scholarly journals Why Do Online Product Reviews Have a J-Shaped Distribution? Overcoming Biases in Online Word-of-Mouth Communication

2007 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nan Hu ◽  
Paul A. Pavlou ◽  
Jie (Jennifer) Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Word Of Mouth ◽  
Product Reviews ◽  
Online Product Reviews ◽  
Online Word Of Mouth ◽  
Word Of Mouth Communication

scholarly journals More Is Less: Only Moderate Polarized Online Product Reviews can Affect Sales

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Yang
Keyword(s):  
Attribution Theory ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Panel Data Analysis ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Product Reviews ◽  
Online Product Reviews ◽  
Arousal Theory ◽  
Online Word Of Mouth ◽  
Analysis Technique ◽  
Product Sales

It is widely proved that positive online word-of-mouth (WOM) can boost sales and negative online WOM harm sales. Then will more positivity or negativity of messages in online product reviews text have greater impact on product sales? This research attempts to tackle this ignored research question. The answer is counter-intuitive: it depends on how positive or negative they are! The results of a two-way fixed-effects panel data analysis based on the data about tablet market in Amazon and a novel sentiment analysis technique demonstrate that the most and least polarized online product reviews actually have no effect on sales and only moderate positive / negative reviews can affect sales. Such effects can be explained by the optimal arousal theory and attribution theory. Inspired by the findings, three strategies for user-generated content (UGC) management are proposed.

The Influence of Reviewer and Consumer Congruence in Online Word-of-Mouth Transactions

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Christopher P. Furner ◽  
Tom E. Yoon ◽  
Robert Zinko ◽  
Samuel H. Goh
Keyword(s):  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Purchase Intention ◽  
Word Of Mouth ◽  
Uncertainty Avoidance ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Online Review ◽  
Product Reviews ◽  
Online Word Of Mouth ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
New Type

Online review platforms compete to attract and retain consumers and facilitate purchases. They invest in sophisticated algorithms that prioritize the order in which product reviews are presented, seeking to provide consumers with easy access to useful information about the ability of a product to meet a need. These algorithms collect and use review and consumer characteristics to provide different consumers with different sets of reviews, seeking to increase purchase intention and reduce returns. This study proposes a new type of factor: the congruence between the consumer and the reviewer. The authors develop a simulation-based experiment in which 281 subjects are categorized based on their travel style and socioeconomic status, then read two reviews: one that appears to be written by someone similar to them and one that appears written by someone different from them. Findings demonstrate relationships between purchase intention and both of the congruence variables, as well as disposition to trust and an interaction between uncertainty avoidance and socioeconomic status.

Countering the detrimental influence of negative electronic word of mouth on brands : effects of brand feedback, stability and controllability of the cause of the problem on brand attitudes and purchase intentions

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Manu Bhandari
Keyword(s):  
Word Of Mouth ◽  
Purchase Intentions ◽  
Discussion Board ◽  
Product Reviews ◽  
Electronic Word Of Mouth ◽  
Brand Attitudes ◽  
Buying Behavior ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Online Product Reviews ◽  
Summary Judgment

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] We know that online word of mouth, also called electronic word of mouth (eWOM), such as online product reviews or discussion board posts, about various products and services has a strong influence consumers' buying behavior online. For instance, one may have gone to Amazon.com or ebay.com to buy a product and decided against buying the product because of many negative reviews about that product. Research has already found that such negative product reviews or eWOM negatively influence consumers' summary judgment about brands and buying behavior (i.e., makes consumers not buy a product). However, research has not adequately studied what happens when brands or advertisers also provide a response to the reviewer writing the negative product review. This study therefore examines what happens to people's summary judgement about a brand (i.e., brand attitudes) and intentions to purchase a particular product (i.e., purchase intentions) if brands also provide a response or a \"brand feedback\" to a negative review or eWOM in an online retail context. The study also looks at whether brand feedback's effect is differently for different types of reviews, such as when the reviews talk about a problem that is under the brand's control (e.g., brand negligence) versus when it's under the reviewer's own control (e.g., reviewer dropped the purchased device). Also, when the problem described in the review is of a long-lasting nature (stable) versus short-term nature (unstable). This study is important because so far we do not have a good understanding about whether a brand's participation in the online product reviews or eWOM context can influence potential consumers' thought patterns about the brands and purchase behavior. The study's findings show that brand feedback is most effective in increasing summary judgment about a brand and purchase intentions when such brands provide a feedback to a negative review describing a problem controlled by the brand and of a short-term nature.

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