Do virtual tours really enhance customer satisfaction with physical experiences? A quasi-experimental study on Airbnb

Abstract

With the digitalization of the tourism and hospitality sectors, more attractions are introducing their virtual tours to the market. However, the impact of virtual tours on traditional physical experiences has yet to be fully explored. With the case of Airbnb rentals, this research employs a quasi-experimental design, using a propensity score matching approach to investigate the impact of integrating online virtual tours with physical experiences on customer satisfaction of the physical experiences. The findings indicate that adding an online virtual tour to the physical experience significantly increases customer satisfaction of the physical experience regarding advertising accuracy. Beyond this, virtual tours do not have a significant impact on other aspects of customer satisfaction of physical experiences. This research is among the first to explore the impact of virtual tours on post-trip behavioral outcomes rather than pre-trip intentions. It provides real-world evidence of how virtual tours align guest expectations, enhance marketing accuracy, and improve the customer experience journey across online and offline channels.