Critical events in the tourism industry: factors affecting the future intention to take a cruise

Purpose – In recent years, critical events have heavily affected the cruise industry. Such events may variously influence customers’ intention to take a cruise in the future depending on different factors. This paper aims to study such factors, in particular the emotions related to the event, the prior corporate reputation and the use of social media in the corporate communication strategies followed during the crisis. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on the development of a structured questionnaire submitted online via blogs and other social media. Overall, 572 cruiser opinions were used to test five research hypotheses by performing logistic regression analysis. Findings – The degree of anger increases the likelihood of a critical event influencing the intention to take a cruise in the future. On the contrary, a former excellent corporate reputation reduces that likelihood and the high importance placed by potential customers on information about the critical event transmitted via social media does not have any influence. Practical implications – The study has several managerial implications, as it identifies and analyses the variables cruise company managers should consider when dealing with critical events. Originality/value – Despite the relevance of this topic, no studies have yet focused on how (and by which factors) a critical event may influence customers’ intention to take a cruise in the future. Keywords Social media, Reputation, Cruise industry, Emotions, Critical event, Likelihood to take a cruise