The role of electronic word-of-mouth in the tourism market

In the context of contemporary trends in the tourist market, marketing communication has reached a whole new level. As the process of providing information, ideas and emotions, with the ultimate goal of achieving a certain effect, marketing communication is immensely important for the tourism industry. In order to meet the challenges of modern society, marketing experts should recognize the benefits of the concept of electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM). Its characteristics enable a high level of flexibility related to accessibility, a relatively high level of reliability and the possibility of instantaneously reaching a huge audience. Purpose – Taking into account a number of benefits and advantages of using e-WOM, the purpose of this paper is to determine the role and importance of e-WOM in the travel decision making process. Methodology – The paper is based on theoretical and empirical research. The theoretical part of the paper describes the key concepts. In order to achieve the research purpose, empirical research was conducted on a convenience sample of 129 Croatian citizens. The survey instrument was adapted from previous research (Jalilvand et al. 2011; Bronner and de Hoog 2011; Gruen et al. 2006; Lopez and Sicilia 2014; Xu 2014). The survey was conducted in May 2015 using a 22- item structured written questionnaire completed by the respondents. Descriptive and cluster analyses were used to obtain the goals of the research. Findings – Results of the study showed that the effects of e-WOM are the only real indicator of the value of products or services, taking into account their independence and objectivity, and the fact that they are not paid or purchased, fabricated or falsified. Contribution – This paper contributes to both theory and practice. The contribution of this paper is visible in proving the importance of the concept of e-WOM in the travel decision making process. Although it is conducted on a convenience sample, this study can provide good insight into attitudes of the respondents related to e-WOM. At the same time, for a tourist company, e- WOM means an objective presentation of products and services at minimum cost, often with a bigger effect on the sales and competitiveness in comparison to other forms of advertising.