APPLYING THE STRUCTURAL EQUATIONS MODELING TO STUDY THE FACTORS THAT AFFECTS THE LOYALTY OF ON-LINE BOOKING TOOLS COSTUMERS
Hospitality; E-Commerce; Loyalty; Structural Equation Modeling
The hotel industry has evolved over the years from a non-profit reception of travelers with to a monetized and heterogenic business. In this sense, as observed in the various segments of the economy, hospitality is incorporating web-based business tools (E-Commerce) and the use of online booking tools is highlighted. These mechanisms allowed geographic extrapolation to the hotel’s products and brought companies closer to their costumers. However, them was allowed to come in contact with the most varied items and, consequently, the segment's competitiveness was intensified, making it difficult for corporations to retain clients. In this scenario, the present dissertation aims to use the structural equation modeling to evaluate the factors that affect the loyalty of costumers of online booking tools. For that, a study was divided into three stages: firstly, a literature review will be developed in two-line: a the validation and adaptation of the research model based on the work by Kim, Chung and Lee (2011); Then a series of questionnaires structured on a 7-point Likert scale will be distributed; And, finally, the analysis with SEM will be performed. Thus, it is expected that this research will contribute to a better understanding of the factors that affect the loyalty of the users of the online reservation tools, helping the companies of the hotel sector to obtain a better understanding of the needs of their clients and, therefore, how to serve them in a more particular and effective way.