An Empirical Analysis of the Factors that Influence Chinese Travelers’ Booking Decisions (Online Booking Systems vs. Traditional Travel Agencies)

Abstract

China has one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and has emerged as a major global economic power in recent years. The travel industry in China is also predicted to grow as Chinese consumers continue to travel domestically and abroad.

This research seeks to fill the conceptual gap in the marketing literature by developing a theoretical research model as a framework to identify the key factors that influence Chinese consumers’ decisions as to whether to use online booking systems or traditional travel agencies.

A self-administered questionnaire was used to gather information from 400 respondents from two Tier 1 cities in China, Beijing and Shanghai. Eleven factors derived from extensive marketing literature, were included in the research model: (1) websites factors; (2) perceived risk; (3) service quality; (4) convenience; (5) price; (6) product variety; (7) consumer resources; (8) subjective norms; (9) control over bookings; (10) travel experience; and (11) demographic characteristics.

The research provides insights into the decision factors that Chinese consumers use to determine their travel booking channel. The finding will assist online booking agencies and traditional travel agencies in their strategic marketing planning in their quest to retain current customers and attract new consumers.