Exploring factors influencing service quality of online travel agencies: A politeness perspective

Abstract

As the internet becomes more widespread, competition among online travel platforms has intensified. To succeed, platforms must understand how to attract and retain customers. This study, based on the theory of e-commerce politeness, employs the critical incident technique to collect customer feedback regarding politeness on online travel platforms, identifying key factors in both satisfactory and unsatisfactory user experiences. This study collected a total of 76 valid questionnaires, with 76 instances of satisfaction and 76 instances of dissatisfaction. Satisfactory incidents fall into categories such as discounts and promotions, precise push notifications, ticket purchasing channels, system functionality, and customer service quality. Unsatisfactory incidents include price stability, refund and exchange policies, advertising frequency, review mechanisms, system functionality, and customer service quality. The study confirms that these critical incidents significantly impact the service quality of online travel platforms. Finally, practical recommendations are proposed based on these findings, aiming to offer valuable insights for the development of online travel platforms and to enrich theoretical research on consumer behavior. The study presents a novel and timely exploration of e-commerce politeness in the context of online travel agencies (OTAs), filling a gap in existing research.