Delight the experts, but never dissatisfy your customers! A multi-category study on the effects of online review source on intention to buy a new product. (March 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Plotkina, Daria; Munzel, Andreas
• Is Part Of: Journal of retailing and consumer services. Volume 29(2016)
• Page Start: 1
• Page End: 11
• Publication Date: 2016-03
• Subjects: Electronic word-of-mouth -- Experts -- New products -- Online reviews; Retail trade -- Periodicals; Service industries -- Periodicals; Customer services -- Periodicals; Commerce de détail -- Périodiques; Service à la clientèle -- Périodiques; Customer services; Retail trade; Periodicals; 658.87
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2015.11.002
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0969-6989

Abstract

Abstract: Online reviews are a pervasive form of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) that potentially accelerate—or slow down—the diffusion of recently launched services in the marketplace. While empirical research largely supports the effects of online reviews on attitudinal and behavioral outcomes, less is known about the impact the source of the review—i.e., if it comes from a peer consumer or an expert—has on the recipient. Two experiments that combine reviewer- (expert, consumer), service type- (mobile package, restaurant, car repair), consumer- (level of general innovativeness), and review-related (positive, negative) characteristics reveal a challenging interaction between the review's source and its valence: while—compared to an established baseline—a positive expert review seems more effective in increasing the recipient's intention to purchase than a review by a peer consumer, a negative consumer review lowers the recipient's intentions to a larger extent than a negative expert review. We further find effects of the consumer's innovativeness and the service category across the experiments. Our research contributes to the topical and increasing body of empirical research on the effects of involved characteristics within online reviews across several product types. Highlights: We examine the effects of online reviews' characteristics on purchase intention. Two experiments combine review, service, and consumer-related characteristics. A positive expert review is more effective than a peer review. A negative consumer review lowers the purchase intention more than an expert's. Consumer's innovativeness and the service category have considerable effects.