Live streaming characteristics, motivational factors, trust and impulsive hotel booking intention: mediating role of customer engagement and moderating role of time pressure

This study investigates the influence of live streaming characteristics and motivational factors on consumer trust, engagement, and impulsive booking behaviors within the hospitality industry in Saudi Arabia. Leveraging the country’s rapidly expanding digital economy and high internet penetration, the research focuses on how key live streaming elements – professionalism, informativeness, entertainment, and interactivity – shape consumer trust, which in turn affects engagement and impulsive booking intentions. The study employs a quantitative research methodology, using an online survey administered to 383 participants who actively engage with live streaming platforms for hotel bookings. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data, revealing that live streaming characteristics significantly influence trust, which subsequently drives customer engagement and impulsive bookings. However, time pressure was found to moderate these relationships, weakening the impact of engagement on impulsive booking under high-pressure conditions. The findings underscore the critical role of trust as a mediator and highlight the importance of balancing engagement strategies with appropriate levels of time pressure to optimize consumer outcomes. This study offers practical implications for hospitality businesses aiming to enhance their digital marketing strategies and provides theoretical contributions to the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) Model, Trust construct, Impulse Buying Model, and Self-Determination Theory (SDT).