Investigating customers’ responses to artificial intelligence chatbots in online travel agencies: the moderating role of product familiarity

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to examine how consumers’ perceptions of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots influence individuals’ cognitive and emotional states and their subsequent behavioural intentions vis-à-vis online travel agencies (OTAs). Design/methodology/approach The survey sample comprised 566 customers who had experienced the use of travel AI chatbots in China using a combination of online and offline questionnaires. Partial least squares structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses. Findings The results revealed that interaction and information quality, as AI chatbot stimuli, significantly increase potential tourists’ trust and purchase intention. Perceived usefulness plays a mediating role in the relationship among interactivity, information quality, customer trust and purchase intention. Furthermore, the findings indicated that customers with high product familiarity exhibited greater trust in products demonstrating a high level of perceived usefulness. Originality/value By integrating cognitive consistency theory, this study theoretically validates the applicability of the stimulus–organism–response framework on AI chatbots and provides academics with useful insights regarding the influence mechanisms of human–computer interaction and information quality on customer response within OTA settings.

The new era of hotel marketing: integrating cutting-edge technologies with core marketing principles

“…Research indicates that interactivity and perceived usefulness are crucial aspects of chatbot design. Effective interactivity can address the information needs of potential tourists when they engage with AI chatbots (Zhu et al , 2023).…”

A scale for measuring tourists’ technological competence

“…Tourists frequently use technological amenities and smart service systems at tourist attractions, such as free Wi-Fi, websites, touchscreen interfaces (to display maps), self-service systems (to check in to a hotel), QR codes (to access information quickly), service robots, chatbots and biometric systems (Alma Çallı et al , 2023; Femenia-Serra et al , 2019; Huang et al , 2017; Wang and Sparks, 2014; Zhu et al , 2023). Technological facilities and services offer added value to tourist experiences by enabling interaction, co-creation and personalization (Neuhofer et al , 2015).…”

Enhancing digital service communication strategies

“…Based on its flexibility in adapting to stimuli, SOR theory is extensively used to explain an individual’s cognitive, affective and behavioral responses toward external factors (Alimamy and Kuhail, 2023). SOR theory has also provided conceptual backgrounds to explain customer behavior in an information technology context, such as virtual reality technology (Kim et al , 2020; Leung et al , 2022) and chatbots (Zhu et al , 2023). Even though various stimuli have been studied in the technology context, the SOR theory has been rarely examined in the context of e-service agents.…”

“…External stimuli are environmental or marketing-related factors (Fan et al , 2022). For example, Zhu et al (2023) applied SOR theory to explore how artificial intelligence chatbots influenced the perceived usefulness of chatbots, customer trust and purchase intention. Fan et al (2022) also investigated AI chatbots’ customer-oriented behaviors as external stimuli, such as functional versus relational customer-oriented behaviors.…”