Drivers of in-group and out-of-group electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM)

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to address a recent call for additional research on electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM). In response to this call, this study draws on the social network paradigm and the uses and gratification theory (UGT) to propose and empirically test a conceptual framework of key drivers of two types of eWOM, namely in-group and out-of-group. Design/methodology/approach – The proposed model, which examines the impact of usage motivations on eWOM in-group and eWOM out-of-group, is tested in a sample of 302 internet users in Portugal. Findings – Results from the survey show that the different drivers (i.e. mood-enhancement, escapism, experiential learning and social interaction) vary in terms of their impact on the two different types of eWOM. Surprisingly, while results show a positive relationship between experiential learning and eWOM out-of-group, no relationship is found between experiential learning and eWOM in-group. Research limitations/implications – This is the first study investigating the drivers of both eWOM in-group and eWOM out-of-group. Additional research in this area will contribute to the development of a general theory of eWOM. Practical implications – By understanding the drivers of different eWOM types, this study provides guidance to marketing managers on how to allocate resources more efficiently in order to achieve the company's strategic objectives. Originality/value – No published study has investigated the determinants of these two types of eWOM. This is the first study offering empirical considerations of how the various drivers differentially impact eWOM in-group and eWOM out-of-group.

Drivers of in‐group and out‐of‐group electronic word‐of‐mouth (eWOM)

Purpose– The purpose of this study is to address a recent call for additional research on electronic word‐of‐mouth (eWOM). In response to this call, this study draws on the social network paradigm and the uses and gratification theory (UGT) to propose and empirically test a conceptual framework of key drivers of two types of eWOM, namely in‐group and out‐of‐group. Design/methodology/approach– The proposed model, which examines the impact of usage motivations on eWOM in‐group and eWOM out‐of‐group, is tested in a sample of 302 internet users in Portugal. Findings– Results from the survey show that the different drivers (i.e. mood‐enhancement, escapism, experiential learning and social interaction) vary in terms of their impact on the two different types of eWOM. Surprisingly, while results show a positive relationship between experiential learning and eWOM out‐of‐group, no relationship is found between experiential learning and eWOM in‐group. Research limitations/implications– This is the first study investigating the drivers of both eWOM in‐group and eWOM out‐of‐group. Additional research in this area will contribute to the development of a general theory of eWOM. Practical implications– By understanding the drivers of different eWOM types, this study provides guidance to marketing managers on how to allocate resources more efficiently in order to achieve the company's strategic objectives. Originality/value– No published study has investigated the determinants of these two types of eWOM. This is the first study offering empirical considerations of how the various drivers differentially impact eWOM in‐group and eWOM out‐of‐group.

Antecedents of travellers' electronic word-of-mouth communication

Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) is recognised as a means of interpersonal communication and a powerful marketing tool. However, previous studies have focussed on related motivations, and limited attention has been given to understanding the antecedents of eWOM communication behaviour in the travel industry. This study proposes a full and partial mediation model, which brings together for the first time three key antecedents: adoption of electronic communication technology, consumer dis/satisfaction with travel consumption experience, and subjective norm. The model aims to understand the impact of these antecedents on travellers' attitude towards eWOM communication and intention to use eWOM communication media. The data were collected from international travellers (n = 524), and structural equation modelling is used to test the conceptual framework. The findings of the study suggest that overall attitude towards eWOM communication partially mediates the impact of the traveller's adoption of electronic communication technology and subjective norm, and fully mediates the impact of consumer dis/satisfaction with travel consumption experience on travellers' intention to use eWOM communication media.

Football supporters an the negative word of mouth of their rival team's brand

This article has the objective of identifying whether the loyalty for the team has a negative effect on the word of mouth of the rival team’s brand. It has been developed a model based on the works of Fagundes (2013) and Santana and Akel Sobrinho (2010), through the use of Structural Equation Modeling - SEM, which presents three constructions: the identification with the team, the loyalty to the team and the negative word of mouth of the rival’s brand. 528 students from two college were interviewed and it has been identified that the emotional involvement of the supporter with his team reflects on the identification of a supporter by his team (KWON e ARMSTRONG, 2004; KAYNAK, 2008; JORDAN et al., 2014), it is thus formed a loyalty for the team (FUNK and JAMES, 2006). It influences other people in their personal relationships through the negative word of mouth communication.

Word of mouth marketing in the digital age: a case study analysis of viral marketing campaigns

A era digital viu a ascensão da empresa focada no consumidor. Todos os dias, marcas e produtos são objeto de milhões de conversas em que os consumidores trocam pontos de vista, opiniões e informações antes de tomar a decisão de compra. Os profissionais de marketing entenderam a importância do boca a boca como um novo canal de comunicação estratégica e começaram a ancorar técnicas de boca a boca à estratégia de marketing global. A propaganda tornou-se um negócio de conversa: o novo desafio do marketing é criar um conteúdo envolvente e compartilhável que possa expandir e ressoar dentro de redes de sociais de consumidores. Quanto mais as pessoas falam sobre a sua marca, mais a probabilidade de ganhar a competição dura e aumentar as vendas. Mas como o boca a boca funciona? O que faz uma campanha de marketing um sucesso viral? Este trabalho tem como objetivo fornecer uma análise abrangente da teoria de marketing de boca a boca e usa um modelo descritivo para investigar as variáveis-chave de campanhas bem-sucedidas de marketing viral, a fim de proporcionar insights e sugestões para as práticas de marketing viral.

Antecedents of e-loyalty and electronic word-of-mouth

O objetivo principal da dissertação foi o de examinar a relação entre lealdade (e-loyalty) e o boca-a-boca (eWOM) no contexto do varejo eletrônico. Como objetivo secundário, foi feito uma verificação da significância das variáveis preditoras de e-loyalty. Essa pesquisa foi focada em um tipo de produto/serviço: compra de livros através da internet. Duzentos e quarenta e dois questionários online foram respondidos por um público representativo da geração Y (millennials), e rresidentes em diferentes localidades no Brasil e nos Estados Unidos. A análise de dados foi efetuada pela aplicação do método PLS-SEM sobre um modelo de pesquisa cuidadosamente formulado com base em resultados empíricos prévios. Enquanto que a relação entre e-loyalty e eWOM foi classificada como fraca, um ambiente de boca-a-boca online de alta qualidade representou uma variável preditora significativa para o sentimento de e-loyalty. Todas as variáveis preditoras foram classificadas como significativas nesse estudo, sendo que comprometimento tem o efeito mais forte sobre a variável e-loyalty.

Word of mouth communication within online communities:conceptualizing the online social network

Word of mouth (WOM) communication is a major part of online consumer interactions, particularly within the environment of online communities. Nevertheless, existing (offline) theory may be inappropriate to describe online WOM and its influence on evaluation and purchase.The authors report the results of a two-stage study aimed at investigating online WOM: a set of in-depth qualitative interviews followed by a social network analysis of a single online community. Combined, the results provide strong evidence that individuals behave as if Web sites themselves are primary "actors" in online social networks and that online communities can act as a social proxy for individual identification. The authors offer a conceptualization of online social networks which takes the Web site into account as an actor, an initial exploration of the concept of a consumer-Web site relationship, and a conceptual model of the online interaction and information evaluation process. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. and Direct Marketing Educational Foundation, Inc.

"Virtual word of mouth":a case for the adaptation of existing word of mouth theory to virtual community environments

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Az on-line szájreklám (electronic word-of-mouth) jellemzői a marketingkommunikáció szempontjából

Az on-line térben a vállalatok elveszítik a hagyományos tömegkommunikációban gyakorolt kontrollt, ugyanakkor kommunikációs szerepükből fakadóan megmarad egy ráhatási képességük. Ahhoz azonban, hogy e ráhatási képességet ki tudják használni, megfelelő eszközöket kell alkalmazniuk, amelyek közül az egyik lehetőség az on-line szájreklám (electronic word-of-mouth, e-WOM). A cikk egy szakirodalmi összefoglalót nyújt az e-WOM-ról, kitérve arra, hogy milyen új kommunikációs kihívásokkal és lehetőségekkel néznek szembe a fogyasztók és a vállalatok az on-line térben. Továbbá hogyan értelmezhető az e-WOM, milyen alapvető tulajdonságokkal és a fogyasztókra, valamint a vállalatokra gyakorolt hatásokkal rendelkezik. Ezen ismeretekre építve pedig a szerző bemutatja azt is, hogy a fogyasztók között zajló on-line kommunikáció (vagyis az e-WOM) hogyan integrálható a marketingkommunikációs tevékenységbe.

La influencia del word of mouth electrónico sobre las ventas de un refresco

La comunicación boca-oreja/boca-boca o Word of Mouth, término adquirido del idioma anglosajón, es considerada una de las formas de comunicación con mayor influencia en el comportamiento de compra de los consumidores, jugando un importante rol en la modificación de las actitudes y patrones de consumo (Brown & Reingen, 1987). En la actualidad, los avances en la tecnología de la comunicación, han permitido que la información compartida entre consumidores supere las barreras geográficas propagándose de forma inmediata. Internet ofrece numerosas plataformas y puntos de reunión donde los consumidores pueden compartir sus visiones, preferencias o experiencia con los productos (Trusov, Bucklin, & Pauwels, 2009) El WOM que se genera en las redes sociales en Internet (eWOM) puede ser observado, medido y analizado. Debido a que estas conversaciones que se dan en plataformas de opinión quedan semi permanentemente archivadas, las marcas pueden explotar la información, extrayendo conocimiento acerca del consumidor que pueda facilitar la gestión de sus estrategias de marketing (Kozinets, Valck, Wojnicki, & Wilner, 2010). Esto ofrece grandes oportunidades para la investigación de la comunicación y el marketing permitiendo medir la repercusión de la comunicación interpersonal en el negocio de las compañías. La investigación que se plantea en esta Tesis Doctoral pretende conocer y analizar el fenómeno del WOM como factor influenciador en el comportamiento de compra de los consumidores. El objetivo principal es entender el comportamiento del WOM electrónico como variable influyente en las ventas de un producto y cuantificar su eficacia. Es decir, identificar en qué medida la información acerca de un producto compartida por los usuarios en entornos online, puede tener un efecto significativo en su resultado de ventas...

Customer reference marketing and utilization of social media as an integral part of customer references

The objective of this Bachelor's Thesis is to find out the role of social media in the B-to-B marketing environment of the information technology industry and to discover how IT-firms utilize social media as a part of their customer reference marketing. To reach the objectives the concepts of customer reference marketing and social media are determined. Customer reference marketing can be characterized as one of the most practically relevant but academically relatively overlooked ways in which a company can leverage its customers and delivered solutions and use them as references in its marketing activities. We will cover which external and internal functions customer references have, that contribute to the growth and performance of B-to-B firms. We also address the three mechanisms of customer reference marketing which are 'status transfer', 'validation through testimonials' and 'demonstration of experience and prior performance'. The concept of social media stands for social interaction and creation of user-based content which exclusively occurs through Internet. The social media are excellent tools for networking because of the fast and easy access, easy interaction and vast amount of multimedia attributes. The allocation of social media is determined. The case company helps clarify the specific characteristics of social media usage as part of customer-reference-marketing activities. For IT-firms the best channels to utilize social media in their customer reference marketing activities are publishing and distribution services of content and networking services.