Social presence, telepresence and customers’ intention to purchase online peer-to-peer accommodation : a mediating model

Abstract

As essential features of cyberspace, social presence and telepresence play critical roles in online commerce. However, it remains unclear whether and how they can shape P2P accommodation customers' purchase intention. This study models the impact of social presence and telepresence as being mediated by three emotional responses – trust, enjoyment and sociability. The model was then tested by structural equation modeling using online survey data comprising 571 Chinese P2P accommodation customers. Results suggest that three dimensions of social presence (social presence of Web, other buyers and sellers) and telepresence indirectly influence customers' purchase intention via different mediating routes. These findings point to a new marketing strategy where consumers’ participation can be encouraged by improving presence elements, and thus can be valuable for P2P accommodation operators to retain and develop customer base.