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The purpose of this paper is to investigate how well hotel website load time performance compared against customer expectation benchmarks. In a competitive market, service interactions are important. As customers move to mobile devices, the time to load a website is a critical part of the service delivery. Long load times can lead to poor service experiences, customer frustration and lost business. Hotel website load times on both mobile and desktop devices were examined and compared to service expectations.

The study used an online service to assess and compare website load performance using both desktop and mobile devices for 259 international hotel company and sub-brand websites.

The time to load hotel websites was significantly slower on mobile devices compared to desktops. Load times on both platforms exceeded 3 s, which is considered best practice. Long load times represent a service gap and can cause dissatisfaction resulting in a potential customer abandoning the website for a competitor’s site, thus affecting sales.

While the population for the study was robust in size and contained most of the major hotel companies worldwide, it was not exhaustive. Data also represent a snapshot and will change over time. Load times vary based on test location, access device and network traffic. Additionally, web page load times and customer expectations will change as technology evolves.

Increased use of mobile devices for hotel reservations increases the importance of mobile service delivery. This is the first known study to measure hotel website load times for mobile devices, and to examine both mobile and desktop performance against best practice. The results of this study highlight a service gap, which can lead to loss of business. Given the consistency of the results, the authors suspect that this is an issue that has not been recognized within the industry. This study is valuable because it exposes an issue of website design not generally addressed in the hospitality industry, even though tools are available to monitor site performance.

Websites are the most important element of company strategy in the digital space. Therefore, establishing strategic management of online business is essential to improve firm connectedness and competitiveness and to achieve global company reach. This paper aims to propose the analysis of technical and content quality of websites to identify the main weaknesses and strengths of online business.

An innovative measurement instrument called IWebQEI is designed to measure web quality level. This instrument is validated with data from 104 international companies. The results are used to verify whether there are quality differences between informative and e-commerce websites.

The main findings indicate that e-commerce websites achieve greater levels of technical and content quality than informative sites, and companies implementing e-commerce pay more attention to the content quality dimension. In contrast, companies using an informative website are more focused on the technical quality dimension. Based on these results, practical insights are offered to improve the strategic management of e-commerce.

Few studies have focused on analysing the technical and content quality of websites to identify the main weaknesses and strengths of online business. The results offer important theoretical and practical contributions for companies on how to manage their website to improve firm connectivity and competitiveness.

Los sitios web son el elemento más importante de la estrategia digital de la compañia. Una gestión estratégica del negocio online es esencial para mejorar su conectividad, competitividad y para conseguir su alcance global. Este trabajo propone el análisis de la calidad técnica y de contenido de sitios web para identificar las principales debilidades y fortalezas del negocio online.

Para medir el nivel de calidad web, se ha diseñado un innovador instrumento de medición, denominado IWebQEI. Este instrumento se valida con datos de 104 empresas internacionales. Los resultados se utilizan para comprobar si existen diferencias de calidad entre las webs informativas y los e-commerce.

Las resultados indican que los e-commerce alcanzan mayores niveles de calidad técnica y de contenido que las webs informativas, y las empresas que implementan un e-commerce prestan más atención a la calidad de contenido. En cambio, las empresas que implementan una web informativa se centran más en la calidad técnica. A partir de estos resultados se ofrecen ideas prácticas para mejorar la gestión estratégica del e-commerce.

Pocos estudios analizan la calidad técnica y de contenido de los sitios web para identificar las principales debilidades y fortalezas del negocio online. Los resultados ofrecen importantes contribuciones teóricas y prácticas sobre cómo gestionar los sitios web para mejorar la conectividad y la competitividad de la compañia.

企业网站是公司在数字空间中战略的最重要元素。因此, 建立在线业务本身的战略管理对于提高公司的连通性和竞争力以及实现公司的全球影响力至关重要。本文提出对企业网站的技术和内容质量进行分析, 以确定在线业务的主要弱点和优势。

设计了一个创新的测量仪器, 称为IWebQEI, 用于测量网络质量水平。该仪器通过104家国际公司的数据进行验证。结果被用于检查信息网站和电子商务网站之间是否存在质量差异。

主要研究结果表明, 总体而言, 电子商务网站的技术质量和内容质量水平高于信息类网站, 实施电子商务的公司更注重内容质量维度。相比之下, 实施信息型网站的公司则更注重技术质量维度。基于这些结果, 为改进电子商务的战略管理提供了实际的见解。

以前的研究很少关注分析企业网站的技术和内容质量, 以确定在线业务的主要弱点和优势。研究结果为企业提供了重要的理论和实践贡献, 即如何管理企业网站以提高公司的连通性和竞争力。

This paper discusses the implementation of Web 2.0 technology for work experience (WE) in a tertiary context. The technology, specifically social networking software, was implemented in an attempt to help overcome challenges experienced by students out on WE at the Sharjah Higher Colleges of Technology. Typically faculty visited WE students in the field every few weeks but had little other direct interaction due to time and travel constraints, and many students reported feelings of isolation. A social network tool that we named Tawasul was implemented to help overcome this issue by building a virtual community of practice that included both students and faculty. Student feedback revealed strong support for the online application as well as significant differences between male and female students. It is clear from the study that emerging technologies such as social networking tools can help learning during WE, although there are academic and cultural issues that need to be taken into consideration.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which HTTPS encryption and Google Analytics services have been implemented on academic library websites, and discuss the privacy implications of free services that introduce web tracking of users.

The home pages of 279 academic libraries were analyzed for the presence of HTTPS, Google Analytics services and privacy-protection features.

Results indicate that HTTPS implementation on library websites is not widespread, and many libraries continue to offer non-secured connections without an automatically enforced redirect to a secure connection. Furthermore, a large majority of library websites included in the study have implemented Google Analytics and/or Google Tag Manager, yet only very few connect securely to Google via HTTPS or have implemented Google Analytics IP anonymization.

Librarians are encouraged to increase awareness of this issue and take concerted and coherent action across five interrelated areas: implementing secure web protocols (HTTPS), user education, privacy policies, informed consent and risk/benefit analyses.

Third-party tracking of users is prevalent across the web, and yet few studies demonstrate its extent and consequences for academic library websites.

The field of website quality evaluation attracts the interest of a range of disciplines, each bringing its own particular perspective to bear. This study aims to identify the main characteristics – methods, techniques and tools – of the instruments of evaluation described in this literature, with a specific concern for the factors analysed, and based on these, a multipurpose model is proposed for the development of new comprehensive instruments.

Following a systematic bibliographic review, 305 publications on website quality are examined, the field's leading authors, their disciplines of origin and the sectors to which the websites being assessed belong are identified, and the methods they employ characterised.

Evaluations of website quality tend to be conducted with one of three primary focuses: strategic, functional or experiential. The technique of expert analysis predominates over user studies and most of the instruments examined classify the characteristics to be evaluated – for example, usability and content – into factors that operate at different levels, albeit that there is little agreement on the names used in referring to them.

Based on the factors detected in the 50 most cited works, a model is developed that classifies these factors into 13 dimensions and more than 120 general parameters. The resulting model provides a comprehensive evaluation framework and constitutes an initial step towards a shared conceptualization of the discipline of website quality.

This paper investigates the integration of leadership training into IT curricula to develop current and future skills needed by the IT job market. The technical and non-technical skills required for IT professionals are presented and a conceptual model for including leadership training in technical courses is outlined. To implement this model, we adopted the Problem-Based Learning approach to teach an IT course. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered, through a survey, from 52 undergraduate students in the College of Information Technology at Zayed University. Our results show that our adopted approach was successful in teaching IT skills as well as developing leadership skills. Given these findings, we highlight the importance and feasibility of integrating leadership development on a daily basis within technical courses to develop both the technical and non technical skills required by the job market.

Online shoppers make product purchase decisions based on product information shown on a retailer's website and potentially in comparison to that seen on competitors' websites. Insufficient, poor quality or missing information about a product can lead to reduced retailer sales. Measuring online product information quality (PIQ) is therefore an essential element in helping retailers maximize their potential success. This paper aims (1) to identify directly quantifiable PIQ criteria, (2) to assess the effects of PIQ and (3) to evaluate the moderating effect of product involvement.

The authors conducted a scenario-based experiment within 3,544 do-it-yourself (DIY) online shoppers from the United Kingdom (UK). Within an 8 × 2 × 2 between-subjects design, the authors manipulated the factors PIQ criteria (8), PIQ level (2) and product type (2).

The findings support that poor PIQ has a negative impact on consumers online shopping outcomes. The authors also found that the effects of PIQ differ between the various criteria, the product category and the level of consumer involvement in the selling process. In the context of product depiction, title readability and product attribute comparability with other retailers' websites a high level of PIQ is required. Moreover, high involvement products need a higher level of PIQ than low involvement products.

This research expands website quality and service failure literature by introducing PIQ criteria and its effects in the context of online retailing. The authors also establish actionable managerial recommendations to assist retailers to embrace and utilize PIQ to better understand their own potential website and thus business improvements.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce Google Analytics as a format suitable for advanced tracking of reading behavior within web books, set the metrics for measuring the reading behavior of web books and describe the first results of a pilot study. This paper offers suggestions for further deployment of web books and web analytics in digital libraries and evaluating web books' performance.

To understand the reading behavior of web book users, researchers use quantitative research methods based on custom and advanced metrics at Google Analytics.

Google Analytics is a valuable tool for tracking access to individual books and tracking entire web book collections, mainly if researchers use the combination of unique custom and advanced metrics. A pilot study with 190 users uncovered significant results on reading behavior, for example, the strong preference for scrolling over navigation buttons.

This pilot study is limited to measuring two web books and 190 users. This study demonstrated a workable setup of metrics for measuring reading behavior; it would be helpful to continue measurement with a larger sample of books and users.

Researchers in library and information science currently use web analytics mainly to understand user behavior on the website and in the catalog. This paper presents the possibilities of deploying Google Analytics directly in web books to understand reading behavior.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role that Facebook Fan Pages (FFPs) play in the generation of visit intention. The study has three objectives: first, to examine the effects of museum-generated content (MGC) on perceived information quality and perceived customer service and perceived information quality and perceived customer service on visit intention and, second, to test the model with two samples to make comparisons that provide useful insights.

Data were collected through an online survey that achieved 308 valid responses. A multi-group analysis was conducted to compare the results from two groups: users of the Frida Kahlo museum and Anahuacalli museum FFPs.

The results reveal that there are significant differences between the two samples regarding the direct effects of perceived information quality on visit intention and perceived customer service on visit intention. The authors also noted a slight difference between the two museums’ FFPs in the relationship between MGC and perceived information quality.

Further research is needed to examine other FFP factors that influence visit intention to clarify the results obtained from the two samples and to analyse the proposed model in other settings. This research contributes to the literature concerning the impact of online platforms on visit intention.

The findings provide useful insights for managers as to how to increase their FFP followers’ intention to visit their establishments.

El propósito de esta investigación es examinar el papel que desempeñan las páginas de fans de Facebook (PFFs) en la generación de intenciones de visita. El objetivo de este estudio es doble: primero, examinar los efectos del contenido generado por el museo sobre la calidad de la información percibida y el atención al cliente percibido, y la calidad de la información percibida y el atención al cliente percibido sobre las intenciones de la visita y el segundo, probar el modelo en dos muestras para establecer una comparación que proporcione ideas útiles.

Los datos fueron recogidos a través de una encuesta online de 308 respuestas válidas. Se realiza un análisis multigrupo para comparar los resultados entre dos grupos: PFF del museo de Frida Kahlo y la PFF del museo Anahuacalli.

Los resultados revelan que existen diferencias significativas entre las dos muestras con respecto a los efectos directos de la calidad de la información percibida en las intenciones de visita y el servicio al cliente percibido en las intenciones de visita. También se ha observado una ligera diferencia entre las PFF de los dos museos en la relación entre el contenido generado por el museo y la calidad de la información percibida.

Se necesita más investigación para examinar otros factores en las PFF que influyen en las intenciones de visitar, aclarar los diferentes resultados obtenidos en las dos muestras y analizar el modelo propuesto en otros entornos. Esta investigación contribuye a la literatura sobre el impacto de las plataformas online en las intenciones de visitar.

Los resultados proporcionan información útil para los gerentes sobre cómo aumentar las intenciones de sus seguidores de visitar sus establecimientos.

Intención de visitar, Contenido generado por el museo, Calidad de la información percibida, Atención al cliente percibido, Facebook

Trabajo de investigación