Predicting hotel book intention: The influential role of helpfulness and advocacy of online reviews

Abstract

This article empirically examines and validates a research framework that gives key insights into the influential role played by salient characteristics of online reviews, namely helpfulness (how helpful a review is) and advocacy (whether the review explicitly approves or rejects the brand), on consumers’ attitude toward the review and the hotel about which the review is written. The subsequent effects of these attitudinal reactions are then examined on hotel booking intention in the presence of destination specific emotion as a moderator. Data collected from a sample of 362 individuals are analyzed using ANOVA and linear regression. Results reveal that review helpfulness and review advocacy have differential effects on consumers’ attitude toward the review and brand. Also, attitude toward the review positively affects brand attitude which subsequently affects consumers’ intention to book a hotel. Finally, destination emotion is found to affect the relationship between brand attitude and hotel booking intention positively.