ChatGPT: It's Here, Whether We Want It or Not!

This Managerial Perspective considers the use of ChatGPT by hotels as a tool for replying to their property's online consumer-generated media postings. As readers would certainly know, ChatGPT is a free artificial intelligence software program designed to assist users with tasks requiring intelligence to perform. In this brief study, test participants were provided actual posted online TripAdvisor review comments along with the responses to these that had been posted by hotel management as well as a second response created by ChatGPT, with the request that the participant indicate which response was real and which was produced by the computer. A second request asked the participant to indicate which they felt was "better." The results suggest that ChatGPT does a relatively effective job of mimicking authentic responses. These findings, and the discussion of relevant theory, will be useful for hospitality industry managers and academics as they consider the future use of artificial intelligence software for performing this important albeit often tedious task.