Examining the Impacts of Robot Service on Hotel Guest Experience

Abstract

The aim of the study is to assess the impact of robot service on hotel guest experiences. Application of technology in tourism and hospitality services is growing each day. Using robots in hospitality establishment is becoming more and more popular, mainly because it can help cut down the labor costs, increase efficiency and reduce human contacts. Very few studies, however, have been done on examining customer experience regarding robots used in the hotel. Social media sites such as TripAdvisor are popular platforms where people share their first-hand experiences. Hence, this study focuses on studying the reviews of robotic hotels. Using the software Leximancer, reviews were studied and categorized in different themes to understand if the presence of the robot would create positive or negative experience for customers. The sample of the study included total of 2383 reviews related to robotic hotels from TripAdvisor from January 2011 to October 2020. The findings highlighted the major themes as Room, Robot, Hotel and Staff and their relationship with the ratings. It also provided insights into the contribution of robot service to consumer’s hotel experiences.