Investigating the Effect of Service Innovation, Response Speed, and Information Transparency on Customer Trust in Travel Agencies of East Gilan Province

Abstract

This research aimed to investigate the effect of service innovation, response speed, and information transparency on customer trust within travel agencies in East Gilan Province. Employing a quantitative research methodology, data was collected through a structured 5-point Likert scale questionnaire distributed to a sample of 385 respondents, determined using Morgan's formula. The validity of the instrument was ensured through expert review, while its reliability was confirmed by achieving Cronbach's alpha coefficients above 0.70. Descriptive statistics revealed the demographic characteristics of the sample, highlighting a diverse range of respondents in terms of gender, age, and education level. The results of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test indicated that the data followed a normal distribution, validating the use of parametric tests for hypothesis testing. The Spearman correlation coefficient analysis demonstrated significant positive relationships among service innovation, response speed, information transparency, and customer trust. Friedman's analysis of variance test further affirmed the importance of these variables in influencing customer trust. The study concluded that enhancing service innovation, response speed, and transparency can significantly boost customer trust in travel agencies, offering valuable insights for practitioners in the tourism industry.