Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

Khaldoon “Khal” Nusair; Nan Hua; Xu Li

2010 Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

doi: 10.1108/17579881011065029

Purpose – The paper aims to develop a theory‐based model of relationship commitment in an online travel domain. The model seeks to explain in detail the antecedents and outcomes of commitment. Design/methodology/approach – An extensive review of relationship marketing and commitment literature helps to develop a model of commitment. Findings – A model is developed based on existing literature. Quality of alternatives, investment size, satisfaction and trust are antecedents of both calculative and affective commitment. Two dimensions of commitment have different impact on word‐of‐mouth communications. Practical implications – Given the intense competition among online travel agents, the proposed model can be used by e‐vendors to develop and maintain long‐term relationships with customers. Originality/value – Commitment has been studied as a unidimensional construct in existing marketing relationship literature. Few research studies relating to this topic have been conducted in online travel context. This paper incorporates two dimensions of commitment in a business‐to‐customer travel setting.

Charis Marentakis; Dimitrios Emiris

2010 Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

doi: 10.1108/17579881011065038

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a conceptual architecture for the development of an auction business‐to‐consumer marketplace where sellers offer available resources and services aiming to maximize their revenue while on‐the‐move travelers bid for them subject to the geographical area they are located in. Design/methodology/approach – Based on previous findings from the literature and aggregate results from a preliminary field survey, core communication requirements, marketplace architecture, and communication workflows are presented. Findings – Findings from the literature and field study exhibit a great potential for the successful use of location sensitive auction applications in tourism sector. Mobile auctions seem attractive for the efficient allocation and pricing of travel resources by abolishing the internet's barriers related to travelers computing requirements; furthermore, location‐based services (LBS) may reduce significantly the communication costs for sellers. The proposed marketplace is beneficial for a number of stakeholders beyond sellers, like auctioneer, mobile communications providers, and LBS providers. Research limitations/implications – The proposed architecture is in conceptual form and is currently under development. Infrastructure issues (like communication load, required bandwidth and protocol) are being investigated. Future research will focus on the integration of the architecture in an extended multi‐provider environment forming virtual enterprises. The viability and acceptance of the proposed model should be further investigated through an extended detailed market survey. Originality/value – To the authors' best knowledge it is the first attempt to propose a location‐sensitive auction marketplace for tourism services.

Maria‐Eugenia Ruiz‐Molina; Irene Gil‐Saura; Beatriz Moliner‐Velázquez

2010 Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

doi: 10.1108/17579881011065047

Purpose – In the context of relationship marketing, it is highly important for providers to identify the main buyer relational benefits influencing satisfaction and loyalty so that a continuous and satisfactory business relationship is guaranteed. Since it has been reported that information technology (IT) might constitute a source of satisfaction or dissatisfaction, this paper aims to test the moderating role of IT in the relationships between perceived benefits, satisfaction and loyalty in a business‐to‐business (B2B) setting. Design/methodology/approach – A structural equations model was empirically tested. Additionally, the moderating role of IT in the relationships between perceived relational benefits, buyer satisfaction and loyalty towards the main supplier was tested through a multi‐sample analysis. Findings – The results show that IT contributes to strengthen the link between satisfaction and loyalty. In contrast, the relationship between social benefits and buyer satisfaction is only observed for suppliers with low technological intensity. Practical implications – While IT helps suppliers to turn satisfied customers into loyal customers, it hinders the relationship between social benefits and buyer satisfaction. Therefore, a series of recommendations on the use of IT solutions by service providers are proposed. Originality/value – Although relational benefits have been studied in the scope of tourism companies in their relationships with end customers, there is still little evidence in the context of B2B relationships. This paper sheds additional light on this issue as well as analyzing the impact of IT on these relationships.

Christos Tatsiopoulos; Basilis Boutsinas

2010 Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

doi: 10.1108/17579881011065056

Purpose – The paper aims to present an approach for services in the domain of tourism based on a software application in the area of ontology engineering, showing a methodology for intelligent knowledge‐based P2P networks creation, in the tourism knowledge domain, given that, potential tourists share and organize their experiences, interests and knowledge. Using the proposed software application, they automatically exchange their knowledge, with an intelligent and transparent way, with other users that have the same or similar interests and make use of it. Design/methodology/approach – The approach followed was categorizing tourism‐related interests and services into ontologies (system and user), then comparing them, using intelligent algorithms, suggesting new, unknown to the user, interests. The data were evaluated by experts in order to provide a guide for correct (according to the expert) interestingness of profile concepts. Findings – The paper presents the outcomes of the software used, running on mobile devices, showing the connection for them, among user knowledge profiles and tourism services. It has been found that the return results (concepts) are of high interestingness to the user. Research limitations/implications – Experiments have been performed with one central ontology, used as reference and two user ontologies at the same time. The authors would suggest more experimentation, with more users connected concurrently. Practical implications – Of high practical importance is the creation of intelligent social networking processes and user communities based on interests for further e‐commerce activities, based on a semantic framework. Originality/value – The paper fulfils the need for intelligent interaction and distribution of knowledge and content to users in an autonomous way, anywhere.

Yong Joong Kim; Murat Hancer

2010 Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology

doi: 10.1108/17579881011065065

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine knowledge management resource inputs that affect organizational effectiveness in the restaurant industry. Design/methodology/approach – The target population of this paper was restaurant employees. Data were collected using online surveys. Data analysis for this paper included frequency table, t ‐test, one‐way ANOVA, and multiple regression analysis. Findings – The paper finds knowledge management resource inputs influence organizational effectiveness in a restaurant. The results reveal that the significant knowledge management resource inputs that affected organizational effectiveness were information technology, incentive, and a knowledge sharing culture. Information technology turns out to be the most important input followed by incentive and a knowledge sharing culture to improve organizational effectiveness. Research limitations/implications – First, data collection from self‐repot surveys can threaten the validity of the paper. Second, this paper did not take into account the role of all possible resource factors relevant for organizational effectiveness. Future research should examine how other factors, such as leadership, influence organizational effectiveness. Practical implications – The overall practical implication of the findings is that to achieve high‐organizational effectiveness, restaurant operators first need to establish distinctive strategies in how they use knowledge management resource inputs. Originality/value – The paper contributes to the theoretical development of knowledge management by examining how inputs from knowledge management resources are being put to use in the restaurant industry.