Consequences of consumer regret with online shopping

Negative online reviews can significantly hurt future sales. After impulsive decisions, consumers may feel regret and write negative online reviews. Two studies are conducted to understand the origin and consequences of negative reviews according to the review content and the responsibility for the mistake in the decision. The first study analyses the influence on the review creation of regret with the process and the outcome through structural equation modelling. For the second study, a 2 × 2 experimental design was conducted. This study analyses how different content in the review (regret with the process vs. regret with the outcome) and guilt of the error (the consumer vs. the seller) affects the perceived persuasiveness, usefulness and credibility of the information, and the intention to follow the advice. The results show that for generating negative reviews, it is the regret with the process coupled with the presence of regret with the outcome which ultimately leads to the intention to write negative reviews. However, the results of the second study show that reviews that criticize the outcome are more damaging than those that criticize the process. Furthermore, reviews that show regret in which the buyer is responsible affect readers more through the greater persuasion they generate

The Capability of E-reviews in Online Shopping. Integration of the PLS- SEM and ANN Method

Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of e-review on iGen's propensity to purchase online. Especially, it can be better understood by dissecting the relationship among 3 variables of e-review (review valence, quantity of e-review and quality of e-review), e-satisfaction, and intention to buy.   Theoretical framework: This study classifies e-reviews according to their valence, quantity, and quality based on the study of Khammash (2008).   Design/methodology/approach: The PLS-SEM method was used to analyze data collected from online surveys administered to a sample of 222 iGen in Ho Chi Minh City to assess the hypotheses behind the study. Additionally, the Artificial Neural Network technique was used to separate SEM predictors that were relatively important.   Findings:  There are three results from the investigation: It has been found that (1) e-satisfaction is positively affected by valence, (2) e-satisfaction is generally increased with the high quality of e-review, but the quantity of e-review does not necessarily affect customers' e-satisfaction, and (3) e-satisfaction given in the context of an e-commerce platform has a strong effect on customers' online shopping intention. This study sheds new light on iGen's online buying habits and offers valuable management implications for iGen, online merchants, and e-commerce sites.   Research, Practical & Social implications:  E-reviews have become a significant factor in determining consumers' online purchase decisions. They also assist iGen in understanding how a qualified e-review—one that is clear, understandable, helpful, and has enough justification to support the opinions—will be advantageous for other consumers who wish to shop online.   Originality/value:  Provides the theory of e-review and its role in the online business environment. In addition, understand more about the behavior of igen, an age with a huge amount of spending on an online shopping platform

The Impact of Online Reviews on the Information Flows and Outcomes of Marketing Systems

Online reviews are changing the way that consumers shop and firms respond to consumer feedback. Viewed more broadly, online reviews are a type of information flow altering the functioning of marketing systems at the micro, meso, and macro levels. A systematic review of the past two decades of research shows great attention to the impact of online reviews on information flows, as well as the nuances of micro-and meso-level efficiency outcomes. However, there is scant consideration for the effectiveness related outcomes of online reviews (such as customer well-being, distributive justice, and externalities). Through a macromarketing lens, online reviews are an information flow with the potential to change well-being outcomes for all stake-holders, rather than just a tool to be exploited by firms or consumers. A theoretical framework and a series of questions are presented for future research on how online reviews and more generally information flows between actors may impact the efficiency and effectiveness of a marketing system

Quality versus Quantity: An Investigation into Electronic Word of Mouth’s Influence on Consumer Buying Intention

Online consumer reviews play an increasingly crucial role in shaping purchasing intention. With the wide-spread reviews available around the world on sites like TripAdvisor or Yelp, companies’ reputation and hence survival are potentially at risk. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) on the individual’s attitudes towards the quantity and quality of online store reviews and consider how it impacts their behavior. We incorporate brand trust as a mediator in the relationship between eWOM and purchase intention. Using a vignette survey experiment centered on coffee shop reviews in Hanoi, Vietnam, we test our hypothesis with 223 respondents. Results showed that the number and quality of review does significantly affect purchase intention. Findings also show that brand trust has a mediating effect on the relationship between online reviews and buying intention. This study assists practitioners to develop user-oriented information review format in order to manage online consumer reviews properly and effectively

Investigating How Restaurant Week\u27s Price Promotion Affects Diners\u27 Online Perceptions

Price promotion is being widely employed in the global restaurant industry. This exploratory study uses online user-generated content (UGC) to investigate how price promotion affects diners’ perceptions. The study uses secondary data extracted from a Chinese third-party review website, Dianping.com. The data was separated into Restaurant Week’s price promotion group and non-price promotion group for comparison. Structured content analysis and further chi-square tests were used to analyze qualitative data, and a two-way MANOVA was applied to analyze quantitative data. Empirical evidence shows that food, service, and environment are the top three determinant attributes for full-service restaurants, and they are not influenced by price promotion. In addition, diners’ perceptions of non-price promotions are significantly higher than Restaurant Week’s price promotion. Restaurant category has a significant effect on diners’ environment perceptions, but not on other attributes. Findings of the study provide diners’ insight on Restaurant Week as well as recommendations to adjust promotional strategies based on restaurant categories and practical instructions for full-service restaurant operators to evaluate price promotions using online UGC

Online Product Reviews: Effects of Star Ratings and Valence on Review Perception among Those High and Low in Need for Cognition

The Internet is becoming the main source for various tasks, from learning, to working, and shopping. There are many websites one can use to shop. Almost all stores have a website from which you can order anything you might want. As online shopping becomes more prominent, it is important to understand the effects of the Internet and its product reviewers and, specific to this study, consumer decision making. This study seeks to understand the effect of star ratings and valence on review perception between the different cognitive levels of individuals. Recognition review perception, and intent to purchase were being measured. Results showed that need for cognition did have an effect on accuracy of recognition and perceived valence. Need for cognition and congruency as well as actual valence had an effect on perceived valence. Need for cognition, actual valence, and congruency all had an effect on purchase intention. This research is important because it is relevant to a growing trend around the world. Technology is already integrated into nearly everyone’s lives and it is only going to more so as we continue to evolve. Just as it is becoming more common for people to receive education from online institutions, and for employers to use more Internet based applications, it is only natural consumers will continue the trend of purchasing items online. Learning the social and cognitive influences of online reviews on perception and purchasing intentions is something everyone needs to be aware of

Asymmetric effects of online consumer reviews

Consumers tend to seek heuristic information cues to simplify the amount of information involved in tourist decisions. Accordingly, star ratings in online reviews are a critical heuristic element of the perceived evaluation of online consumer information. The objective of this article is to assess the effect of review ratings on usefulness and enjoyment. The empirical application is carried out on a sample of 5,090 reviews of 45 restaurants in London and New York. The results show that people perceive extreme ratings (positive or negative) as more useful and enjoyable than moderate ratings, giving rise to a U-shaped line, with asymmetric effects: the size of the effect of online reviews depends on whether they are positive or negative

Review Manipulation: Literature Review, and Future Research Agenda

Background: The phenomenon of review manipulation and fake reviews has gained Information Systems (IS) scholars’ attention during recent years. Scholarly research in this domain has delved into the causes and consequences of review manipulation. However, we find that the findings are diverse, and the studies do not portray a systematic approach. This study synthesizes the findings from a multidisciplinary perspective and presents an integrated framework to understand the mechanism of review manipulation. Method: The study reviews 88 relevant articles on review manipulation spanning a decade and a half. We adopted an iterative coding approach to synthesizing the literature on concepts and categorized them independently into potential themes. Results: We present an integrated framework that shows the linkages between the different themes, namely, the prevalence of manipulation, impact of manipulation, conditions and choice for manipulation decision, characteristics of fake reviews, models for detecting spam reviews, and strategies to deal with manipulation. We also present the characteristics of review manipulation and cover both operational and conceptual issues associated with the research on this topic. Conclusions: Insights from the study will guide future research on review manipulation and fake reviews. The study presents a holistic view of the phenomenon of review manipulation. It informs various online platforms to address fake reviews towards building a healthy and sustainable environment

The Impact of Scarcity Messages on the Online Sales of Physical Information Goods

For physical consumer goods with no considerable information component, past research has identified scarcity, due to market conditions or as a producer strategy, as a driver of intention to purchase and willingness to pay. In contrast, information as the major value-creating component of physical information goods is inherently non-scarce. While anecdotal evidence suggests that intended or unintended scarcity can benefit sales of physical information goods, the underlying mechanisms have not been systematically investigated so far. To close this gap, this research develops a model based on an extensive literature review. The model is tested against evidence from e-commerce sales data of 34,748 information goods. We find that quantity-based scarcity overall decreases sales, but is associated with an increase in the quantity purchased among all purchasing customers. We discuss implications for theory development around the scarcification of information

The impact of eWOM on consumers’ purchase intention : the moderation role of products’ category

Online content is becoming an increasingly important tool for consumers and marketeers relationship to grow closer and last-longing. Namely, eWOM, which derived from the need of sharing knowledge and information among consumers, allowed them to reach information perceived as more trustful and real. Nowadays, this type of communication is part of the purchasing process and has been proved to influence consumers’ buying decisions. Besides being perceived as consumer generated information, eWOM can also be managed by marketeers, aiming at influencing individuals to provide useful information, which ideally would be positive but can also be negative, and managing potential future customers’ expectations and needs. In addition, this research quantifies the purchase intention among different types of eWOM, namely by exposing different sources, valences and structures and evaluating the impact on consumers’ buying decisions within different products’ categories. Therefore, quantitative data was generated by an online questionnaire which presented the different illustrative scenarios for each of the four categories of products being tested: pricey tech electronics, high touch retail, household staples and no touch services. The conclusions obtained were mostly opposing to literature, which may be explained by the various range of eWOM limitations and characteristics, as lack of physical contact, but also, were helpful to perceive that its influence is not linear and that it could depend on the scenario and the circumstances in which the information was developed and shared.O conteúdo online é uma ferramenta cada vez mais importante para tornar a ligação entre consumidores e marketeers mais próxima e duradora. Atualmente, este tipo de comunicação é parte integrante do processo de compra e, apresenta um efeito influenciador na decisão dos consumidores. Apesar disso, esta informação é vista como sendo originária de comuns consumidores, mas, esta também pode ser gerida por marketeers com o objetivo de influenciar indivíduos a providenciar informação útil, - que idealmente seria positiva, mas que acontece por vezes ser negativa também-, e, assim, gerir as expectativas e as necessidades de potenciais e atuais clientes. Adicionalmente, este estudo quantifica a diferença na intenção de compra consumidores entre diferentes tipos de eWOM, através da exposição de diferentes tipos de fontes, valências e estruturas, de modo a avaliar o impacto na decisão de compra dos consumidores, no seio de diferentes categorias de produto. Consequentemente, foi gerada data quantitativa através de um questionário online que apresentava diferentes cenários ilustrativos em relação aos tipos de eWOM que estavam a ser testados no âmbito das categorias de produto escolhidas. Na verdade, as conclusões obtidas nesta dissertação foram, maioritariamente, contra os factos revelados na literatura considerada, o que, pode ser explicado pela variedade de limitações e características peculiares da eWOM, mas, estas conclusões podem também ser úteis para perceber que a sua influência não é linear e pode depender dos cenários e circunstâncias em que a eWOM foi criada e desenvolvida