"[S]elling holidays is like selling dreams" (Holloway and Humphreys, 2012, p.10) and dreams live from inspiration as the initial impulse for planning holidays. Due to the tourism characteristic of mostly providing intangible products and services, “the tourism industry is highly information intensive and information is its lifeblood” (Benckendorff, Sheldon, & Fesenmaier, 2014, p.5). Consequently, information is key for consumers and tourism businesses to come together and to create a memorable experience.
This paper is based on the article “Information technology and consumer behaviour in travel and tourism: Insights from travel planning using the internet” from Xiang, Magnini, and Fesenmaier (2015). It examines the utilisation of technology during the holiday planning phase, where information is crucial, the development of mobile technology, and the ability and willingness of consumers to adapt to new technology. The authors’ definition of technology in …show more content…
Benckendorff et al. (2014) see one role of “technology as a destroyer” (p.268), for instance if booking or check in systems fail or if supporting technology causes competition and loss of control that puts a risk to the business itself. An example of that is an ongoing development in the accommodation sector where OTAs such as Booking.com take over control of pricing and inventory as well as recognition. An example from 2012 showed that accommodation service providers are trying to implement countering tools. According to Benckendorff et al. (2014) and RoomKey (2016), six major hotel groups, e.g. Hilton, have set up their own metasearch engine “that other travel sites can’t access” (para. 1). This not only helps to claim back control over the own business but also to attract customers with a spirit of exclusivity
This paper is based on the article “Information technology and consumer behaviour in travel and tourism: Insights from travel planning using the internet” from Xiang, Magnini, and Fesenmaier (2015). It examines the utilisation of technology during the holiday planning phase, where information is crucial, the development of mobile technology, and the ability and willingness of consumers to adapt to new technology. The authors’ definition of technology in …show more content…
Benckendorff et al. (2014) see one role of “technology as a destroyer” (p.268), for instance if booking or check in systems fail or if supporting technology causes competition and loss of control that puts a risk to the business itself. An example of that is an ongoing development in the accommodation sector where OTAs such as Booking.com take over control of pricing and inventory as well as recognition. An example from 2012 showed that accommodation service providers are trying to implement countering tools. According to Benckendorff et al. (2014) and RoomKey (2016), six major hotel groups, e.g. Hilton, have set up their own metasearch engine “that other travel sites can’t access” (para. 1). This not only helps to claim back control over the own business but also to attract customers with a spirit of exclusivity