Indicator System and Construction Level of Online Service Functions on New Media Platforms of Tourist Attractions: A Case Study of Yangzhou City, China
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Dear Authors!
The manuscript is well written and interesting. Touches on a current topic.
The title reflects the content of the manuscript.
The manuscript complies with the rules of academic ethics.
A small recommendation for a better understanding is to slightly improve the abstract.
The abstract must include sufficient information for readers to judge the nature and significance of the topic. The abstract should contain the main idea of the paper, the subject and the goal of the research, methods used, hypotheses, research results and a brief conclusion.
I am grateful to the authors for the interesting material they have prepared.
Best regards
Author Response
Point 1. A small recommendation for a better understanding is to slightly improve the abstract. The abstract must include sufficient information for readers to judge the nature and significance of the topic. The abstract should contain the main idea of the paper, the subject and the goal of the research, methods used, hypotheses, research results and a brief conclusion.
Response 1: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. The modifying abstract is that
Along with the rapid development of the mobile Internet, new media platforms are an important medium to assist tourist attractions to reach tourists with their tourism services. This study takes the tourist attractions in Yangzhou, a famous historical and cultural city in China, as the research cases. Firstly, a classification system for the online service functions on new media platforms (NMPOSF) of tourist attractions is proposed. Then, an indicator system for evaluating the con-struction level of NMPOSF is constructed using the hierarchical analysis method. Finally, the con-struction level of NMPOSF for 57 A-grade tourist attractions in Yangzhou City of China is evalu-ated and analyzed based on the indicator system. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) There are 4 first-level functional indicators of NMPOSF of tourist attractions: information push, local service, electronic business and interactive consultation. It also covers 24 second-level functional indicators; (2) There are significant differences in the construction level of NMPOSF among new media platforms. Currently, Amap has advantages in the number of tourist attractions, the num-ber of service functions and comprehensive scores; (3) The construction level of different types of NMPOSF is also different. The type of highest construction level is interactive consultation, and the type of lowest construction level is local service; (4) There is still much room for the improve-ment of NMPOSF of tourism attractions of grade A or above in Yangzhou City, and Slender West Lake has the highest construction level of NMPOSF currently. This study provides an empirical basis for the functional construction and service enhancement of new media platforms in tourist attractions in the mobile Internet era.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 10-28 on the 1st page.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 2 Report
First of all I would like to thank the editor for the chance to review this manuscript and the authors for the overall effort in preparing and submitting this manuscript. According to my knowledge, this manuscript attempts to categorize the new media platforms used to promote tourist attractions in Yangzhou. The concept appears to be intriguing. However, I have several concerns about the methodology, procedure, and conclusions of this study.
1 - 2.1 Study Area. The classification of tourist attractions into five levels of A grade classification in table 1 is not clear. It is critical to provide additional information about the specific table.
2 - 2.2 Data Sources. It is unclear how the sources of data end up on the five new media platforms. The question is what criteria are used to exclude similar platforms such as Tumblr, Pinterest, and Instagram.
3 - Sections 4.1, 4,2, and 4.3 justify the methodology for evaluating tourist attractions and are thus unrelated to the results section.
4 - According to conclusion "this study provides a data basis and a theoretical basis for the improvement of the construction of NMPOSF of tourist attractions from the supply perspective". If this is a result of the research, it is unclear how this database was created in this manuscript. However, no database results were obtained, but rather an evaluation of tourist attractions using promotion software and the index method of observation.
5 - After reading the manuscript, it is unclear what the current study's methodology is, what the practical implications are, what the conclusions related to research questions are, and what the implications of the methodology used are. If the case study methodology is used, the steps taken during the research process must be detailed.
6 - A reference to the research's bibliographic background is missing from the introduction. As stated in the introduction, the question is whether the methodology is novel and is being used for the first time in the evaluation of tourist attractions. However, a quick search reveals that the manuscript ignores relevant bibliography. The role of social media in online travel information search, the relationship of major online review platforms with hospitality and tourism, and the use of indicators of tourist attractions and destinations as a management tool are all questions that arise.
7 - The NMPOSF indicator, which stands for "New Media Platforms of Service Functions," is the manuscript's research tool. There is no mention of the index's origin, its research use to date, or the precise manner in which it is applied.
8 - It is unclear what table 3 shows, where it came from, and how the charges shown in each functional description were calculated.
9 - 2.3.2 presents the formula for the manuscript's research tool, the NMPOSF indicator. The question then becomes, in which studies has this formula been used, what calculation procedure was used in these studies, and what purpose they served. If it is a novel method, it must be thoroughly explained.
10 - Tables 4 and 5 show the differences in online services provided by tourist attractions, as well as the level of construction of online service functions on various new media platforms. It is necessary to clarify the process by which these differences were recorded in the five platforms, as well as the source of origin of the two tables.
Comments for author File: Comments.pdf
Author Response
Point 1. 2.1 Study Area. The classification of tourist attractions into five levels of A grade classification in table 1 is not clear. It is critical to provide additional information about the specific table.
Response 1: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. In the revised version, the description and basis of the A grade classification of tourist attractions in China are supplemented. The modifying content is that
In China, the national standard of rating for quality of tourist attractions (GB/T 17775-2003) is used to classify tourist attractions into five grades. From high to low are AAAAA, AAAA, AAA, AA and A-grade tourist attractions. Tourist attractions that have not passed the assessment procedure of the tourist administrative unit shall not have quality grades.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 132-135 on the 4th page.
Point 2. 2.2 Data Sources. It is unclear how the sources of data end up on the five new media platforms. The question is what criteria are used to exclude similar platforms such as Tumblr, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Response 2: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. This paper takes Yangzhou, a famous historical city in China, as the research area. The tourism market in Yangzhou is dominated by domestic tourists. Therefore, 5 mainstream domestic new media platforms in China have been selected as data sources. Moreover, these 5 new media platforms belong to different fields and have significant popularity in China. The description of these platforms is detailed in Table 2.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 150-152 on the 5th page.
Point 3. Sections 4.1, 4,2, and 4.3 justify the methodology for evaluating tourist attractions and are thus unrelated to the results section.
Response 3: I agree with the reviewer's comment. On the one hand, the Sections 4.1,4.2 and 4.3 are aimed at the discussion of research methods and research results in this paper, so the Section “Discussion” is set separately, which is separated from the Section 3 “Result analysis”. On the other hand, the Sections 4.1,4.2 and 4.3 reflect the significance of this study. The revised version adds the Section " 4.1. The significance" and adjusts and improves the original content.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 376-407 on the 17th page.
Point 4. According to conclusion "this study provides a data basis and a theoretical basis for the improvement of the construction of NMPOSF of tourist attractions from the supply perspective". If this is a result of the research, it is unclear how this database was created in this manuscript. However, no database results were obtained, but rather an evaluation of tourist attractions using promotion software and the index method of observation.
Response 4: I agree with the reviewer's comment. A more accurate expression is “this study provides a theoretical basis and a practical reference for the improvement of the construction of NMPOSF of tourist attractions from the supply perspective”. At the theoretical level, the indicator system of the construction level of NMPOSF is constructed; at the practical level, the investigation results of the actual construction level of NMPOSF in Yangzhou City are obtained. However, due to the optimization of the content of the Section “5 Conclusion”, this sentence is deleted in the revised version.
Point 5. After reading the manuscript, it is unclear what the current study's methodology is, what the practical implications are, what the conclusions related to research questions are, and what the implications of the methodology used are. If the case study methodology is used, the steps taken during the research process must be detailed.
Response 5: Section “2.3 Study Method” introduces the methodology of this study. The modifying content is that
Based on the list of 57 A-grade tourist attractions in Yangzhou, this study used the full names or keywords to find and identify the official account of tourist attrac-tions on the 5 new media platforms in Table 2. The online service functions provided by the 5 new media platform are statistically summarized specifically, and the system of the NMPOSF of tourist attractions is sorted out. Then, the evalua-tion indicator system of the construction level of NMPOSF is constructed by using the analytical hierarchy process. Based on the functional system and evaluation indicator system, the construction level of NMPOSF of 57 A-grade tourist attractions in Yang-zhou City is measured. The technical route of this study is Figure 2.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 158-166 on the 5th page. The technical route of this study is Figure 2 on the 6th page.
Point 6. A reference to the research's bibliographic background is missing from the introduction. As stated in the introduction, the question is whether the methodology is novel and is being used for the first time in the evaluation of tourist attractions. However, a quick search reveals that the manuscript ignores relevant bibliography. The role of social media in online travel information search, the relationship of major online review platforms with hospitality and tourism, and the use of indicators of tourist attractions and destinations as a management tool are all questions that arise.
Response 6: I agree with the reviewer's comment. The recommended references were studied, and the references of relevant studies have been added in the revised version.
- Park, Y.A.; Gretzel, U. Success factors for destination marketing web sites: A qualitative meta- analysis. J. Travel Res. 2007, 46, 46-63.
- Lam, C.; Law, R. Readiness of upscale and luxury-branded hotels for digital transformation. Int. J. Hosp. Manag. 2019, 79, 60-69.
- Cheng, S.; Xu, F. Study on Chinese Tourism Web Sites' Distribution and Online Marketing Effects. J. China Tour. Res. 2010, 6, 383-395.
- Niu, Y.; Zeng W. Study on the status quo of tourism website branding: Taking China's 5A level scenic area as an example. Tour. Trib. 2013, 28, 84-92.
- Chu, S.; Kim, Y. Determinants of consumer engagement in electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) in social networking sites. Int. J. Advert. 2011, 30, 47-75.
- Schmidt, S.; Cantallops, A.S.; Dos, C.P. The characteristics of hotel websites and their implications for website effectiveness. Int. J. Hosp. Manag. 2008, 27, 504-516.
- Hu, Y.; Mei, L.; Chen, Y. Study on the quality measurement and spatial characteristics of Chinese 5A tourist attractions web-site. Geogr. Sci. 2016, 36, 548-554.
Point 7. The NMPOSF indicator, which stands for "New Media Platforms of Service Functions," is the manuscript's research tool. There is no mention of the index's origin, its research use to date, or the precise manner in which it is applied.
Response 7: NMPOSF stands for “online service functions on new media platforms”. The purpose of this paper is to propose research methods to evaluate the NMPOSF of tourist attractions. The evaluation indicator system of the construction level of NMPOSF is constructed in the Section 2.3.1, and the evaluation indicator system is in Table 3.
Point 8. It is unclear what table 3 shows, where it came from, and how the charges shown in each functional description were calculated.
Response 8: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. For the Table 3 “indicator system”, first, the online service functions provided by the 5 new media platform are statistically summarized specifically, and the system of the NMPOSF of tourist attractions is sorted out; second, the weights of the functional indicators of the new media platform for tourist attractions are calculated through an analytical hierarchy process. Fifteen experts, including tourism attraction research experts, tourism attraction pub-lic operators and travel agency product designers, are selected to evaluate the im-portance of all indicators; third, the weight coefficients of this study refer to literature [33].
For the calculation method of each functional description, first, in a particular tourist attraction's new media platform, each second-level function indicator is scored as 1 if it is available, and 0 if it is not. If the tourist attraction has not yet opened an account in the new media platform, and none of the functions are available, its score for each function indicator will be scored as 0; second, the scores of each second-level function indicator are multiplied by the second-level weights and summed up to obtain a score for the first-level function indicator of the new media platform for tourist attractions; third, the scores of each first-level function indicator are multiplied by the first-level weights and summed up to obtain an overall score for the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions; forth, the average of the overall scores obtained by the same tourist attraction on different new media platforms is calculated to obtain a synthesis score of the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 169-216 on the 6th-8th page.
Point 9. 2.3.2 presents the formula for the manuscript's research tool, the NMPOSF indicator. The question then becomes, in which studies has this formula been used, what calculation procedure was used in these studies, and what purpose they served. If it is a novel method, it must be thoroughly explained.
Response 9: I agree with the reviewer's comment. First, in a particular tourist attraction's new media platform, each second-level function indicator is scored as 1 if it is available, and 0 if it is not. If the tourist attraction has not yet opened an account in the new media platform, and none of the functions are available, its score for each function indicator will be scored as 0.
Second, the scores of each second-level function indicator are multiplied by the second-level weights and summed up to obtain a score for the first-level function indicator of the new media platform for tourist attractions.
Third, the scores of each first-level function indicator are multiplied by the first-level weights and summed up to obtain an overall score for the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions.
Forth, the average of the overall scores obtained by the same tourist attraction on different new media platforms is calculated to obtain a synthesis score of the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 199-216 on the 8th page.
Point 10. Tables 4 and 5 show the differences in online services provided by tourist attractions, as well as the level of construction of online service functions on various new media platforms. It is necessary to clarify the process by which these differences were recorded in the five platforms, as well as the source of origin of the two tables.
Response 10: For the table 4, taking tourist attraction as the basic dimension, the online service functions pro-vided by 57 A-grade tourist attractions on 5 new media platforms are counted separately, and the statistical results are scored according to Table 3 and Formulas (1)-(3). The statistical results are shown in Table 4.
For the table 5, taking online service function as the basic dimension, the number of tourist at-tractions providing various functions is counted separately to obtain the setting fre-quency of each function. The statistical results are shown in Table 5. Take (A1) func-tion as an example. In the WeChat public account, 27 of the 57 tourist attractions pro-vided this function, and its setting frequency (27/57) ranked first compared with the other 23 functions of NMPOSF; in the Dianping, 46 of the 57 tourist attractions pro-vided this function, and its setting frequency (46/57) ranked second among the other 23 functions of NMPOSF.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 229-232 on the 8th page, and the lines 269-275 on the 13rd page.
Author Response File: 
Author Response.docx
Reviewer 3 Report
Thank you for this interesting research. This study aims to identify an indicator system for evaluating the construction level of the online service functions on new media platforms constructed using the hierarchical analysis method. Hereby are some comments that may help you improve on it:
1) Introduction
Overall, the introduction section is ok. The authors mentioned that “Tourism online service has been an important field of tourism research. However, contrary to the vigorous development of mobile information technology practices, the field related to tourism research still lacks sufficient academic attention to the new advances in mobile information technology represented by new media.” Are there any academic papers could be cited?
2) Discussion
I suggest the authors enhance the discussions between research results and the extant theory or research gaps.
3) Results and Limitations
The results are fruitful, but how about the contributions from the Asia perspective to global perspective? Limitations of the study should also be discussed.
I hope that these notes are helpful in reviewing your article.
Author Response
Point 1. Overall, the introduction section is ok. The authors mentioned that “Tourism online service has been an important field of tourism research. However, contrary to the vigorous development of mobile information technology practices, the field related to tourism research still lacks sufficient academic attention to the new advances in mobile information technology represented by new media.” Are there any academic papers could be cited?
Response 1: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. The citation of relevant references was added. The modifying content is that
…the field related to tourism research still lacks sufficient academic attention to the new advances in mobile information technology represented by new media [9].
- Shi, T.; Guan, Y.; Weng, S. A Study of Spatial Characteristics of WeChat Official Accounts’ Function Construction Level of 5A Scenic Spots in China. Tour. Sci. 2021, 35, 100-119.
Point 2. I suggest the authors enhance the discussions between research results and the extant theory or research gaps.
Response 2: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. The content of the Section “4 Discussion” is supplemented. Firstly, in Section 4.1, the significance of the research methods and results of this paper is summarized, which supports a theoretical foundation for the understanding of NMPOSF. Then, in Section 4.2, combined with the actual situation, the measures for the enhancement of NMPOSF are condensed, and suggestions for future development are put forward.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the section 4 on the 18th page.
Point 3. The results are fruitful, but how about the contributions from the Asia perspective to global perspective? Limitations of the study should also be discussed.
Response 3: I agree with the reviewer's comment. In the new round of mobile Internet-based tourism wisdom development process, the combination of Internet plus, new media, big data and other information technology with tourism is not only the focus of Chinese tourism industry, but also the trend of global tourism development. In the future, we can use the method proposed in the paper to evaluate the construction level of NMPOSF of individual, regional or national scenic spots, to help them examine the problems of construction of NMPOSF. Furthermore, guide its improvement the construction level of NMPOSF, help the smart tourism management and service to be upgraded.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 466-473 on the 19th page.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
Reviewer 4 Report
Thank you for the opportunity to review the manuscript, Indicator System and Construction Level of Online Service Functions on New Media Platforms of Tourist Attractions: A Case Study of Yangzhou City, China.
I must commend the authors, the study is well written, but I have the following observations
1. The manuscript needs English editing, in some sections, it was written like a descriptive essay.
2. Indicate the source(s) that categorized the tourist attraction to AAA
3. The Author(s) are advised to justify the purpose of the location use, and why it was necessary to conduct such a study.
4. Table 1. A tourist attractions list of Yangzhou City indicates the source/reference
5. The new media choices that the paper used are primarily used in China (WeChat, Sina etc), so if the target is internal tourists, I recommend that it should be mentioned in the manuscript
6. The main problem with the paper is that the author(s) have not really considered the implication of their results both the theoretical and managerial implications are not sufficient enough to address the issue present in the study and this needs to be addressed in two ways:
a) There needs to be a consideration of what this study means for the tourism sector in china – perhaps even some recommendations.
b) There needs to be more generalizations beyond the industry, how can the tourism site benefits the education sector, hospitals etc., and geographical context. What are the broader lessons for businesses given the results of this research – this would help align with the aims of the journal, sustainability.
Author Response
Point 1. The manuscript needs English editing, in some sections, it was written like a descriptive essay.
Response 1: I agree with the reviewer's comment. I strengthened the revision manuscript for the article in the word and grammar proofreading, improve the writing quality of the paper.
Point 2. Indicate the source(s) that categorized the tourist attraction to AAA
Response 2: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. In China, the national standard of rating for quality of tourist attractions (GB/T 17775-2003) is used to classify tourist attractions into five grades. From high to low are AAAAA, AAAA, AAA, AA and A-grade tourist attractions. Tourist attractions that have not passed the assessment procedure of the tourist administrative unit shall not have quality grades.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 132-144 on the 4th page.
Point 3. The Author(s) are advised to justify the purpose of the location use, and why it was necessary to conduct such a study.
Response 3: I agree with the reviewer's comment. Reasonable evaluation of the online service functions provided by the new media platform is the basis for the construction and enhancement of the new media platform of tourist attractions. Yangzhou is one of the first 24 historical and cultural cities announced by the State Council of China. It is known as the world's culinary capital, the world's canal capital, and the East Asian cultural capital. Yangzhou is richly endowed with tourism re-sources and is a very traditional scenic tourist city in China. Therefore, the study on the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions in Yangzhou is beneficial to construct a targeted evaluation indicator system by sorting out NMPOSF, which can also provide a reference for the measurement of the construction level of NMPOSF of tourist attractions nationwide.
Point 4. Table 1. A tourist attractions list of Yangzhou City indicates the source/reference
Response 4: I agree with the reviewer's comment. According to the "A-grade tourist attraction list" issued by the Yangzhou municipal government, by 2022, there are 57 A-grade tourist attractions in Yangzhou City.
Point 5. The new media choices that the paper used are primarily used in China (WeChat, Sina etc), so if the target is internal tourists, I recommend that it should be mentioned in the manuscript
Response 5: I agree with the reviewer's comment. The modifying content is that
…The tourism market in Yangzhou is dominated by domestic tourists. Therefore, 5 mainstream domestic new media platforms in China have been selected as data sources…
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the lines 150-152 on the 5th page.
Point 6. The main problem with the paper is that the author(s) have not really considered the implication of their results both the theoretical and managerial implications are not sufficient enough to address the issue present in the study.
Response 6: I thank the reviewer for the valuable comment. (a) The content of the Section “4 Discussion” is supplemented. Firstly, in Section 4.1, the significance of the research methods and results of this paper is summarized, which supports a theoretical foundation for the understanding of NMPOSF. Then, in Section 4.2, combined with the actual situation, the measures for the enhancement of NMPOSF are condensed, and suggestions for future development are put forward.
(b) In the new round of mobile Internet-based tourism wisdom development process, the combination of Internet plus, new media, big data and other information technology with tourism is not only the focus of Chinese tourism industry, but also the trend of global tourism development. In the future, we can use the method proposed in the paper to evaluate the construction level of NMPOSF of individual, regional or national scenic spots, to help them examine the problems of construction of NMPOSF. Furthermore, guide its improvement the construction level of NMPOSF, help the smart tourism management and service to be upgraded.
The modifying content of revised manuscript details refer to the Section 4.2 on the 18th page and the Section 5 on the 19th page.
Author Response File: Author Response.pdf
