Evaluating Hotel Electronic Channels of Distribution: The Corporate Perspective

Abstract

Existing evaluation methodologies for electronic channels of distribution are derived largely from finance and strategy literature, and suffer from a variety of limitations when applied to information technology based systems. A prior Delphi study carried out by the authors identified a broader range of factors that could potentially be used for evaluating both channel adoption and channel retention / discontinuation. This study extends that work by examining how industry practice compares with the expert viewpoint estab lished by the Delphi. An electronic survey of corporate level distribution managers was used to test the range of evaluation factors identified in the prior study and to measure the opinions of practicing managers as to their applicability to the evaluation decision process. The study showed that little explicit use is made of formal evaluation criteria when assessing distribution channels, and that significant differences exist between the experts and indus try group in terms of the priorities allocated to individual evaluation factors.