Determinants of instant messaging use for communication with hotels: a policy-capturing study

Purpose: Mobile instant messaging (IM) has been increasingly adopted by hotels to communicate with customers. This study aims to explore communication between hotels and customers and identifies the factors that affect hotel customers’ intention to use mobile IM to communicate with hotels. Design/methodology/approach: A two-stage exploratory sequential mixed-method design, which combines semi-structured interview and policy-capturing method was applied. Findings: The findings indicate that customers are more likely to use mobile IM to communicate with hotels for non-urgent matters; before and after a stay; and if customers are accustomed to using mobile IM for work and non-work purposes in daily life. Research limitations/implications: This study goes beyond traditional theories to capturing communication-related factors that affect customers’ IM use in a hotel context. Practical implications: The findings indicate why hotel managers should avoid relying on IM as the dominant communication channel. Originality/value: This is among one of the first studies that explore customers’ communication needs and communication media choice in hotels.