Website Evaluation an Empirical study of Arabian Gulf Airlines Saleh Alwahaishi1, Václav Snášel2, Amine Nehari-Talet1 King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals [email protected], [email protected] 2 VŠB–Technical University of Ostrava, Czech Republic [email protected]

1

ABSTRACT: Due to the internet and E-commerce booming, many airline companies are attempting to stimulate customers to shift from traditional distribution channels to online channels. Therefore, Web site quality is now considered a critical factor in attracting customers’ attention and build loyalty. This paper proposes an Airline Website Assessment Index (AWAI) – an index that assesses the website’s in four distinct areas transactional content, informational content, website design, and passenger enjoyment support. The AWAI scoring mechanism is explained and the index was applied on the top seven airline companies in the Arabian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries. Finally, conclusions and implications derived from this study are presented. This paper would be of a great help when Airlines’ websites need to be evaluated or ranked. Keywords: Website evaluation, assessment index, airline industry, Arabian Gulf Countries Received 12 December 2008, Revised 11 March 2009, Accepted 19 March 2009

1. Introduction The growing number of Internet users and the globalization of economic activities have led multinational firms to use their corporate Web sites to communicate and transact widely with visitors from different parts of the world [1]. The benefits presented by the new paradigms of the Internet medium are many and varied; customers and companies alike may benefit from the new ways of exchanging information, communicating and conducting trade. The airline industry is no exception to the e-commerce phenomenon [2]. Many airlines have established their own Web sites in order to detour travel agent intermediaries, becoming increasingly focused on online communication, information and transactions. In a recent study, it was found that traditional travel agencies continued to lose ground in 2008 in favor of online intermediaries – a trend that is also encouraging direct bookings with hotels, airlines and other carriers. About 161 million trips were booked online in 2008. The proportion of trips booked through travel agents (including those selling via the internet) has fallen to 24%. [3]. A company can differentiate itself by creating a unique customer experience such as superior customer service and in turn, brand the experience. Karl Cluck of Razorfish, recommends that “online marketers must enhance the user’s online experience in order to entice potential customers to buy” [4]. Airlines have increasingly adopted the Internet as a platform to generate new streams of profits. First, via online marketing and sale of their core services (e.g. flights, check-in and transportation) they have broadened their customer base. Maintaining long-term customer loyalty has been made easier by the integration of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems into their websites and the distribution of newsletters and offers by email [5][6]. Complementary services, such as car rental and hotel bookings, are also now offered on airline websites, contributing substantial streams of revenues. In this paper, we attempt to propose an index that could be used when measuring or assessing the airlines’ website quality. To this end, we will create a measure, i.e. an instrument, of airlines Web site quality in order to evaluate and test the results of Web site quality. Specifically, we examine seven airlines operated in the Arabian Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Countries– Etihad Airways, Emirates Airlines, Gulf Air, Kuwait Airways, Qatar Airways, Oman Air and Saudi Airlines. This paper is organized as follows. In the next section we provide a literature review, including an overview of Web site quality, tools and instruments. Next, we describe the research methodology and framework. In section 4, the instrument development, scoring mechanism and analysis are demonstrated. In section 5, the findings of this research are presented and discussed. Finally, in the last section, the paper provides conclusions from this research, including implications for future research and practice.

212

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

2. Web sites assessments tools: a review of the literature The Internet’s interactivity allows companies to respond more quickly to customer requests. Moreover, the ever-increasing speed of the Internet allows companies to communicate more quickly with current and potential customers, which is essential to retaining current customers and attracting new ones. A company with a Web site that is difficult to use and interact with will reflect a poor image on the Internet and weaken the company’s position. It is therefore important that a company be able to make an assessment of the quality of their e-commerce offering, as perceived by their customers and in the context of the industry. In doing so, companies can improve their offerings over time and benchmark against competitors and best practice in any industry. Boyd Collins developed the first formal approach to the evaluation of Web sites in late 1995. He founded the infofilter project, a model intended for librarians who needed to evaluate the quality of information on the internet, the model was based on six criteria, developed by combining evaluation criteria for printed media, and considering what was relevant for Web sites. These criteria are content, authority, organization, searchability, graphic design and innovative use. Various instruments have been developed for evaluating the different aspects of Web site quality [7]. The Web site quality evaluation method (QEM) proposed by Olsina et al. [8] can be considered as one of the main approaches. Between the main factors analyzed in this work we can find: functionality, usability (site map, addresses directory), efficiency and site reliability. Liu and Arnett [9] surveyed Webmasters for Fortune 1000 companies to ascertain the factors critical to Web site success with consumers. The result was five factors: quality of information, service, system use, playfulness, and design of the Web site. Loiacono et al. [10] designed an instrument to evaluate retail Web site quality called WebQual. The instrument assessed 12 components of retail Web quality: informational fit-to-task, interactivity, trust, response time, design appeal, intuitiveness, visual appeal, innovativeness, flow-emotional appeal, integrated communications, business process, and viable substitute. SiteQual was developed by asking students in two marketing classes to generate appropriate questions. Fifty-four unique items were generated, forming the basis for an instrument completed by 69 students for three self-selected sites [11]. eQual 4.0 (previously called WebQual 4.0) has been iteratively developed over time. The authors have used the instrument on student and customer samples to assess the quality of a number of different types of Web sites. In Barnes and Vidgen [12], a total of 380 student respondents evaluated online bookstores, using an instrument with 22 questions. Based on exploratory factor analysis, five dimensions emerged: usability, design, information quality, trust and empathy. Kim and Stoel [13], in their more simplified instrument, include three of the factors of Loiacono [9] plus three slightly different factors - entertainment, web appearance and transaction capability. E-S-Qual and E-RecS-Qual scales were developed for assessing the full cycle of service quality for online B2C e-commerce Web sites. The E-S-Qual scale developed in a 22-item scale of four dimensions: efficiency, fulfillment, system availability, and privacy. The second E-RecS-QUAL scale contained three dimensions (responsiveness, compensation, contact) with an 11-item scale [14]. Internet Standards Assessment Report (ISAR), provides industry benchmarks for Web site development and is based on data collected from more than 18,000 web site evaluations since 1997. The report evaluates average scores in more than 80 industries to create defined benchmarks in seven categories, including design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copywriting and ease of use. Currently, the results of web sites evaluations are very subjective; thus, site evaluators should be given precise guidelines to rate every factor. In order to avoid this subjectivity problem, a web assessment index can be used. According to Evans and King, this index represents a web assessment tool and must have five main components: categories, factors, weights, ratings and total score [15]. 3. Research framework and methodology There are a number of core features that a good quality Web site should possess [16] [17]. First, an effective Web site should serve as a major source of information; provide complete information on the products and services; and allow for quick access to information through tools like search engines. Customers also demand appropriate levels of service interaction including customer service, personalization and ease of contact in the event of a problem. Furthermore, a Web site should incorporate appropriate security measures and adopt privacy practices in order to develop customers’ trust. In addition, a Web site should be easy to navigate and typically have aesthetic appeal and an appearance that is appropriate for the organization. Such features also contribute to enjoyment or emotional appeal, which help to create flow [9] and retain the customer.

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

213

In our research, we have employed Evans and King Approach as well as the core features described above when developing our web assessment index. The first step is to choose the categories and factors that are critical to a web site’s effectiveness. Based on a detailed literature review, the index developed in this paper (Airlines Web Assessment Index or AWAI) considered four broad categories as the basis for an airline company’s; Web site quality; transactional content, informational content, passenger enjoyment/ support, and website design (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Framework for evaluating Airline website quality 4. Airline website index development Based on the literature review and Figure 1, this research focuses on four categorizes for developing the AWAI Index. To measure those four categories, 40 factors are developed. The key factors within each category are chosen based on the literature and the researchers’ experience, and must reflect what are generally considered to be important components and features of web sites by users: Transactional content is emphasized by Barnes and Vidgen [12] and Liu and Arnett [9] in their research instruments to measure Web site quality. In this research, transactional content is measured by 14 factors: • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Search for ticket by date Search for ticket by price Seat map/selection On board services (Meal preferences, handicapped support, kids or infants help) Book a flight online Change ticket online Cancel ticket online View current flight booking Multicity booking Payment method (credit cards, cash, etc) Delivery of ticket (e-ticket, paper ticket) Online Boarding Pass Ability to use/choose city name instead of airport code when search/book flights Search flights within a range of time (+ or - 3 days, + or - 7 days. etc)

Informational content is also emphasized by Barnes and Vidgen [12] and Liu and Arnett [9] in their research instruments. In this research, informational content is measured by 9 factors: • Destination Services (Car rental, hotel reservation, cheap flight connections, etc)

214

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

• • • • • • • •

Flight details (search for flight, departure, arrivals, etc) Flight Schedule Information for Business travelers Info about destination (City maps, travel guide, weather, customs, regulations, etc) In flight services/entertainment info Fleet info Privacy Policy Multimedia clips about aircraft types, route map, etc

Passenger enjoyment/ support comes from the Liu and Arnett’s [9] framework, Ethier’s [18] emotion system in using a Web site, and Kim and Stoel’s research [13], which involves the context of consumer behavior. In this research, we use 10 factors to measure this category: • • • • • • • • • •

Domestic Holidays Overseas Holidays Airline (on board) merchandise Joining Frequent Flyer program online Accessing Frequent Flyer services online Customer queries and feedback Currency convertor/calculator Special offers/deals Show/present alliance, partners, or code share flight within the company’s flights Offices/ sales representatives’ contacts

Web site design is based on the user-perceived Web quality instrument of Aladwani and Pal via [19] and Kim and Stoel’s [13] analysis, which contain items for Web site content and Web site appearance. There are 7 factors used to measure this category: • • • • • • •

Searching engine Secure Site Localized/customized website Company Information Career opportunities The site exist in more than two languages Popularity.

Alexa indicator (www.alexa.com) is used to measure the website popularity, which measure the website traffic based on three months of aggregated historical traffic data from millions of Alexa toolbar users and data obtained from other, diverse traffic data sources. Based on the Evan and Kings approach, weight should be assigned to the factors in order to numerically measure and assess the website quality (see Table 1). To maintain the reliability of weight assignment process, a 40 factor survey is distributed to the graduate students (n=20) of Business Administration major (MBA) of King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals. The students were asked to assign weight to the 40 factors to be totaled out of 100 based on their point of view as travelers as well as their business background. Due to time limitation the survey was created online (www. freeonlinesurveys.com) then the weight average of each factor was considered. Category/ factors

Weight

Informational Content

20

Destination Services (Car rental, hotel reservation, cheap flight connections, etc)

3

Flight details (search for flight, departure, arrivals, etc)

5

Flight Schedule

3

Information for Business travelers

2

Info about destination (City maps, travel guide, weather, customs, regulations, etc)

1

In flight services/entertainment info

1

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

215

Category/ factors

Weight

Fleet info

1

Privacy Policy

3

Multimedia clips about aircraft types, route map, etc

1

Passenger Enjoyment/ Support

25

Domestic Holidays

1

Overseas Holidays

1

Airline (on board) merchandise

1

Joining Frequent Flyer program online

5

Accessing Frequent Flyer services online

5

Customer queries and feedback

2

Currency convertor/calculator

2

Special offers/deals

5

Show/present alliance, partners, or code share flight within the company’s flights

1

Offices/ sales representatives’ contacts

2

Transactional Content

40

Search for ticket by date

1

Search for ticket by price

1

Seat map/selection

2

On board services (Meal preferences, handicapped support, kids or infants help)

2

Book a flight online

10

Change ticket online

2

Cancel ticket online

2

View current flight booking

3

Multi city booking

2

Payment method (credit cards, cash, etc)

5

Delivery of Ticket (e-ticket, paper ticket)

3

Online Boarding Pass

4

Ability to use/choose city name instead of airport code when search/book flights

1

Search flights within a range of time (+ or - 3 days, + or - 7 days. etc)

2

Website Design

15

Site search / searching engine

1

Secure Site

4

Localized/customized website

2

Company Information

1

Career opportunities

1

The site exist in more than two languages (native and English languages)

1

Popularity (Alexa Index)

5

Total

100

Table 1. Airline Web Assessment Index (AWAI) categories, factors and weights.

216

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

1.1 Background on the airlines examined • Saudi Airlines (http://www.saudiairlines.com) is the national airline of Saudi Arabia, based in Jeddah. It operates domestic and international scheduled flights to over 70 destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. Saudi Arabian Airlines is a member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization and IATA.

• Etihad Airways (http://www.etihadairways.com) is the national airline of the United Arab Emirates. The airline was set up by a Royal decree in July 2003, with Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, as its hub. Etihad started commercial operations in November 2003.

• Emirates Airlines (http://www.emirates.com) Established in October 1985, Emirates Airline today serves 101 cities in 61 countries with its base of operations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Award-winning Emirates Airline operates the world’s first A380 commercial service from Dubai to Australia and New Zealand.

• Qatar Airways (http://www.qatarairways.com) is the national airline of the State of Qatar. The airline operates 68 Boeing and Airbus aircraft. By 2013, the fleet size will almost double to 110 aircraft. Qatar Airways currently has more than 200 aircraft on order worth over US$40 billion for delivery over the next few years.

• Gulf Air (http://www.gulfair.com) was founded in 1950. Today, it is owned by the Kingdom of Bahrain, and is the only truly pan Gulf carrier in the region. The airline’s network stretches from Europe to Asia and covers 42 cities in 27 countries. The current fleet of Gulf Air consists of 29 aircraft.

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

217

• Oman Air (http://www.omanair.aero) operates as an airline company in Oman. It provides intra-Gulf commuter services and international airlines. The company was founded in 1993 and is based in Muscat, Oman.

• Kuwait Airways (http://www.kuwait-airways.com) formerly known as Kuwait National Airways Company and it changed its name to Kuwait Airways Corporation in 1955 and is based in Al Farwaniyah, Kuwait. Kuwait Airways fleet comprises 17 Boeing and Airbus aircraft, equipped with the latest entertainment systems.

5. Result Analysis The top seven airline companies that are operating in the Arabian Gulf Countries are examined and the AWAI tool was applied to their websites during May and June 2009. The highest scoring site using the assessment index was of the Emirates Airlines followed by Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Oman Air, Gulf Air, then Saudi Airlines, and the lowest was of the Kuwait Airways (see Figure 2, Table2).

Figure 2. Website Assessment Index values Category Airline

218

Informational Content

Passenger Enjoyment/ Support

Transactional Content

Website Design

Total

Emirates Airlines

17

25

36

15

93

Etihad Airways

14

20

35

11

80

Gulf Air

15

20

32

10

77

Kuwait Airways

14

20

28

9

71

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

Oman Air

17

22

32

8

79

Qatar Airways

17

25

36

13

91

Saudi Airlines

16

20

28

10

74

Table 2. Airline Web Assessment Index (AWAI) results for the tested airlines When it comes to the Airline industry, the transactional content category is one of the vital aspects of an airline company’s website since it contain many factors that reflect upon the evolution of an airline company from traditional distribution channels to online channels, e-ticket issuance, online boarding pass, e-payment methods, seat and meal preferences, different ticket search and booking options. This category holds the highest weight (40%) due to its crucial importance to the airlines websites. It is noticeable that the top two companies out of this category are the same top two companies in the overall assessment process (Emirates Airlines and Qatar Airways) (see Figure 3), which reflects a strong positive correlation between the transactional content of an airline website and the overall satisfaction and quality of that site. On the other hand, Kuwait Airways and Saudi Airlines score the lowest in this category and at the same time they have the lowest values in the overall AWAI assessment, which confirms the directly proportional relation between this category and the website overall quality (see Table 3). Airline

Transactional Content Assessment Percentage

Emirates Airlines

90%

Etihad Airways

88%

Gulf Air

80%

Kuwait Airways

70%

Oman Air

80%

Qatar Airways

90%

Saudi Airlines

70%

Table 3. Transactional content percentage values The informational content category, which holds 20% of the overall index weight, represents the company’s commitment towards its passengers in terms of on board and destination services. This category has many factors such as hotel reservations, car rental, on board entertainment, flights schedule and privacy policy. Ironically, Etihad Airways scored the lowest value in this category while it scored high in the transactional category. This could be due to the fact that Etihad Airways is the newest Airline we examined and currently has fairly limited cities where it operates (see Table 4).

Figure 3. Transactional content category

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

219

Airline

Informational Content Assessment Percentage

Emirates Airlines

85%

Etihad Airways

70%

Gulf Air

75%

Kuwait Airways

70%

Oman Air

85%

Qatar Airways

85%

Saudi Airlines

80%

Table 4. Informational content percentage values One of the most important issues in the airline industry is to develop and maintain passenger loyalty. This could be done through different means such as frequent flyer programs, miles rewards, deals or special offers, holiday packages as well as listening to passenger complaints and queries. Those factors were categorized under Passenger Enjoyment and support. Again, Emirates and Qatar Airways scored the highest values in this category while the rest of the companies scattered around the same lower score (see Table 5). Airline

Passenger Enjoyment Assessment Percentage

Emirates Airlines

100%

Etihad Airways

80%

Gulf Air

80%

Kuwait Airways

80%

Oman Air

88%

Qatar Airways

100%

Saudi Airlines

80%

Table 5. Passenger enjoyment percentage values If we relate this category to the informational content category, an obvious direct relation could be noticed (correlation coefficient = 0.789), since holiday packages and hotel reservations could be enlisted within the same interest. Thus, the same thing could be said about privacy policy and frequent flyer programs (see Figure 4) Website design is the fundamental measure of website popularity as well as navigability since it includes many indication factors such as website popularity, search engine optimization, website personalization, website security, and the number of languages the website supports. Airline companies’ online reservation systems have become a global phenomenon, hence

Figure 4. Informational vs. passenger enjoyment and support category

220

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

Figure 5. Website design category in compare to the overall site quality travelers never need to feel unfamiliar when using the airline website, such a behavior can be achieved by enabling website customization/personalization, so the passenger could select the country of origin or residence in order to receive localized offers as well as prices in the local currency. In addition, passengers never need to be concerned about the language of a website as they can always select their language of preference. Website popularity is another important factor that reflects the website’s global accessibility, yet revealing the success of the company in marketing itself as a global carrier rather than a national one. It is noticeable the strong positive relation between the website design and the overall website quality (correlation coefficient = 0.872) since the passengers’ prime concerns when performing online transactions are security and website’s ease of use (see Figure 5 and Table 6).

Airline

Website Design Percentage

Overall Assessment

Emirates Airlines

100%

93%

Etihad Airways

73%

80%

Gulf Air

67%

77%

Kuwait Airways

60%

71%

Oman Air

53%

79%

Qatar Airways

87%

91%

Saudi Airlines

67%

74%

Table 6. Website design vs. overall assessment Conclusion and Future Work This paper proposes and tests a model for assessing airlines’ website quality. The Airlines’ Website Assessment Index (AWAI) provides an integrated approach for researchers, managers, and people who are interested in the airline industry to compare attributes and components of airlines’ websites in order to specify limitations and opportunities. The main challenge in the elaboration of the index was to avoid subjective factors, which have been predominant in previous assessment tools. Our index is based on four broad categories: transactional content, informational content, passenger enjoyment/support, and website design, which are quantified in an objective and logical way. The statistical correlations among web page quality factors have been identified, in order to help airline companies to concentrate on the catalyst factors which will bring quality to their websites. This research provides avenues for future work by applying AWAI on top ranked US and European airlines and comparing them with their GCC counterparts to investigate the difference of the airline website quality in the developed and the developing countries. Finally, since Websites are dynamic and changeable mediums, it would be essential to re-evaluate the sites periodically. This evaluation over time would also shed some light on whether there is a greater divergence or convergence of Web activities.

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009

221

References [1] Chakraborty, D., S.K. Jaiswal, A. Misray, and A.A. Nanavati, Middleware architecture for evaluation and selection of 3rd-party Web services for service providers. ICWS ‘05: Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Web Services, Washington DC: IEEE Computer Society, 2005, pp. 647-654. [2] Shchiglik, C. and S.J. Barnes, Evaluating airlines Web sites: method and application. Journal of Computer Information Systems, 44:3, 2004, pp. 17-25. [3] Berlin, ITB (2009). World Travel Trends Report 2009. Retrieved 10 May 2009 from http://www1.messe-berlin.de/ vip8_1/website/Internet/Internet/www.itb-berlin/pdf/Publikationen/worldttr2009.pdf [4] New York E-Commerce Association Presents Experts on Online Branding; Industry Leading Internet Companies Discuss the Challenges of Creating Differentiation on the Web. (2000). Business Wire. March 22. p. 1. [5] Otim, S., Grover, V. (2006), An empirical study on web-based services and customer loyalty. European Journal of Information Systems 15, 527–541. [6] Li, D., Browne, G.J., Chau, P.Y.K. (2006), An empirical investigation of web site use using a commitment-based model. Decision Sciences 37, 427–444. [7] Xie, Zhou Cheng and Barnes, Stuart J (2008), Web Site Quality In: The Uk Airline Industry: A Longitudinal Examination. Retrieved 1 April 2009 from The Journal of Computer Information Systems: http://www.allbusiness.com/companyactivities-management/operations-customer/12300931-1.html [8] Olsina, L., Godoy, D., Lafuente, G., J. and Rossi, G. (1999), Specifying quality characteristics and attributes for websites. First ICSE Workshop on Web Engineering, Los Angeles, USA [9] Liu, C. And K. Arnett, K. Exploring the factors associated with Web site success in the context of electronic commerce. Information and Management, 38:1, 2000, pp. 23-33. [10] Loiacono, E.T., R.T. Watson, and D.L. Goodhue. WebQual: A Web Site Quality Instrument. Working Paper 2000-126-0, University of Georgia, 2000. [11] Yoo, B. and N. Donthu. Developing a scale to measure the perceived service quality, Quarterly Journal of Electronic Commerce, 2:1, 2001, pp. 31-47. [12] Barnes S.J. and R.T. Vidgen, An integrative approach to the assessment of e-commerce quality, Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 3:3, 2002, pp. 114-127. [13] Kim, S. and L. Stoel, Dimensional hierarchy of retail website quality, Information and Management, 41:5, 2004, pp. 619-633. [14] Parasuraman, A., V.A. Zeithaml, and A. Malhotra, A., E-S-Qual: a multiple-item scales for assessing electronic service quality, Journal of Service Research, 7:3, 2005, pp. 213-233. [15] Evans, J., R., and King, V. E., Business-to-business marketing and the World Wide Web: Planning, managing and assessing web sites, Industrial Marketing Management, Vol. 28, 1999, pp. 41-50 [16] Cappel, J.J. and Z. Y. Huang, A usability analysis of company websites, Journal of Computer Information Systems, 48:1, 2007, pp. 117-123. [17] Green D. and J. M. Pearson, Development of a Web site usability instrument based on ISO 9241-11, Journal of Computer Information Systems, 47: 1, 2006, pp. 66-72. [18] Ethier, J., P. Hadaya, J. Talbot, and J. Cadieux. B2C Web site quality and emotions during online shopping, Information and Management, 43:4, 2006, pp. 627-639. [19] Aladwania A.M. and P.C. Palvia, Developing and validating an instrument for measuring user-perceived Web quality, Information and Management, 39:6, 2002, pp. 467-476.

222

International Journal of Information Studies

Volume 1 Issue 3

July 2009