The Role of Green Consumer Brand Engagement in Shaping Brand Loyalty Through Digital Marketing in the Hotel Industry

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Dear Authors,

Your work addresses a topic of clear interest, exploring the role of digital marketing and "green" consumer engagement in building brand loyalty. The study offers a valuable perspective on understanding loyalty dynamics within the luxury hotel sector in an emerging context such as Nigeria.

However, the manuscript exhibits certain critical aspects that could be addressed to enhance its theoretical, methodological, and practical robustness. In the following review, I have identified areas of weakness in each section of the manuscript and provided specific suggestions for revisions aimed at strengthening the overall impact and clarity of your contribution.

I trust that these recommendations will prove helpful in making your manuscript more comprehensive and accessible to both the academic audience and professionals in the field.

Kind regards,

Abstract:

Although the general context of the work is described, it lacks a clear indication of the main results and their significance. It does not highlight clearly enough the theoretical or practical importance of the results.

It is suggested to strengthen the abstract by including the main quantitative and qualitative results

Introduction:

The introduction describes the context well, but does not clearly articulate a specific gap in the literature. Although it mentions the importance of digital marketing and green engagement, it lacks a thorough explanation of why this study is particularly needed for the Nigerian context.

Furthermore, this introductory section does not seem to sufficiently link the practical context to the academic implications, leaving the reader with a sense of superficiality on the theoretical level.

It is suggested that the gaps in the literature and how the study contributes to filling them should be more clearly highlighted.

Literature Review:

Although relevant studies are cited, the discussion of the underlying theories (e.g. Social Exchange Theory and Relationship Marketing) is superficial. The psychological or behavioural mechanisms underlying green engagement are not explored.

The literature is often descriptive and a critical analysis assessing the limitations of existing studies is lacking.

One could supplement the theoretical discussion by including alternative models or related concepts (e.g. social capital theory).

Hypotheses:

Hypotheses suffer from a lack of originality; they are logical but predictable.

Hypotheses, although based on the literature, are not supported by a detailed argumentation to justify their formulation.

Methodology

Sample and procedure:

The use of a convenience sample limits the generalisability of the results, especially considering that the five-star hotel sector represents a niche market.

There is also a lack of discussion on the possible influence of demographic characteristics (e.g. income or educational level) on the results.

Measurement tools:

Although some measures are taken to reduce bias (e.g. anonymity), the impact of self-rated responses is not discussed in depth.

The measurement of variables may be limited by the 5-point Likert scale, which may not capture more subtle nuances in participants' judgements. More detailed and specific scales for each dimension investigated are suggested.

Results

There seems to be an over-reliance on numbers in the presentation and interpretation of results. Although many quantitative details are provided, there is a lack of a clear link between the statistical results and the practical or theoretical implications. It is suggested to provide a more in-depth narrative that interprets the results and places them in a practical context.

Some tables (e.g. regression analysis) are not sufficiently explained, making it difficult for the reader to interpret the results without further context.

With regard to the mediation analysis, there is a limited description of the mediator. The role of green involvement as mediator is discussed abstractly, without exploring how and why such mediation occurs. One could discuss the psychological or behavioural processes that explain the observed mediation.

Discussion and Conclusions

The theoretical discussion should better connect the results with the existing literature, limiting the opportunity to highlight significant theoretical contributions. It is suggested to expand the theoretical discussion by comparing the results with divergent studies or studies adopting different contexts.

The theoretical implications are rather general, and the relevance of the results for alternative models or theories is not sufficiently explored.

The practical implications section also suffers from a lack of specificity. No concrete recommendations emerge on how to implement more effective digital marketing strategies. . More detailed and applicable practical recommendations could be proposed, e.g. operational models or specific strategies for the hotel sector.

Limitations and future research:

The limitations lack a critical discussion of how these influence the results.

Innovative research areas to further explore the topic are also not proposed.

Integrate more in-depth reflection on methodological and theoretical limitations, suggesting alternative research designs (e.g. qualitative or longitudinal approaches).

 

In conclusion, this manuscript makes a useful contribution to the topic of digital marketing and sustainability, but has several shortcomings, especially in terms of theoretical depth, methodological rigour and interpretation of results. With targeted revisions in each section, the work could gain more validity and relevance both academically and practically.

Based on the revisions made and critical issues identified, I believe the manuscript needs a major revision

Comments on the Quality of English Language

The quality of English in the manuscript is generally adequate for understanding the research. However, there are several areas where the clarity and precision of the language could be improved. Certain sentences are overly complex or vague, which can hinder the reader's comprehension of key arguments and findings. Additionally, the phrasing in some sections lacks academic rigor, and transitions between ideas could be more fluid.  

It is recommended that the authors carefully review the manuscript for clarity and coherence, potentially seeking the assistance of a professional editor or native English speaker to ensure the research is expressed as clearly and effectively as possible.

Author Response

Answers are in attachement word file. 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Introduction may enhance to highlight the research contribution. The first paragraph was too long and should revised.

 

 Page 2 last paragraph missing references

Although the authors specify the local scope of the research, I believe it is necessary to reference results from similar studies conducted in other regions. The "Discussion" section could be expanded to include comparisons with published findings from other studies. The "Discussion" in this paper should be further developed.

 

2. Literature review and hypothesis development(well written ) but the authors should update references to include 2024/2023/2022  please use the recent study in 2024  (Khairy, H. A., Ahmed, M., Asiri, A., Gazzawe, F., Abdel Fatah, M. A., Ahmad, N., ... & Agina, M. F. (2024). Catalyzing Green Work Engagement in Hotel Businesses: Leveraging Artificial Intelligence. Sustainability, 16(16), 7102.‏) and recent study in  2023   (Agina, M. F., Khairy, H. A., Abdel Fatah, M. A., Manaa, Y. H., Abdallah, R. M., Aliane, N., ... & Al-Romeedy, B. S. (2023). Distributive Injustice and Work Disengagement in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry: Mediating Roles of the Workplace Negative Gossip and Organizational Cynicism. Sustainability, 15(20), 15011.‏)

 

 

Methodology

- response rate of the questionnaire was not provided and the exclusion of invalid questionnaires.

- you must show how to distribute your forms and method of collecting data

 

3.3. Data analysis

Well written

5. Discussion and conclusions: should separate to discuss your findings in discussion section / and highlight your major findings in separated conclusion section

 

 

- The research conclusion should focus on summarizing the main findings and important conclusions of the study.

 

5.1 Theoretical implications: I think this section is too long should eliminated only with major implication for theory

 

 

5.2 Practical implications: well written but may involve all implication that can be easily applicable and may practice by practitioners

Comments on the Quality of English Language

the manuscript need proofreading 

Author Response

Answers are in attachement word file

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

1. The research framework suggests no direct connections between digital marketing and brand loyalty, thus inconsistent with the research purpose.

2. It is unclear if green consumer brand engagement and green consumer engagement are interchangeable for their theoretical definitions in this study.  Yet they were used indifferently.  

3. Sample selection and sampling process need to be addressed.  

4. Is the total number of questionnaires issued the same as the number collected?

5. Has any item been eliminated after CFA?  Because INT had only four items left while there were five items for measurement.

6. Please specify what INT, UBT, CBT, CBE, and BL stand for.

7. Hypothesis 1 and 3 each come with 3 different sub-hypotheses.  I would suggest the authors break them down and make inferences for each of the sub-hypotheses.  

Author Response

Answers are in attachement word file. 

Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Since the respondents were from five-star hotels, it would be more adequate if the demographic data, i.e., marriage status, education, and/or disposable income...etc. could be used as control variables to minimize the possible confounding results of this study.

Author Response

Review Report Form

Open Review

( ) I would not like to sign my review report
(x) I would like to sign my review report

Quality of English Language

(x) The quality of English does not limit my understanding of the research.
( ) The English could be improved to more clearly express the research.

 

	Yes	Can be improved	Must be improved	Not applicable
Is the content succinctly described and contextualized with respect to previous and present theoretical background and empirical research (if applicable) on the topic?	(x)	( )	( )	( )
Are the research design, questions, hypotheses and methods clearly stated?	( )	(x)	( )	( )
Are the arguments and discussion of findings coherent, balanced and compelling?	( )	(x)	( )	( )
For empirical research, are the results clearly presented?	(x)	( )	( )	( )
Is the article adequately referenced?	(x)	( )	( )	( )
Are the conclusions thoroughly supported by the results presented in the article or referenced in secondary literature?	(x)	( )	( )	( )

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Since the respondents were from five-star hotels, it would be more adequate if the demographic data, i.e., marriage status, education, and/or disposable income...etc. could be used as control variables to minimize the possible confounding results of this study.

 

Response: Thank you for your comment. Statistical control technique of integrating control variables into the Hierarchical Regression Equation was employed. The results of the analyses are depicted below and integrated into the manuscript (Page 8):

Furthermore, the study incorporated income and educational level into the bivariate correlation analyses. The findings indicated no significant relationships between in-come, educational level, and the study constructs. Additionally, these demographic variables were included in Hierarchical Regression Analyses to examine potential confounding effects. The results demonstrated that income (β=0.033) and educational level (β=−0.022) had no significant impact on brand loyalty in model 4. This suggests that demographic variables do not exert a confounding influence. A similar approach has been observed in prior research [86].

86. Uludag, O. (2016). The mediating role of positive affectivity on testing the relationship of engagement to academic achievement: An empirical investigation of tourism students. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism, 16(3), 163-177, DOI:10.1080/15313220.2015.1123130

 

 

Author Response File: Author Response.docx