Narrative-Driven Short Video Marketing and Hotel Consumers' Reservation Intention in the Chinese Market: A Conceptual Framework

Abstract

The rapid rise of short video platforms has reshaped hospitality marketing, especially in the Chinese market, where Douyin, Xiaohongshu, and WeChat Video Channel influence consumer engagement and booking-related decisions. This conceptual paper synthesizes the study into a Stimulus-Organism-Response framework in which narrative structure operates as the stimulus, narrative transportation, flow experience, and sense of presence operate as organism states, perceived value and reservation intention operate as responses. The paper argues that the effectiveness of hotel short-video marketing depends on narrative coherence, emotional appeal, and immersive capacity rather than on mere promotional exposure. It develops six conceptual relationships: narrative structure enhances narrative transportation; transportation strengthens flow experience and sense of presence; flow experience and sense of presence elevate perceived value; and perceived value shapes reservation intention. The paper also positions these mechanisms within the Chinese digital ecosystem, where emotional engagement, cultural proximity, and relational meanings influence how hospitality content is interpreted. Its conceptual contribution lies in reframing short video marketing as experiential value creation rather than routine digital promotion. Its practical contribution lies in demonstrating why hotel marketers should priorities coherent storytelling, culturally adaptive platform strategies, and collaborative narrative ecosystems that involve hotels, travel agencies, key opinion leaders, and users.