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Electronic Customer Care in Tourist Destinations — Exploring the Effects of Offer Inquiry Systems

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Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2007

Abstract

Customer care in an online and offline environment is crucial for success in tourism. In our days, actors in tourism are implementing web-based systems to facilitate online interaction with customers. This study explores the effects of inquiries sent via offer inquiry systems (OISs) and by e-mail. The offers were assessed in three service quality dimensions: response behaviour, content quality and level of individualization. The analysis revealed only minor differences between the two inquiry channels but an interesting comparison of the type of offer sender (destination management organisation (DMO) vs. hotel). Nevertheless, the latest reply sent by a DMO via OIS is revealing one considerable advantage of an OIS: The inquiry processing system is managed by the DMO as supervisor, so that if the customer does not receive a reply from at least one hotel, the DMO can step in and provide the customer with various offers.

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© 2007 Springer-Verlag Wien

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Fux, M., Eggel, S., Scholl, B. (2007). Electronic Customer Care in Tourist Destinations — Exploring the Effects of Offer Inquiry Systems. In: Sigala, M., Mich, L., Murphy, J. (eds) Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2007. Springer, Vienna. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-69566-1_29

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-211-69566-1_29

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Vienna

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-211-69564-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-211-69566-1

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