enterprise policy/governance in accordance with the recommendations developed here. Originality/value – The given suggestions are not known in available literature. The paper exposes the need for holism and consistency of TEs' development potential and interdependently examines the overlaying areas of TEs' policy/governance, social responsibility, and holism/wholeness. The Dialectical Systems Theory systemic approach exposes the need to innovate enterprise policy/governance, if humankind is to survive.

Exploring relationship variables and Information and Communication Technologies use in industrial segmentation

2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (7) ◽  
pp. 1441-1459 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Fuentes-Blasco ◽  
Beatriz Moliner-Velázquez ◽  
Irene Gil-Saura
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Context ◽  
Perceived Trust ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
Information And Communication ◽  
Business To Business

Purpose In tourism, the adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (hereinafter ICT) and variables concerning firms’ links with suppliers have been recognized as key determinants to improve companies’ competitiveness. From the perspective of efficient management of company resources, segmentation has become a key tool and is particularly significant and current in the business-to-business context. The purpose of this paper is to study the segmentation of firms in the tourist industry according to perceived ICT use and relationship value and benefits. In addition, from the management approach, the authors seek to describe the segments that enable the development of differentiated strategies aimed at consolidating relationship benefits in the long term. Design/methodology/approach Using a sample of 310 travel agencies who evaluated the relationship with their main supplier, the authors attempt to examine the utility of these variables as segmentation criteria for identifying heterogeneous groups. Findings The estimation of a finite mixture model suggests that these bases are able to discriminate firms into four latent segments with different levels of ICT use and relationship variables. Research limitations/implications This research contributes to the understanding of the role that ICT and relationship variables have in the segmentation processes of tourism companies. Literature on segmentation in the business-to-business (B2B) context is limited and it is hard to find studies which apply latent methodology using behavioral criteria related to the use of ICT and relationship variables. Practical implications Segmentation of the tourism organizational market based on valuations of supplier relations and ICT use can help suppliers to design or adapt differentiation marketing strategies. Since agencies place the most value on confidence and value, tourism service suppliers should focus their efforts on improving the elements of service provision that increase perceived trust/confidence and value (i.e. growing the number of contacts, proximity to customers or sincerity, etc.). If agencies feel they can rely more on their providers, they will value their relationship more positively thereby favoring its long-term continuity. Originality/value The novelty in this work lies in the application of latent segmentation methodology and the simultaneous use of bases associated with ICT and relationship variables in B2B tourism.

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