Purpose This paper aims to examine how online reviews and electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) convert homestay service encounters in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries into platform-visible signals that shape discoverability and demand, and distinguishes optimisable drives from non-negotiable threshold conditions. Design/methodology/approach The authors analyse 47,186 online reviews and a SERVQUAL-based guest survey. The structural equation modelling (SEM) estimates the path from SERVQUAL to satisfaction to positive eWOM, testing an asymmetric penalty for poor responsiveness, while the necessary condition analysis identifies minimum performance levels required for high satisfaction; the authors also examine moderation by digital trust cues and management response behaviour. Findings Empathy is the strongest driver of satisfaction, followed by reliability and assurance. Responsiveness shows an asymmetric penalty. Slow or curt replies below expectation hurt satisfaction far more than above-average responsiveness helps it. Tangibles, reliability and responsiveness form non-compensatory floors, below which high Satisfaction is unlikely. Satisfaction does not automatically produce positive eWOM. Instead, the satisfaction-advocacy link is contingent on strong digital trust cues and visible, timely management response behaviour. The direct path from satisfaction to positive eWOM is non-significant; advocacy emerges only when satisfied guests also perceive high platform-mediated trust and prompt host engagement in responses. Research limitations/implications The review corpus is primarily English-language content from online travel platforms, which may under-represent perspectives expressed only in regional languages. Multilingual and longitudinal extensions linking platform signals to bookings are needed. Originality/value The authors extend SERVQUAL to platform-mediated homestays, reconcile SEM (drivers) with necessary condition analysis (NCA) (floors) and formalise digital trust as cues and public response behaviour as boundary conditions for converting satisfaction into public advocacy. Owners should manage tangibles, reliability and responsiveness as minimum standards, such as cleanliness, accurate listings, timely and polite replies and script Empathy in communication through pre-arrival messages, host bios and review responses, so that warmth and accountability are visible to future guests.
Barbhuiya et al. (Thu,) studied this question.