The Role of ICT in Boosting International Tourist Arrivals to Vietnam and its Implications for SMEs

The Role of ICT in Boosting International Tourist Arrivals to Vietnam and its Implications for SMEs | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article The Role of ICT in Boosting International Tourist Arrivals to Vietnam and its Implications for SMEs Huong Quynh Pham Ngoc, Trang Dang Thi, Huyen Nguyen Thi, Duy Hung Bui This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6888974/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in increasing international tourist arrivals to Vietnam from 2004 to 2023 and investigates its implications for tourism-related Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Utilizing panel data from the 25 largest source markets, both static panel estimators (Pooled OLS, Fixed Effects Model, Random Effects Model, Feasible Generalized Least Squares) and a dynamic panel approach (Generalized Method of Moments), the findings reveal that ICT exerts a statistically significant and positive influence on inbound tourism demand. This effect is particularly evident through three key channels: connectivity infrastructure, smart tourism applications, and the level of digital presence. Based on these empirical findings, the study provides several policy recommendations to promote sustainable digital transformation in the tourism sector. In the public sector, priorities include increasing investment in ICT infrastructure, developing a comprehensive national tourism database, supporting enterprise digitalization, and improving digital marketing initiatives. For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the study underscores the importance of strengthening digital marketing capacity, adopting advanced technological solutions such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data analytics, and management software, and forging strategic partnerships with global online platforms. This research contributes to the theoretical and practical discourse on digital transformation in tourism and proposes future research avenues that integrate qualitative data and tourist behavior to better understand the evolving impact of ICT in the context of a fully digitized tourism landscape. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) International Tourism Demand Vietnam Tourism Digital Transformation in Tourism Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6888974","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":475465148,"identity":"9f0878ab-9b17-4269-980d-48fedb647a91","order_by":0,"name":"Huong Quynh Pham Ngoc","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Economics and Business, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Huong","middleName":"Quynh Pham","lastName":"Ngoc","suffix":""},{"id":475465149,"identity":"b731b3f3-e319-4f98-8f60-c0013ea2437f","order_by":1,"name":"Trang Dang Thi","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"International School, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Trang","middleName":"Dang","lastName":"Thi","suffix":""},{"id":475465150,"identity":"2234649d-73a3-4096-bfae-98d3b5f84e4c","order_by":2,"name":"Huyen Nguyen Thi","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA20lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACAygtByIOADFjA5FaDIxJ15IIU0lYi7lEjuHjwh1/0jfc7jE8+IPBRnbDAR6zB/i0WM7IMTaeecYgd8OdMwaHeRjSjIFazA3waTG4kWMmzdtmkDtzRo7BYQaGw4kbDrClSRDQYv4bqCVdEqgF6LD/RGkxYwZqSeCXyDE4wMNwAKiF+Rh+LWeeFQMdZmzYL5FWcJjHINl45mFCWo4nb/zM2yYnzyaRvPnjjwo72b7jjW14tTAwcCAHD4jNjF89ELA/IKhkFIyCUTAKRjgAAHu1SLfAJ2t7AAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"International School, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Huyen","middleName":"Nguyen","lastName":"Thi","suffix":""},{"id":475465151,"identity":"54df18ee-af62-4cfa-bf05-95f4a757d4ad","order_by":3,"name":"Duy Hung Bui","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Banking Academy of Viet Nam","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Duy","middleName":"Hung","lastName":"Bui","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-06-13 14:23:06","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6888974/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6888974/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":95289547,"identity":"3bc4fbff-b83f-4b69-b21b-43e1f5d1ee81","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-06 10:38:35","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":433834,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"THEROLEOFICTINBOOSTINGINTERNATIONALTOURISTARRIVALSNguyenThiHuyen.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6888974/v1_covered_32ad52e2-e1b6-49ca-aaea-b7cf0f112fa3.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003eThe Role of ICT in Boosting International Tourist Arrivals to Vietnam and its Implications for SMEs\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Information and Communication Technology (ICT), International Tourism Demand, Vietnam Tourism, Digital Transformation in Tourism","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6888974/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6888974/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examines the role of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in increasing international tourist arrivals to Vietnam from 2004 to 2023 and investigates its implications for tourism-related Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). 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