The role of green practices toward the green word-of-mouth using stimulus-organism-response model

Purpose: Consumer's environmental awareness and friendliness have been growing, and consumers are increasingly concerned about the impact of hotel operations on the environment. This study evaluated the effect of green practices on the customer's green word-of-mouth (GWOM) intention for hotels with environment-friendly operations. Design/methodology/approach: The data have been collected from tourists by using the judgmental sampling technique, and a usable sample size of 257 respondents has been achieved. The data analysis has been performed using partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings: There is a strong relationship between green practices adopted by hotels and the green image of hotels. This study also found that the green image of a hotel positively impacts consumer green satisfaction and green trust, and these two variables have significant influence over the GWOM. Practical implications: The study can be helpful in the promotion of environmentally sustainable consumer behavior in response to a stimulus being generated by the marketers and policymakers. Social implications: This study will further help society to share and discuss favorable information about environmental sustainability through GWOM. Originality/value: The study investigated the effect of green hotels on GWOM approximately after one year of the COVID-19 outbreak. Hence, the results can ascertain to be the basis of the new policies of the hotels in post-COVID world.