This study draws on dynamic capability theory to examine how marketing agility (MA) influences hotel performance and customer mindset metrics (customer satisfaction, perceived service quality, and loyalty intentions). Using a multisource longitudinal dataset, we combine 3090 hotel-year surveys from 618 hotel managers (2019-2023) with 10,000 consumer survey responses (aggregated to the hotel-year level) and objective financial and operating performance indicators. Results show that MA improves hotel performance, with stronger effects under high technological dynamism and structural flux. MA also strengthens all three customer mindset metrics, with the largest effect for the forward-looking outcome of loyalty intentions. The study clarifies when marketing agility delivers the greatest returns in volatile hospitality markets and offers actionable guidance for managers on prioritizing agility investments.

Tools generating artificial intelligence (AI) such as ChatGPT are reshaping travel planning, yet the psychological factors driving their adoption remain unclear. This study addresses this gap by examining how the beliefs in tourists' mindsets about the malleability of abilities influence attitudes toward ChatGPT for travel services. Drawing on implicit theory and the approach-avoidance model, we test a moderated-mediation framework linking growth (vs. fixed) mindsets to technological self-efficacy and anxiety, and, in turn, to attitudes and behavioral intentions. Through three studies (N = 1,030), we found that growth mindsets enhanced technological self-efficacy and reduced technological anxiety, producing more favorable ChatGPT attitudes for travel services. In the survey study, attitudes significantly predicted behavioral intentions, and social influence strengthened the self-efficacy pathway while weakening the anxiety pathway. The findings extend mindset theory to AI-enabled tourism and suggest that framing ChatGPT as learnable and supportive can boost travelers' confidence and willingness to adopt it.

Grounded in resource-based view and tournament theory, this study examines how AI human capital (AIHC) is associated with wage inequality and firm value in tourism, travel, and hospitality (TTH). Using an unbalanced panel of 1206 UK listed TTH firms comprising 7539 firm year observations from 2018 to 2024, we estimate internal instrument two step system GMM models with Windmeijer corrected standard errors. Findings indicate that AIHC is positively associated with firm value, negatively associated with wage inequality, and that wage inequality is negatively associated with firm value. Mediation analyses suggest that wage inequality partially channels the AIHC and firm value association. Moderation analyses show stronger AIHC and firm value associations in more dynamic and complex industries, whereas munificence shows no systematic moderating effect. Sectoral analyses reveal stronger value associations in travel and stronger inequality compression associations in hospitality. The study highlights workforce centered pathways for AI enabled competitive advantage.

Although earlier studies have provided substantial evidence of gendered destination influences on consumer behavior, research on the critical roles of biological gender and cultural lenses in travelers' perceptions and behaviors remains lacking. To address this gap, this analysis investigates the moderating roles of biological gender (male vs. female) and cultural lenses (individualism vs. collectivism) in the relationships among hotel gender, stereotypes, guests' trust, and recommendation intentions. Using two studies (n = 1027), a multigroup analysis reveals that masculine hotel traits strengthen competence perceptions and trust more for men and individualists, whereas feminine traits enhance warmth perceptions more for women and collectivists. This study extends gender stereotype research beyond traditional brand marketing to hospitality marketing, deepens the understanding of brand personality theory, and broadens the applicability of gender stereotypes in hospitality by showing how travelers' perceptions and behaviors vary across biological gender and cultural lenses, offering hotel managers practical insights.

Purpose This study emphasized the customer’s sensemaking process, under the light of evaluative congruity theory, through assessing internal and external cues such as corporate green image, green marketing and salesperson expertise to strengthen the satisfaction-loyalty relationship. Design/methodology/approach We collected data through a mall intercept survey for two famous apparel brands that fulfilled the inclusion criteria of having invested in green marketing and having salespersons with expertise in green products. A usable sample of 318 customers was obtained and processed via SEM. Findings The results highlight the important moderating role green marketing plays in enhancing green customer loyalty behavior. Green marketing had the strongest relationship with green corporate image that in turn led to customer green satisfaction; the green product quality and salesperson green expertise also lead to green customer satisfaction. Originality/value This research reveals the way customers engage in the sensemaking process about green brands utilizing evaluative congruity theory, in which external green marketing activities (including advertisements and green word of mouth) and corporate image influence the internal consumer evaluations about green product quality and social interactions with the brand in the form of salesperson green expertise, eventually leading to the green customer satisfaction. When congruency is strong, satisfaction leads to loyalty. This paper concludes with practical implications for theory and practice.

Existing research on entrepreneurial passion is mostly based on exploring the changes in the level of entrepreneurial passion and its causes from a variable-centered perspective. However, this ignores how different entrepreneurial passions of different entrepreneurs will produce differentiated changes in entrepreneurial practice activities. Therefore, this study adopts a person-centered perspective to examine how entrepreneurial passion transits and how the change in goal content influences its transition. Our findings verify that there are four entrepreneurial passion profiles, including passionate profile, action-driven profile, dispassionate profile, interest-driven profile. We creatively found entrepreneurs are more likely to experience positive transitions (for example, from dispassionate/interest-driven to passionate/action-driven) if they experience an increase in internal goals and external goals. Negative transitions (for example, from passionate/action-driven to dispassionate) are mostly associated with a decrease in external goals. Overall, the findings help us to better grasp the dynamic nature of entrepreneurial passion and intervening by adjusting the changes in goal content.

Purpose Artificial intelligence (AI) has transformed marketing operations, creating new benchmarks for operational productivity, customer interaction and sales growth. This study investigates factors that affect the adoption of AI among marketing professionals, focusing on developing benchmarking archetypes and assessing the moderating impact of technology resistance (TR). Design/methodology/approach Data from 353 marketing professionals across diverse sectors in Sri Lanka was analyzed using a dual-method approach. The UTAUT2 model guided hypotheses tested with PLS-SEM to establish generalizable benchmarks, while fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was employed to identify distinct adoption archetypes serving as configurational benchmarks. Findings All the UTAUT2 factors significantly influence AI adoption, with TR as a substantial barrier. The fsQCA revealed seven distinct benchmarking archetypes, with behavioral intention, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation and price value emerging as core conditions for high adoption, while performance expectancy, social influence and habit functioning as peripheral factors. Practical implications The research provides diagnostic benchmarking tools that organizations can use to assess their AI readiness, identify implementation pathways aligned with their contextual characteristics, reduce technology resistance and enhance marketing efficiencies. Originality/value This study advances benchmarking literature by identifying both generalizable adoption drivers and distinct configurational archetypes for AI implementation in marketing while establishing technology resistance as a critical moderating variable.

The image of a place is subjective and open to change: it depends on an individual's perspective and cultural background. Notwithstanding years of research on destination image, no attempt has been made so far to evaluate the Muslim-Friendly Tourist Destination Image (MFTDI) in the travel and hospitality industry, in which Muslim visitors not only evaluate cognitive and emotional attributes but also Muslim-friendly attributes. In this research a qualitative research and literature review was carried out to develop the items of the proposed scale. The study began with a pilot study in which a committee of experts, and focus groups reduced the topic quantitatively and qualitatively. A follow-up quantitative assessment was then carried out to evaluate and authenticate the suggested scale, using two studies (n1 = 481 and n2 = 269). The significance of the proposed scale was conceptually justified. The scale measured reliability, discriminant validity, convergent validity, and external validity. As a result, the outcomes suggest that the 31 items to be considered fall into three factor categories: cognitive, emotional, and Muslim-friendly qualities. Finally, this paper assesses the article's significant implications for theory and practice, as well as its limitations.

PurposeThis paper aims to examine a new approach to understanding the interrelationships between destination brand gender, stereotypes, destination brand identification and brand advocacy, as well as the mediating role of destination warmth (vs. competence) in the connections between destination brand femininity (vs. masculinity) and destination brand identification.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative study and literature review were conducted to revisit and refine the items on the scale. Preliminary item reduction was qualitatively grounded in focus groups, a panel of experts, and a pilot study. A follow-up quantitative evaluation of two studies (N1 = 705 and N2 = 472) was conducted to test seven hypotheses using exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis with structural equation modeling.FindingsThe findings provide robust evidence for the interrelationships among destination brand gender, stereotypes, destination identification and destination advocacy. The outcomes also reveal that warmth is more important than competence for destination identification. Finally, the results indicated that only destination warmth serves as a partial mediator in the association between destination brand masculinity and femininity, on the one hand, and destination identification, on the other hand.Originality/valueThis article adds to the destination branding literature by using social role theory and the stereotype content model to explore novel connections among destination brand gender, stereotypes, destination brand identification and brand advocacy.

Emerging technologies, such as mobile payment systems (MPS), continue to affect people from all walks of life, including travelers' behaviors. Following the innovation resistance theory (IRT) framework, the current study examined the link between innovation resistance barriers (i.e., usage, value, risk, tradition, and image) and word of mouth (WOM) for MPS usage in the travel industry. Specifically, we integrated trust theory and examined how these innovation resistance barriers affect trust, which then affects MPS usage intention and subsequently affects WOM for MPS. Following the two-study research design, multi-wave data were collected from 403 participants in Study 1 and 378 participants in Study 2. The results supported the serial mediation of trust and MPS usage intention for the relationships between usage, value, and tradition barriers and WOM for MPS. Our findings contribute to travel and consumer behavior theory and practice by explaining how and why specific innovation barriers negatively influence WOM for MPS usage in the travel industry.

Shifting towards a more data-driven culture is a key antecedent of business success in today's digital era. Previous research has paid attention to exploring the influence of marketing analytics on business performance, and rarely examined how the use of marketing analytics influences customer agility and satisfaction. According to the dynamic capabilities view and using previous studies, we developed a conceptual framework to explore the effect of marketing analytics use on customer agility and customer satisfaction. In Study 1, we utilised cross-sectional data collected from 468 managers from various industries. In study 2, we employed longitudinal data in a three-wave longitudinal utilising a cross-lagged panel model. Study 1 indicated that data acquisition and tool acquisition are key drivers in adopting marketing analytics. Marketing analytics use has stronger effect on customer agility when market turbulence is high. They also revealed that the influence of customer agility on customer satisfaction in such conditions is stronger. Study 2 revealed that marketing analytics use at time point T1 has a significant and positive influence on customer agility at time point T2, while customer agility at time point T2 has a significant and positive influence on customer satisfaction at time point T3. These findings indicate strong temporal effects between marketing analytics use, customer agility, and customer satisfaction. The findings suggest that researchers should look beyond direct effects of marketing analytics use and shift their attention on how a marketing analytics can be leveraged to enable and support dynamic capabilities and customer satisfaction.

This examination aims to explore the impact of various aspects of entrepreneurial passion (EP) on SMEs retailers' performance through exploration (EXP) and exploitation (EXT) under different cultural contexts. Data were gathered from four various societies (i.e., U.K., China, UAE, and Egypt) to evaluate the links between the research factors. Our analysis revealed that both passion for inventing (PI) and passion for developing (PD) are positively associated to SMEs retailers' performance and these relationships are stronger in developed countries comparing with developing countries. However, SMEs retailers’ performance is not influenced by passion for founding (PF). The results also indicated that exploration and exploitation play a mediating role on these relationships. Our research offers meaningful implications for theory and practice.

Purpose This study's goal is to look at how visitors' experiences affect the indirect links between the destination's extrinsic motivations (DEMs) and tourists' intrinsic motives (TIMs), on the one hand, and the perceived destination image (PDI), on the other. Design/methodology/approach Using structural equation modeling, 613 tourists from different nationalities were used to test the five hypotheses. Findings The research results revealed that second-order destinations' extrinsic motivations directly impact TIM and PDI. It also showed that tourists' experiences as moderators reduce the direct effect of DEM on PDI for first-time visitors compared to repeat visitors. Moreover, it increases the direct effect of TIM on PDI for repeated visitors. Practical implications Destination managers can fix the problems that hurt their reputations and images by hiring police officers in tourist areas and cleaning tourist places. In the same way, destination managers and travel agencies should use AI tools to create social media marketing campaigns focusing on natural and historical monuments. Also, the marketing plans should stress the value for money (for example, lodging, food and attractions’ cost). Finally, destination marketers can make programs for repeat visitors, focusing on DEM and TIM. Originality/value This article tries to fill a gap in the research on PDI formation in emerging markets as a modern technique in destination marketing by using the push-intrinsic and pull-extrinsic theories. It also looks at how the tourists' experiences moderate the direct link between DEM, TIM and PDI. Lastly, this study examines how TIM affects a destination's image in emerging markets.

Our paper explores how individual customers’ promoter scores are linked to their electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) behaviour under different cultural contexts. We conducted two studies using experimental design to addresses these two research questions. The first study utilised a unique dataset comprising 4,864 hotel guests, enabling a comparison between the intentions suggested by their individual promoter scores and the actual e-WOM behaviour they subsequently engaged in on various online platforms. The second study used data collected from four different countries (I.e., US, UK, China, and Egypt) to validate the results of study 1 and to explore the influence of national culture on the relationships between individual promoter scores and the actual e-WOM behaviour. The findings of study 1 revealed that promoter scores have a significant positive effect on online message valence. Study 2 validated the results of study and it also revealed that the influence of net promoter score on positive WOM and negative WOM increases with increasing collectivism, power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity. Our research provides meaningful theoretical and practical implications for hotels managers.

Because Islamophobia has increased recently, Muslim tourists, who make up a crucial part of the global tourism market, prefer to travel to Muslim-friendly places. However, the perceived Muslim-friendly tourist destination image (MFTDI) remains completely unaddressed in the literature. Furthermore, there is no systematic empirical evidence concerning the impacts of the MFTDI on perceived value, satisfaction and Muslim actual visit behaviour. As a result, the purpose of this investigation is to define the multiple components of MFTDI, to explore the interrelationships within the MFTDI, value, satisfaction and Muslim actual visit behaviour, and to design and test a theoretical framework for the outcomes of MFTDI in the travel industry. To do so, nine hypotheses were established and evaluated using a survey of 576 Muslim travellers of different nationalities. The findings indicate that the dimensions of the proposed MFTDI model are critical for improving Muslim travellers' actual visit behaviours in the travel industry.

Pandemics are affecting tourism in many ways, and have had a major effect on international travel, the hospitality industry and tourism demand. Grounded in the protective action decision model and complexity theory, this study seeks to develop a model to explain the conditions that have led to travel avoidance in the UK in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. To test our proposed model, we used a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis of data gathered from 1,290 travelers, with semi-structured interviews conducted to confirm the configurations identified by the model. The findings indicate that effective pandemic information, effective risk communication, supplies, trust in government and trust in the media are necessary to combat travel avoidance, but the refutation of rumor and trust among traveler is not necessary to foster travel avoidance. Furthermore, qualitative follow-up interviews were conducted to obtain deeper insights into the discovered configurations and develop effective pathways to travel avoidance.

The growth of social media (SM) has contributed to the retail industry. Academics and professionals are specifically intrigued by how the fusion of SM might address the issue of establishing a relationship between consumers and sellers. By integrating insights drawn from the Informational Social Influence Theory (ISIT) and the Heuristic-Systematic Model (HSM), our study developed a model to comprehend factors affecting customers' online social shopping behaviours across various cultural environments. Our study utilised SEM/PLS to analyse data collected from 2305 respondents in four different countries. Findings revealed that the ISIT can be used to understand customers’ online social shopping behaviours. Our study indicated that normative social influence (NSI), informational social influence (ISI), utilitarian value (UTV), perceived member familiarity (PMF), and perceived information quality (PIQ) are key drivers of customers social behaviours in the developed societies, while hedonic value (HDV), perceived member closeness (PMC), perceived member similarity (PMS), and perceived member expertise (PME) are key drivers of customers social behaviour in the developing societies. The results demonstrated that a “one-size fits-all” paradigm is inadequate to capture the heterogeneity of customers social behaviour through various cultures. The theoretical and managerial implications were demonstrated.

Purpose The main purposes of this article are twofold: (1) to investigate the unexplored connections among destination gender personality, destination stereotypes, brand attachment and destination brand love and (2) to examine the moderating role of destination involvement in the association between destination stereotypes and destination brand attachment (DBA). Design/methodology/approach The conceptual model is evaluated using qualitative methods (i.e. three focus groups, six academic experts and a pilot study). In addition, using an empirical study with 610 international travelers who visited Egypt selected by systematic random sampling, 8 hypotheses were analyzed and tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) by AMOS 23, confirmatory factor analyses and exploratory factor analyses. Findings The study’s results suggest that destination gender plays a vital role in enhancing stereotypes, stereotypes positively affect attachment and DBA positively affects destination brand love. Finally, the results show that destination involvement moderates the dual influence of the warmth and competence of stereotypes on destination attachment. Practical implications The research supports the contention that social perception mechanisms are crucial in destination brand perception. It offers new understandings of the association between customers' destination brand perceptions and their responses to destinations. Originality/value This paper contributes to the travel literature by analyzing a novel model of destination gender personality, stereotypes, DBA and destination brand love using both social role (SR) theory and a stereotype content model (SCM). Besides attempting this task, it explores the moderating role of destination involvement in the association between stereotypes and destination attachment using the elaboration likelihood model.

Purpose- The authors' examination aims to offer a quantitative perspective on the interrelationships between tourist harassment, the destination image, emotions and destination revisit intent. Furthermore, it explores the moderating role of travelers' experiences and tolerance in the link between tourist harassment, the destination image and revisit intentions.Design/methodology/approach - The authors' examination seeks to fill this research gap by utilizing a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to test eight hypotheses using AMOS 23 and PROCESS MARCO.Findings-The findings showed that tourist harassment negatively impacts the destination image and revisit intentions. Moreover, it indicated that tourists' experiences and tolerance moderate the link between harassment, the destination image and revisit intentions for travelers with high levels of experience and tolerance compared to those with low levels.Originality/value - This article contributes to travel research and service failure recovery research on tourist harassment and its consequences. To this end, it developed and validated a new tourist harassment scale. Moreover, it is the first study that examines the moderating role of visitors' experiences and tolerance on the link between tourist harassment, the destination image and revisit intentions. Finally, this article is the first to empirically offer destination harassment reduction techniques.

This article proposes and tests a conceptual model to investigate a new mechanism among destination gender, stereotypes, destination attitudes, and destination revisit intention. Furthermore, it explores the moderating role of destination congruity in the link between destination gender and stereotypes on one hand and between stereotypes and destination attitudes on the other hand. The theoretical model is examined utilizing a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods to test eight hypotheses using AMOS 28 and PROCESS MARCO. This article provides significant practical and theoretical implications to the gender-based destination marketing research agenda as well as dependable guidance for destination officials and policymakers.