Online Consumer Reviews Adoption in Tourism Analysis of review usefulness and consumer susceptibility to influence

Abstract

Consumers today rely more on online consumer reviews (OCRs) for their purchases than seller provided information. However, neither all the OCRs are equally useful nor all the consumers are equally receptive to these reviews; necessitating the study of factors affecting the adoption of OCRs. This study investigated the impact of message related and the consumer related crucial factors on OCRs adoption in tourism. A survey was conducted to collect data from 630 tourists visiting various tourist destinations in the district Swat of Khyber-pahtunkhwa province in Pakistan. The collected data were analyzed by applying structural equation modeling techniques in the Smart PLS 4 software. Results of the data analysis revealed that Information credibility of the OCRs has direct as well as indirect (Via information usefulness) impact on the consumer information adoption. Information quality impact on the information usefulness found to be insignificant; however its impact on the information adoption was significant. Consumer susceptibility to informational influence moderates the relationship between information credibility and information adoption as well the relationship between the information usefulness and the information adoption. The study has implications for the theory and practice of social media marketing in the tourism and hospitality sectors.

Keywords: Social media marketing, online consumer reviews, Information usefulness Information adoption, Susceptibility to informational influence.

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23570563