Fostering tourist satisfaction and e-WOM through engagement and online cocreation

Digital technology has become critical for engaging tourists before and after their travel experience. Tourism service providers use digital platforms to interact with prospects and tourists before and after their travel experiences. This study tested a combination of constructs to understand how travel agencies can convert engaged customers into satisfied customers through online cocreation and influence their future behavior. A total of 316 Pakistani tourists participated in an online survey administered via Google Forms. The data were analysed using Smart Partial Least Squares (SMART PLS). Digital platforms enable toursits and service providers to enagage for sharing tourism related information. This study revealed that travel agencies can encourage engaged tourists to generate positive electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) by satisfying them through cocreating travel experiences. Cocreation is a process which can be initiated by tourist engagement and motivating them to participate in cocreating travel experiences. The results showed that cocreation is an effective strategy for satisfying engaged tourists through online platforms, ultimately turning them into producers of positive eWOM. Moreover, eWOM is a critical outcome for travel agencies seeking to engage future tourists, as it can be achieved through tourists' participation in cocreation and their satisfaction with the cocreation efforts of both the travel agency and the tourist. This study helps managers understand the importance of online cocreation in delivering tourist satisfaction and receiving positive eWOM. The results confirmed the critical role of cocreation, with satisfaction acting as a mediator and eWOM as an outcome of engaged tourists' cocreation behavior. The combination of constructs studied in this research not only fills an existing gap in the online cocreation literature but also guides travel agency managers on the effectiveness of cocreation as a strategy to achieve their business goals.