Do managerial communications improve customer satisfaction and eWOM? The moderating effect of response authenticity

Author:

Han SaramORCID,Anderson Christopher K.,Chung KyunghwaORCID

Abstract

AbstractAs customer reviews are becoming increasingly valued in the hotel industry, hotel managers are actively responding to customer reviews, and many researchers are investigating the effects of managerial responses. Previous studies, however, have mainly focused on open communication that takes place on social platforms or online travel agency (OTA) websites. Considerations about interaction contexts and specific response styles are also lacking. These limitations raise research questions, such as whether private interactions between managers and customers would be effective, whether the effect would differ between dissatisfied and satisfied customers, and what role the authenticity of managerial responses would play in these interactions. To address these questions, we investigated the effect of private managerial interactions. The effect of a managerial apology on customers’ future satisfaction, the effect of a managerial “thank you” on customers’ future electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), and the moderating effect of response style (i.e., personalization and length) were examined. We analyzed data from a customer satisfaction survey in which customers leave feedback after their stay and hotel managers respond to each customer personally via email. Our results reveal that a private managerial apology increases customers’ future satisfaction only when it is long or personalized. A private managerial “thank you” positively affects customers’ eWOM in the next period. This research provides empirical evidence for the effect of private managerial interactions, extending the existing discussions on the effect of managerial responses to the private digital communication context. This research contributes to the research areas of managerial response, service recovery, and digital communications.

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Subject

General Economics, Econometrics and Finance,General Psychology,General Social Sciences,General Arts and Humanities,General Business, Management and Accounting

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3