The Impact of Multisensory Experience with Hotel Images on Sales

Images, offering rich and vivid sensory experiences, have become crucial in consumer accommodation-sharing narratives. This research utilizes machine vision and econometric models to examine the influence of sensory experiences from hotel marketing and review images on sales. Empirical findings reveal that: (1) Multidimensional sensory experiences (visual, auditory, tactile, and smell) in marketing images positively affect hotel sales; (2) Genuine sensory experiences depicted in review images exert a polarizing influence on hotel sales, leading to either continuous growth or intensified decline; (3) Disparities in sensory experiences between marketing and review images tend to diminish their promotional impact on sales. Notably, visual elements are paramount, whereas smell aspects are least influential. This study significantly advances the understanding of sensory experiences in images within the tourism and hospitality sector.