The Influences of Smart Technology Adoption on Booking Intention in a Budget Hotel During COVID-19 Pandemic Dendy Rosman (a*), Tri Wiyana (a), Mishella (a)
(a) Hotel Management Department, Faculty of Economics and Communication, Binus University. Syahdan No.9 Palmerah Jakarta Barat
*dendy.rosman[at]binus.ac.id
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic is predicted to accelerate hospitality robotization, as the use of service robots facilitate not only social distancing policy but also contactless interaction between hotel guest and employees, hence reducing the risk of spreading. Investing in technology in hotel business, such as robots, appears to be a viable option for regaining customer trust and stimulating demand. This study investigated how the budget hotel initiative implementing Robots, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Service Automation, as mean of mitigating the risk of COVID-19, influences the costumers^ booking intention. An adapted Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was developed in order to answer the research question and achieve the research objectives. There were 185 respondents involved in this study, and the data obtained were analyzed by using SmartPLS. The result indicated that the higher of consumers^ perception about technology usefulness, effectiveness and ease of use, the most likely the consumers to book a hotel room during COVID-19 pandemic. This study highlights that the hotel managers^ decisions to adopt various form of advanced technologies as initiatives to alleviate the risk of COVID-19 must be considered from the standpoint of the consumer.
Keywords: Service Robots- Artificial Intelligence- Automation- Employees perception
