Purpose of the paper: The digital revolution is producing several economic and societal changes. The tourism sector, which is characterized by products with high information content and intangible value, is one of the main industries involved in these changes on both the supply side and the demand side. This paper examines how digital technologies impact tourists’ consumption experiences throughout the entire customer travel journey (planning, booking, experiencing, and sharing), with a special focus on millennials. Methodology: On an empirical level, this research study aimed to describe the tourism-related buying and consumption behaviors of a sample of approximately 700 Italian consumers. Results: The results of this empirical study highlighted that new technologies are used in all stages of the digital customer journey. Most of the respondents were experts in travel planning through digital technologies. The smartphone is mainly used by younger millennials, while the computer is mainly used by older millennials. With respect to social media, millennials prefer Instagram and Facebook for sharing content during and after trips. Research limitations: This research study focused on the center of Italy, and the sample was not representative. Another limitation of this study was that the sample was made up of students, who do not have secure jobs and mainly depend on their parents’ incomes. Practical implications: The practical implications that emerged from this study specifically related to attracting and retaining tourists and increasing their overall customer experience. Originality of the paper: This study contributes to deepen the knowledge of millennials’ behaviors as tourists

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to investigate the marketing and communication activities carried out by small management consulting firms and how they relate to customers.Design/methodology/approachAfter the framing of the literature on the subject, the study is based on the results of a survey carried out through an online questionnaire. The sample under investigation is represented by 914 small consulting firms located in central Italy.FindingsResults show that half of the sample carried out marketing and communication activities, mainly through the website and social media, while others participating in events as speakers at conferences. It also emerges that management consulting firms carry out activities aimed at maintaining relationship with customers even if they do not invest time in market research in order to find potential and new clients.Practical implicationsThe study suggests that management consulting firms should adopt a systematic and strategic approach to communication and should develop a complete and integrated digital communication strategy, as well as to rethink the consulting business model.Originality/valueThere are no previous studies that provide insight into the everyday practice of marketing and communication of small management consulting services in today's dynamic and changing economic environment.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test whether the qualitative variables regarding the territory and the firm–territory relationship can improve the accuracy rates of small business default prediction models. Design/methodology/approach The authors apply a logistic regression to a sample of 141 small Italian enterprises located in the Marche region, and the authors build two different default prediction models: one using only financial ratios and one using jointly financial ratios and variables related to the relationship between firm and territory. Findings Including variables regarding the relationships between firms and their territory, the accuracy rates of the default prediction model are significantly improved. Research limitations/implications The qualitative variables data collected are affected by subjective judgments of respondents of the firms studied. In addition, neither other qualitative variables (such as those regarding competitive strategies, or managerial skills) are included nor those variables regarding the relationships between firms and financial institutions are included. Practical implications The study suggests that financial institutions should include territory qualitative variables, and, above all, qualitative variables regarding the firm–territory relationship, when constructing business default prediction models. Including this type of variables, it could be able to reduce the tendency to place unnecessary restrictions on credit. Originality/value The field of business failure prediction modeling using variables regarding the relationship between firm–territory is a unexplored area as it count of a very few studies.

PurposeBased on the main studies presented in the literature, this work aims to examine the level of student satisfaction towards the on-campus accommodation service provided by an Italian university. Notably, the objectives of the study are twofold: (1) to examine the mediating role of student satisfaction on the relationship between university on-campus accommodation service quality and word-of-mouth and (2) to determine whether there is any significant difference in students' satisfaction towards on-campus accommodation in terms of gender and the halls of residence.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on the results of a survey carried out through an online questionnaire by 381 students living on campus at the University of Urbino.FindingsThe findings revealed that the quality perceived by university students in relation to individual services had a positive impact on their general satisfaction towards the halls of residence experience.Research limitations/implicationsThe study presents some limitations such as lack of temporal comparisons, a focus on specific service quality items and the fact that it refers to a single Italian university.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study will help the management of public universities to improve the quality of services in their halls of residence for the satisfaction of their students.Originality/valueTo the authors' knowledge, there have been no previous studies about on-campus accommodation service quality conducted in Italy. The study contributes to enrich the service quality literature, confirming both that the sum of the quality of individual elements is not as the overall satisfaction and the outcome intention of positive WOM depends not only on service quality attributes, but also from an overall evaluation of satisfaction.

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