Zheng Xiang

Virginia Tech | VT · Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management

The short-term rental market remains highly competitive, requiring that hosts should identify effective strategies to position their products for desirable performance. This study investigates the optimal balance beyond dyadic choice between differentiating from or conforming to competitors, in the dimensions of properties’ functional and aesthetic...

Free download from publisher for the first 50 days: https://authors.elsevier.com/c/1hj0vxTbM~s4q Open Access version: http://hdl.handle.net/10919/116235 HIGHLIGHTS • Local- and city-level aesthetic design differentiation have asymmetric effects. • Differentiating from local rivals is beneficial due to localized competition. • Conforming to city-...

Hyperlinks to external websites are a reflection of partnerships of destination marketing organizations (DMOs). This longitudinal study investigates the external hyperlinks placed on the home page of U.S. state tourism websites from 1999 to 2018. Our analysis shows that the landscape of DMO partnerships underwent considerable growth; however, the g...

Tourism is highly dependent on technological solutions. Smart technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, are creating an important driving force for travel, hospitality, and leisure (THL) during the pandemic and beyond, paving the way for new business models, new customer touchpoints, and new value (co-)creation opportunities....

Design is now considered a crucial activity in contributing to the success of tourism enterprises as well as destinations. This article builds upon the ideas first introduced in the two edited books, namely Design Science in Tourism and Analytics in Smart Tourism Design, which brought the conceptual and methodological foundations for designing tour...

Online reviews are influential information sources for tourists in trip planning and related decision-making. How tourists process online reviews is context-specific, so the effects of online reviews on their perceptions or decision-making are affected by different contextual factors. Building on the literature on information recency, this research...

While user-generated content has been studied extensively in the hospitality and tourism domain, the value of user-generated photos is not well understood due to theoretical and methodological barriers. The purpose of this study is to explore the role of user-generated photos in online hotel reviews in terms of how they are generated and how they c...

An online review is composed of various information components (e.g., reviewer profile, review rating, and text), which may have impacts on its user simultaneously. However, while there is a growing interest in understanding the information value of online reviews, the potential interaction effects between different review components have rarely be...

This essay serves as a response to Cai and McKenna’s Letter to the Editor (2020) recently published in the Journal of Travel Research, which sought to initiate a discussion regarding the nature and future of research related to information technology and tourism (ITT). The authors argued that ITT is a subfield of information systems (IS) and ITT re...

Understanding the nature of tourism experiences holds the key to effectively managing tourism destinations. Research in psychology, economics, geography, marketing and, more recently, services management, offers new insight into consumer experiences which are defined by moment-to-moment and as discreet (and summarized) events. This paper synthesize...

Purpose This paper aims to outline the development of online tourism-related text with particular focus on the role of technology in transforming this text. It also offers a vision of this ongoing development for the next 75 years, followed by a discussion of its implications for tourism research. Design/methodology/approach This paper offers a cr...

The online travel review has become one of the most influential information sources for travelers’ decision making. This research primarily aims to examine the relationship between review textual content concreteness and review helpfulness in the tourism context. In particular, we examine how this relationship plays out under two individual circums...

Online reviews have been extensively studied in the hospitality and tourism literature. However, while user-provided photos embedded in online reviews accumulate in large quantities, their informational value has not been well understood likely due to technical challenges. The goal of this study is to introduce deep learning for computer vision to...

As an emerging research paradigm, big data analytics has been gaining currency in various fields. However, in existing hospitality and tourism literature there is scarcity of discussions on the quality of data which may impact the validity and generalizability of research findings. This study examines the reliability of online hotel reviews in Trip...

This essay presents an overview of the research development over the last twenty years on information technology and tourism. It argues that knowledge created in the last two decades can be characterized as consisting of two distinct eras, i.e., Digitization (1997–2006) and Age of Acceleration (2007–2016), which reflected the general understanding...

In order to demonstrate the usefulness of social media analytics, this chapter applies text analytics to classify hotel properties based upon dimensions of guest experiences in association with satisfaction ratings in hotel online reviews. The findings of the study reveal the market structure of the industry; that is, hotel properties can be distin...

This chapter opens the discussion of analytics in tourism design by introducing its conceptual and technical foundations. It focuses attention on how information technology is transforming the tourism experience and consequentially the needs and opportunities for us to measure and interpret this experience. In addition, it provides an overview of t...

In this final chapter we conclude the book by arguing that big data analytics in inherently connected with the recent emergence of tourism design and smart destinations, which is a logical result of the advancements of IT and its wide adoption in both consumer market and the industry over the last 20 years. And while big data analytics serves as a...

This chapter introduces design science in tourism (DST) as a framework which can guide both the theoretical foundations and applications in tourism design. It is argued that since 1972 when Clare Gunn first published Vacationsape huge progress has been made which now provides the theory and tools needed to support DST. This chapter discusses the co...

Online consumer reviews have been studied for various research problems in hospitality and tourism. However, existing studies using review data tend to rely on a single data source and data quality is largely anecdotal. This greatly limits the generalizability and contribution of social media analytics research. Through text analytics this study co...

As an emerging research paradigm, big data analytics has been gaining currency in various fields. However, in existing hospitality and tourism literature there is scarcity of discussions on the quality of data which may impact the validity and generalizability of research findings. This study examines the reliability of online hotel reviews in Trip...

This study aims to examine how customer satisfaction varies across different trip types and travellers’ experience levels. Using online reviews covering all Hong Kong hotels in TripAdvisor, we performed a series of analyses to understand the relationships between rating and self-identified trip type and experience level represented by the reviewer’...

This book explores the impact of design science and design thinking on tourism planning, gathering contributions from leading authorities in the field of tourism research and providing a comprehensive and interconnected panorama of cutting-edge results that influence the current and future design of tourist destinations. The book builds on recent f...

This book presents cutting edge research on the development of analytics in travel and tourism. It introduces new conceptual frameworks and measurement tools, as well as applications and case studies for destination marketing and management. It is divided into five parts: Part one on travel demand analytics focuses on conceptualizing and implementi...

With the continuing growth of online distribution channels how to inspire and support travellers in their online search and purchase process of the hotel product is an ongoing yet challenging task. While its importance to both the management and the consumer has been extensively documented, hotel location has been mostly treated as unidimensional c...

A hotel is a complex, experience-based product and thus, finding out what leads to guest satisfaction is a practically important question. In this study, we explored the usefulness of applying guest experience dimensions previously identified based upon authentic online customer reviews to understand what types of hotels make their guests (un)happy...

Product perceptual mapping in the lodging industry has largely relied on survey and focus group methods to represent consumer perceptions of how the hotel product compares to one another. The more recent availability of online reviews represents a potentially powerful source of data that can be used to provide insights into how brands are perceived...

Smart tourism is a new buzzword applied to describe the increasing reliance of tourism destinations, their industries and their tourists on emerging forms of ICT that allow for massive amounts of data to be transformed into value propositions. However, it remains ill-defined as a concept , which hinders its theoretical development. The paper define...

With recent developments in social media and mobile computing, little is known regarding how different travel segments within the general traveler population actually use the Internet for travel planning. In particular, this study examined various aspects of Internet use among four generational groups including the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers,...

The fast adoption of the smartphone and its associated applications (apps) is changing the landscape of the hospitality industry in terms of marketing and distribution. Within this context, understanding the current capabilities of smartphone apps and user experience of these apps can help the hospitality industry develop more user friendly apps an...

Mobile systems have become important tools enabling tourists to navigate an uncertain world. A critical examination of the literature suggests that work is needed to develop a holistic understanding on the smartphone use for travel. The results of this study confirms that the use of smartphones for travel is shaped by complex interactions between c...

Travel behavior is becoming inherently dynamic and socially connected because of the increasing use of mobile technologies; as such, the concept of context is becoming increasingly important in travel and tourism and particularly within today’s technology-supported mobile environment. This article builds upon existing literature describing recent d...

The influence of the Internet on our social and economic life is well documented. However, few studies have been conducted to assess how travelers have adapted to the Internet over time. Using a series of national surveys conducted over the past 6 years (2007-2012), this study describes important changes taking place in the use of the Internet by A...

The smartphone penetrates many facets of everyday life, including travel. As such, this article argues that since travel can be considered a special stage of technology use, understanding how the smartphone shapes the tourist experience cannot be separated from the way it is used in one’s everyday life. On the basis of a study of American travelers...

Given the importance of traveller reviews as sources of travel-related information, source credibility is becoming an increasingly crucial issue in terms of research and application. This study examines the role of self-disclosed personal profile information (PPI) as cues of source credibility in the context of travellers’ use of online reviews for...

With the continuous growth of the Internet and emergent channels in online marketing and distribution, it is important to understand the new technological environment for the hotel industry. The goal of this study was to investigate the competitive information space for hotels reflected via one of the dominant search tools on the Internet (i.e., Go...

Context in travel and tourism represents the bridge between a specific need and the necessary information to fulfil that requirement. The notion of context is becoming popular in travel and tourism in areas such as location-based services that support decision-making on the go. It becomes even more important within today’s intelligent mobile enviro...

The papers presented in this volume advance the state of the art in social media and Web 2.0, electronic tourism marketing, web site and search engine optimization, technology adoption and diffusion, online communities, tourism management and decision support, eLearning, mobile technologies and applications in tourism, recommender systems, e-interm...

With recent developments in technology including social media and mobile computing, the Internet offers many tools for today’s travellers. Based upon a large six year study of American travellers’ use of the Internet, this study identifies the strategies travellers develop in response to the complex technological environment over a period of time....

The papers presented in this volume advance the state-of-the-art research on social media and Web 2.0, electronic tourism marketing, website development and evaluation, search engine marketing and optimization, IT adoption and diffusion, virtual travel communities, mobile technologies, management information systems in tourism, eLearning, recommend...

With the huge amount of information available on the Internet and the increasing importance of online search, understanding the tourism domain is essential for effective online marketing. This study focuses on the semantic representation of the tourism domain with respect to information provided on tourism-related Web sites and travelers' informati...

This study investigates Generation Yconsumer different value perceptions toward apparelmobile advertising according to cultures (i.e., The United States vs. South Korea) and modalities (short message service vs. multimedia messaging service). Results indicate that the entertainment value was perceived differently for two modalities: short message s...

Due to the increasing popularity of smartphones and their apps, mobile technologies have been effectively changed the nature of travel. This study employed a data mining approach to classify the types of information services and design features of travel-related iPhone apps as well as users’ evaluation and reviews of these apps. The results identif...

Search engines have become one of the primary tools for travel planning and, as such, have become an important element in the marketing efforts of destination marketing organizations. Recently, it has been demonstrated that because of the dynamic relationships among search engine providers, the tourism industry, and travelers, it is essential that...

Given the growing importance of search in online travel planning, marketers need to better understand the behavioural aspect of search engines use. Built upon a number of previous studies, the goal of this research is to identify patterns in online travel queries across tourist destinations. Utilizing transaction log files from a number of search e...

With a growing amount of consumer generated content in assisting travellers’ decision making, social media are becoming an increasingly important tool for marketers and tourist destinations alike to engage online consumers. Following from recent literature on online travel information search, this study focuses attention on the dynamic nature of so...

Search engines are playing an increasingly dominant role in providing access to tourism information on the Internet. As such, it is argued that destination marketing organizations (DMOs) must have a substantial understanding of the visibility in search engines in order to create competitive positions within this important marketplace. The goal of t...

Search engine marketing (SEM) has become an important strategic tool for online destination marketing. Because of the dynamic relationships among travelers as information searchers, search engines, and the online tourism domain, the authors argue that a new dynamic model must be developed that captures these relationships to better inform SEM pract...

Social media are playing an increasingly important role as information sources for travelers. The goal of this study is to investigate the extent to which social media appear in search engine results in the context of travel-related searches. The study employed a research design that simulates a traveler's use of a search engine for travel planning...

It is generally acknowledged that innovation is an important source for competitive advantage among tourism destinations. The goal of this study was to identify and assess the nature of innovation by American convention and visitors bureaus. In particular, this study examined the extent, timeliness, and continuity of innovation in Web marketing eff...

Search engines have become a central part of the internet marketing strategy of tourism businesses and, as such, it is essential that destination marketing organizations have a substantial understanding of how search engines are used within the travel planning process. This study proposed a three stage framework for examining how online travellers...

Search engine marketing requires a substantive understanding of the dynamics of the search system in the travel information search context. The goal of this study is to explore the dynamic nature of online information space through Google as well as its direct impact on the traffic of a destination website. Utilizing a computer program to track Goo...

Search engines are playing an increasingly dominant role in providing access to tourism information on the Internet. As such, it is argued that destination marketing organizations (DMOs) must have a substantial understanding of the visibility in search engines in order to create competitive positions within this important marketplace. The goal of t...

Search engines serve as an important channel for tourism destinations to communicate with prospective visitors. This study assessed the language representation of the search results for the 50 state tourism offices in the United States by three major search engines (e.g., Google, Ask, and Yahoo!). The findings indicate that Google and Ask were simi...

With the growing amount of travel-related information available on the Internet and the increasing significance of search in the travel planning process, understanding travelers' search patterns can provide useful insights into developing systems that effectively address travelers' information needs. This study utilized phone inquiry records to exa...

With the huge amount of information available on the Internet and the increasing importance of online search, understanding the tourism domain is essential for effective online marketing. This study focuses on the semantic representation of the tourism domain with respect to information provided on tourism-related Web sites and travelers’ informati...

Destination Websites typically offer print brochure request forms in addition to the information already presented on the Website. Also, more sophisticated sites increasingly offer the ability to view brochures online, and others even provide users with an opportunity to create customised brochures. The log file data of a destination Website was an...

Given the growing importance of online search in travel planning, marketers need to better understand the behavioural aspect of travel planning using search engines. The goal of this study is to identify patterns in online travel-related queries across tourist destinations. Utilizing transaction log files from a number of search engines, the analys...

With the growing importance of the Internet for travel planning, understanding the online domain of tourism is vital in order to identify the challenges and potential solutions for effectively marketing travel destinations. This study focuses attention on understanding the representation of the tourism domain on the Internet. Analyses of search res...

The purpose of this study is to use existing theories of technology and organizational change to assess the impact of technology implementation within the context of the tourism industry. The framework is applied as a case study to analyze the perceived implications of implementing a destination marketing information system by the Baltimore Area Co...

Using search engines for travel purposes has become increasingly important on the Internet. However, the domain of tourism is complex and fragmented and thus gives rise to many problems in information search. This study provides a comparative analysis of the languages of the tourism websites represented through search engines and travel related que...

This book provides in-depth empirical reports on specific topics within five general areas of tourism management and marketing: (1) scanning and sense making; (2) planning; (3) implementing; (4) evaluating actions/process and performance outcomes; and (5) administering. Offering descriptions, tools and examples of tourism management decision making...

This chapter provides an overview of developments which have resulted in an increased availability of text data, thereby creating greater interest in analysing text in the context of tourism. The first section of the chapter discusses different approaches to text analysis. Specifically, the chapter compares and contrasts qualitative and quantitativ...

As a marketing tool recommender systems have the potential to provide relevant and highly personalized information to consumers. However, developing effective recommender systems requires a substantive understanding of consumers’ preferences as well as meaningful ways to represent hospitality and travel products. This paper argues that language hol...

Like other travel sectors, the incentive travel industry operates in a complex and dynamic environment and is now facing escalating challenges. Within this context, it is important to understand how managers perceive environmental forces that are driving their decision making and strategy formulation. This study uses cognitive mapping techniques to...

Benchmarking has been studied as a tool for comparatively evaluating the performance of tourist destinations. However, existing research is limited in that benchmarking is rarely linked with organizational strategy and thus, its potential as a management tool has yet to be fully realized. This paper argues that benchmarking should be considered as...

Marketing a destination has been a challenging task for many communities that rely on tourism for economic development. Collaborative marketing efforts of the tourism organizations representing the destination provide solutions to this challenge. This article develops an integrative theoretical framework in an attempt to explore the nature and dyna...

Innovation has become an increasingly important issue for tourism businesses. The goal of this study was to evaluate innovation in Web marketing by American convention and visitors bureaus and the contribution of website features to the overall success of their Web marketing programs. The results indicate that innovation in Web marketing has been l...

Travel decisions can be described as evolving and dynamic information processing, requiring a large amount of information. With the enormous amount of information available on the Internet, travellers are able to obtain detailed information about almost any destination worldwide. However, this does not guarantee that travel information search is a...

Travel decision-making is a complex and multi-faceted decision process and is critical for understanding travellers' trip-planning activities. It includes decisions regarding destination, attractions, timing, transportation and activities. Among the many sub-decisions that comprise a trip decision, destination choice has been considered the core co...

An emerging area of study within technology and tourism focuses on the development of technologies that enable Internet users to quickly and effectively find relevant information about selected topics including travel destination and transportation. This area of tourism research and development is generally referred to as destination marketing/reco...

Open source software has been growing in acceptance and use over the past decade. Recent work explores the criteria that organizations use in deciding whether to adopt open source software. However, little research has been done to understand the adoption decision from the perspective of the individual.This paper examines the factors that impact in...