Use of smart phone apps in co-creative hotel service innovation: an evidence from India

This research primarily examines the customer perspective in service innovation in the context of hotel co-creation. Further, present research proposes an extended basic model of technology adoption i.e. technology-based service (TBS) by analysing the impact of customer involvement, need for interaction and degree of co-creation on adoption intention between the hotel guests with the use of smart phone apps. The consequent effect of degree of co-creation on customer satisfaction is also examined. In this study, data were collected from 230 respondents, who were hotel guests in India. Survey method was used to obtain data. Data analysis was done with structure equation modelling (SEM). We find that consumer innovativeness positively and significantly has an effect on customer involvement. The results further reveal that among all antecedents of adoption intention (customer involvement, degree of co-creation and need for interaction), degree of co-creation bears the strongest influence on it and significantly affects customer satisfaction. Additionally, this study found that the degree of co-creation acts as a partial mediator between customer innovativeness and its two outcomes (adoption intention and customer satisfaction). The results will guide hotel managers about the technology adoption for customer co-creative innovation in hotel services.