Negative Word-of-Mouth by Dissatisfied Consumers: A Pilot Study

While  marketing  scholars  have  emphasized  the  importance of customer satisfaction, few  studies  have examined in detail consumers' responses to  dissatisfaction. This study examines correlates of  one  possible response-telling  others about the  dissatisfaction-and  identifies variables that distinguish  this response from others. Variables investigated  include the  nature of  the  dissatisfaction, perceptions of blame for the dissatisfaction,  and perceptions of  retailer responsiveness. Marketing management and consumer behavior research  implications are discussed


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Source: Marsha Richins

Online word of mouth and consumer purchase intentions

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Source: Gerard Prendergast, David Ko and Siu Yin V. Yuen

The Effectiveness of Electronic Word-of-Mouth Communication: A Literature Analysis

Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communication has been one of the most exciting research areas of inquiry. There is an emerging attention on the effectiveness of eWOM communication. The scope of published studies on the impact of eWOM communication is rather broad and the studies appear relatively fragmented and inconclusive. In this study, we focused on the individual-level eWOM research. We conducted a systematic review of eWOM research and identified key factors that are specific to the context of eWOM communication. We believe that this  literature analysis not only provides us with an overview of the current status  of knowledge within the domain of eWOM communication, but also serves as a salient guideline for future research directions.


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Source Christy M.K. Cheung , Dimple R. Thadani

What motivates consumers to review a product online? A study of the product-specific antecedents of online movie reviews

In recent years online product review forums have been exerting an increasingly powerful  influence on consumer choice. Not surprisingly, several firms are becoming interested in  leveraging this phenomenon, proactively trying to induce consumers to “spread the word”  about their products online (Godes et al. 2005). Interestingly, however, even after one  controls for the variance in sales volumes, there appears to be substantial variance in  consumers’ propensity to discuss different products online. A deeper understanding of the  forces that motivate consumers to write online reviews is, therefore, emerging as a  question of both theoretical and practical significance.


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Sources: Chrysanthos Dellarocas,  Ritu Narayan

Effects of Word-of-Mouth Versus Traditional Marketing: Findings from an Internet Social Networking Site

The authors study the effect of word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing on member growth at an Internet social networking site and compare it with traditional marketing vehicles. Because social network sites record the electronic invitations from existing members, outbound WOM can be precisely tracked. Along with traditional marketing, WOM can then be linked to the number of new members subsequently joining the site (sign-ups). Because of the endogeneity among WOM, new sign-ups, and traditional marketing activity, the authors employ a vector autoregressive (VAR) modeling approach. Estimates from the VAR model show that WOM referrals have substantially longer carryover effects than traditional marketing actions and produce substantially higher response elasticities. Based on revenue from advertising impressions served to a new member, the monetary value of a WOM referral can be calculated; this yields an upper-bound estimate for the financial incentives the firm might offer to stimulate WOM.

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Source:  Michael Trusov, Randolph E. Bucklin, & Koen Pauwel

Generating positive word-of-mouth communication through customer-employee relationships

Word-of-mouth (WOM) communication, ``informal communications directed at other consumers about the ownership, usage, or characteristics of particular goods and services and/or their sellers’’ (Westbrook, 1987, p. 261), has recently received renewed attention in the marketing literature (Anderson, 1998; Gilly et al. 1998; Money et al., 1998). Positive WOM communication has been recognized as a particularly valuable vehicle for promoting a firm’s products and services. Indeed, given its non-commercial nature, WOM communication is viewed with less skepticism than firm-initiated promotional efforts (Herr et al., 1991).


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Source: Dwayne D. Gremler, Kevin P. Gwinne, Stephen W. Brow, Emerald publications. 

Relationships between Blogs as eWOM and Interactivity, Perceived Interactivity, and Parasocial Interaction

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of a political candidate's blog-a form of eWOM (electronic Word-of-Mouth)-on attitudes toward the website, attitudes toward the political candidate, and intentions to vote. The results showed that interactivity in the form of a blog significantly influenced attitude toward the website, but not attitudes toward the candidate or voting intention. However, perceived interactivity influenced all three dependent variables, but did not interact with interactivity, suggesting that these are two separate constructs. The effects were mediated by parasocial interaction.


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Source: Journal of Interactive Advertising: Kjerstin S. Thorson, Shelly Rodgers

How word of mouth advertising works

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Source: Ernst Dichter

Word of Mouth Research: Principles and Applications

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Source: Dee Allshop, Bryce Bassett, James A. Hoskins

What Drives Word of Mouth: A Multi-Disciplinary Perspective

The World Wide Web has the potential to change much about consumer behavior and consumer communication. Web-based chatting, the focus of this study, is one example. In this article, we  provide an illustrative description of various consumer chatting situations, examine the motivations underlying Web-based chatting, and discuss the ways in which chatters act as "nai've marketers" in  their attempt to attract chatting partners. Using information gathered through the  combined use of an Internet survey and a content analysis, we explore five research questions:  who chats, why  individuals chat, how  chatters communicate, what links exist between Web  chatting and other consumer behaviors, and which factors lead to a successful chatting experience? The findings provide some insight into how consumers market themselves in cyberspace  and the effectiveness of their "personal advertisements" in  attracting other chatters
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Source: George M. Zinkhan , Hyokjin Kwak, Michelle Morrison,  Cara Okleshen Peters

Promotional Chat on the Internet

Chat rooms, recommendation sites, and customer review sections allow consumers to overcome geographic boundaries and to communicate based on mutual interests. However, marketers also have incentives to supply promotional chat or reviews in order to influence the consumers’ evaluation of their products. Moreover, firms can disguise their promotion as consumer recommendations due to the anonymity afforded by online communities. We explore this new setting where advertising and word of mouth become perfect substitutes because they appear indistinguishable to the consumer. Specifically, we investigate here whether word of mouth remains credible and whether firms choose to devote more resources promoting their inferior or superior products. We develop a game theoretic model in which two products are differentiated in their value to the consumer. Unlike the firms, the consumers are uncertain about the products’ quality. The consumers read messages online that help them decide on the identity of the superior product. We find a unique equilibrium where online word of mouth is persuasive despite the promotional chat activity by competing firms. In this equilibrium, firms spend more resources promoting inferior products, in striking contrast to existing advertising literature. In addition, we discuss consumer welfare implications and how other marketing strategies might interact with promotional chat.
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Source: Dina Mayzlin

The Impacts of Online Word-of-mouth on Consumer’s Buying Intention on Apparel: An Empirical Study

Based on relative studies of home and abroad  and consumer’s tendency to brand and product, this essay has established a model that  the massage impressions of  online word-of-mouth and opinion leaders have influence  on consumer’s buying intention on Apparel, which is  proved by the questionnaires of network consumers. The  study has found out that the massage impression of online  word-of-mouth and leader’s comments have much  influence on consumer’s willingness of buying clothes; the  information of online word-of-mouth influences its  receiver’s attitude towards brand and consumer’s  willingness of buying clothes positively in the end. It  provides suggestions for costumes websites on how to make  an effective marketing strategy

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Source: Ji Xiaofen ,Zhang Yiling

Trust in online advice

Many people are now influenced by the information and advice they find on the Internet, much of it of dubious quality.  This paper describes two studies concerned with those factors capable of influencing people’s response to online advice.  The first study is a qualitative account of a group of house-hunters attempting to find worthwhile information online.  The second study describes a survey of over two and a half thousand people who had actively sought advice over the Internet.  A framework for understanding trust in online advice is proposed in which first impressions are distinguished from more detailed evaluations.  Good web design can influence the first process, but three key factors  – source credibility, personalisation and predictability  – are  shown to predict whether or not people actually follow the advice given.

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Sources: Pamela Briggs, Bryan Burford, Paula Lynch, Alexandra Trabak

ELECTRONIC WORD-OF-MOUTH VIA CONSUMER-OPINION PLATFORMS: WHAT MOTIVATES CONSUMERS TO ARTICULATE THEMSELVES ON THE INTERNET?

Through Web-based consumer opinion platforms (e.g.,epinions.com), the Internet enables customers to share their opinions on, and experiences with, goods and services with a multitude of other consumers; that is, to engage in electronic word of-mouth (eWOM) communication. Drawing on findings from research on virtual communities and traditional word-of-mouth literature, a typology for motives of consumer online articulation is developed. Using an online sample of some 2,000 consumers, information on the structure and relevance of the motives of consumers’ online articulations is generated. The resulting analysis suggests that consumers’ desire for social interaction, desire for economic incentives, their concern for other consumers, and the potential to enhance their own self-worth are the primary factors leading to eWOM behavior. Further,
eWOM providers can be grouped based on what motivates their behavior, suggesting that firms may need to develop different strategies for encouraging eWOM behavior among their users.

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Source: THORSTEN HENNIG-THURAU,  KEVIN P. GWINNE,  GIANFRANCO WALSH, DWAYNE D. GREMLE