Hey Host, Do Communicate with Guests: Empirical Evidence from Airbnb

Abstract

Despite a wide practice of e-market sellers communicating with their consumers, littleattention is given to how the practice affects consumers’ purchase decision process. Based onthe text analysis of 10,479 accommodation cases obtained from Airbnb, we empiricallyexamine the relationship between the sellers’ communication efforts and the wish-listingbehaviors of guests. We find that the wish-listing is positively associated with thecommunication efforts of a host, such as (1) the feedback volume, (2) tailored messages andpersonalized contents, and (3) contingent responses to guest reviews. We discuss thetheoretical and practical implications of the study.