Negative Word of Mouse in the Hotel Industry

What is it about?

The main objective of this study is to identify the nature of e-complaints directed at luxury hotels in Jordan. For this purpose, a content analysis was conducted based on 424 negative reviews posted for these hotels on the User-Generated Content (UGC) travel website TripAdvisor. The study found that the most frequent e-complaints were about service quality, the efficiency of hotel facilities, and cleanliness and hygiene. The study showed that e-complaints were mostly posted by British, American, and Emirati guests. The hotels’ responses to e-complaints were also examined. The findings suggested that less than one-half of the e-complaints (approximately 43%) received an online response from the hotel management and that more than one-half of these responses (56%) were posted within a week of the e-complaint’s posting date. Recommendations to effective e-complaint management in the hotel industry were given in light of the article’s findings.

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Why is it important?

The main contribution of the current article lies in its attempt to identify the major factors that lead to guests’ dissatisfaction with their accommodation experience in luxury hotels in Jordan as reflected in the online negative reviews. The study also sheds some light on hotels’ performance in managing their reputations on the cyberspace by examining hotel management response to online negative reviews. The findings of this article are expected to draw the hoteliers’ as well as governmental decision-makers’ attention to what visitors to Jordan are unhappy with in their accommodation experience.

Perspectives