The relationship of online trust with Consumer Generated Media

the case of Booking

Abstract

Companies have undergone transformations in how they operate and promote their products and services, whether online and/or offline. As a result of this evolution, the tourism sector was not left out and consequently had to adapt to differentiate itself and ensure a competitive advantage. Thus, new innovative platforms emerged, such as Booking and TripAdvisor, that aggregate several services that tourism consumers increasingly use to plan and make their accommodation reservations. With the emergence of these platforms and the increased use by consumers, Consumer Generated Media (CGM) has emerged in parallel, growing exponentially and exerting a significant influence on booking tourist accommodation. The present research is based on a quantitative analysis utilizing a questionnaire survey based on the Trust Building Model. This model is divided into three main categories: website-based, company-based, and customer-based antecedents. Thus, we identified antecedents that influence online trust in CGM on the Booking platform and studied whether this trust affects the behavior of the travel consumer on the same platform, causing him to adopt the recommendations and practice eWOM. It was concluded that perceived source credibility, information quality, perceived website quality, user satisfaction with previous experiences, and user experience and knowledge are the antecedents that affect online trust in CGM.