What motivates consumers
to write product reviews
through electronic Word of
Mouth (eWOM)
Course: BRM 1.1/1.2 (IBA)
Academic year: 2011–2012
Date: 25–11–2011
Teacher: Saima Bantvawala
Group: 1.01
Team: H
Student name/ID: Alemayehu Mesele Belay
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Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
Table of contents
1. Introduction and Problem Statement……………………………………………………………………… 2
2. Hypothesis development………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
2.1 Social responsibility and writing product reviews……………………………………………… 5
2.2 Economic reward and writing product reviews…………………………………………………. 6
2.3 Level of education and writing product reviews……………………………………………….. 7
3. Method………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 9
3.1 Sample & Procedure………………………………………………………………………………………… 9
3.2 Communication Method………………………………………………………………………………….. 9
3.3 Measurement Instruments………………………………………………………………………………. 10
3.4 Statistical Analysis …………………………………………………………………………………………… 10
4. Results…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 12
4.1 Descriptive statistic…………………………………………………………………………………………. 12
4.2 Regression Analysis…………………………………………………………………………………………. 12
4.3 T-test………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 13
5. Conclusions & Discussion……………………………………………………………………………………… 15
5.1 Conclusions…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 15
5.2 Shortcomings & future research…………………………………………………………………….. 15
5.3 Theoretical Implications…………………………………………………………………………………. 16
5.4 Practical Implications…………………………………………………………………………………….. 16
Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 18
Non–plagiarism statement…………………………………………………………………………………… 18
Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 19
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Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
1. Introduction and Problem Statement
Before consumers decide on a specific item to purchase, they learn about others’ past
experiences through word–of–mouth (WOM). Technological developments have increased
the convenience and speed with which consumers are able share these experiences and
opinions. Since 2004, the term electronic word–of–mouth (eWOM) has become increasingly
popular to describe the sharing of consumers’ product or service experiences via the
internet (Hennig–Thurau 2004). Consumers now have a breadth of information at their
fingertips and can access thousands of user reviews online. World–wide, approximately nine
to ten million product or company related comments from consumers are available via the
Internet on Web–based consumer platforms (Hennig-Thurau et al, 2004). Through electronic
word of mouth, opinion leaders who are often called e–fluentials (Sun et al, 2006) now
greatly influence consumer perception and buying behaviour.
Online user reviews have become increasingly important as consumers continue to
purchase products online. When consumers are not able to judge a product in person, they
often rely on this eWOM transfer to mitigate risks regarding product quality and the
truthfulness of the seller. More recently, DoubleClick’s yearly Touchpoints survey has shown
that websites provide the single greatest influence to online consumers when making
shopping decisions (DoubleClick Touchpoint IV 2006). Similarly, in the service industry
product reviews have a great significance. Due to the intangible character of services
consumers are unsure about what to expect. Product reviews can assist them in their
decision making process and eliminate the risk associated with the purchase.
Past research has focused on the effects of positive and negative reviews within specific
purchasing situations. For example, extensive research has been performed on eBay’s
reputation system. This system relies on buyers and sellers to rate each other’s performance
and enables a low cost mechanism to enable trust among the virtually anonymous
transactions. Additionally, significant research has been conducted on the effects of user
and critic reviews for movies and books on purchases.
The present studies not only investigate the impact of user reviews on purchase decisions,
but also what motivates consumers to write product reviews (Bronner en de Hoog, Sun et
al, Hennig–Thurau et al). Of course, there may be similar motivations behind contributing
information and reading and using information (Brooner en de Hoog, 2010). Out of social
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Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
concern, consumers might try to help other consumers by sharing their experiences to
enhance the quality of their choice. Having had a negative buying experience, writing a
product review can be a way for consumers to vent negative feeling or even take revenge.
Marketing managers should take all of this into account as writers of product reviews can
have a negative, but also positive, effect on their strategy. There are many different motives
for writing online product reviews which has led to the following research question:
What is the effect of individual consumer motives on the intention to write product
reviews online?
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Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
2. Hypothesis development
“Online communities are regarded as online social entities that are maintained by
individuals to exchange shared interests or values with current and potential community
members in an ongoing manner without physical interaction” (Dennis et al, Ridings et al in
Sun et al, 2006). Sharing ones product or service experiences through writing product
reviews can therefore be regarded as a social activity. Previous studies have shown that a
positive relationship between social motives and the writing of product reviews exists (e.g.
Dichter, Engel et al in Hennig–Thurau et al, 2004). When looking at social motives we can
distinguish between social benefits (wanting to be part of a community) and social
responsibility (wanting to help others). Looking at research by Engel et al., electronic Word
of Mouth (eWOM) communication on online opinion platforms may be the result of a
consumer’s desire to help other consumers with their buying decisions, to save others from
negative experiences, or both (Hennig–Thurau et al, 2004). A study conducted by Bronner
and de Hoog showed that 70% of the writers of vacation reviews were motivated by
enabling other vacationers to take a good decision. Sharing ones experiences through
writing a review can significantly enhance the quality of the purchase decision for other
consumers. Therefore, we have decided to focus on social responsibility in our research.
Furthermore, individuals can be motivated by a certain reward they receive in return for
writing a product review. This relates to extrinsic motivation where an individual wants
something back for what he or she has done. In relation to writing product reviews,
economic reward can be described as the incentive (money or gift) customers receive for
sharing information in web–based discussion boards (Lee et al, 2006). It is known that
economic/monetary reward is one of the greatest motivational factors of human behaviour
in general (Lawler in Hennig–Thurau et al, 2004) which is why we decided to focus on this
particular aspect in our research to find what motivates consumers to write online product
reviews.
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Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
2.1 Social responsibility and writing a product review online
Individual social responsibility is a process of moral binding, in which individuals may have
to take an active and constrictive responsibility to solve a particular social problem (i.e.
reforestation program, disaster relief, promoting heritage and culture, interacting with local
community through creating awareness on a particular issue, helping other people in every
direction). The centre of this study is focused on individual customers’ motivation to write a
product review through eWOM (electronic word of mouth) to accomplish their moral
responsibilities within a community or outside their community.
Past research has indicated that individual customers are motivated to help other people by
giving balanced information about a particular product. The nature of the comments is
dependent on the individual perceptions of a particular product (i.e., quality, price,
availability of a product). ‘’Communication on web–based opinion platforms may be
initiated because of a desire to help other consumers with their buying decision, to save
others from negative experiences or both positive and negative consumer experience’’
(Engel et al in Henning–Thurau et al , 2004). This is directly related to the concept that an
individuals’ social responsibility may lead to a greater intention to write an online product
review. There is a strong social link between the desire to become an online community
member and writing a review about the performance of specified products or services
(LaROSE et al in Sun et al 2006). The above mentioned research has also suggested that
influential members of a community distribute important information about the particular
product through online WOM to their less experienced members. This way, they fulfil their
social responsibilities (Chaney in Sun et al, 2006). (Lee et al, 2006) has also attempted to
examine that individual consumers who have the same social background or consumers
who have a strong social bond have a higher motivation to share information in web–based
discussion boards. Intrinsic motivation theories also explain the motives behind supporting a
sense of individual responsibility towards society. Intrinsic motivation is a willingness to help
other people without any monetary or non–monetary reward (Deci and Ryan in Lee et
al,2006). Because of the above concepts we expect that individual consumers’ social
responsibilities have a positive effect on consumers’ intention to write a product review
online.
Research Report
What motivates consumers to write product reviews?
H1: Social responsibility has a direct positive effect on the intention to write product
reviews online
2.2 Economic rewards and writing a product review online
Among the various motives for writing product reviews, personal interest plays a significant
role (i.e. self–expression, revenge, gaining self–esteem and economic reward). In this study,
we focus on personal interest relating to economic rewards and the intention to write a
product review through eWOM.
Recent research has clearly shown that it is useful to identify theories that affect personal
motivation for sharing knowledge with others (e.g. Deci and Ryan in Lee et al, 2006). It
highlights that extrinsic and intrinsic motivational factors play a determinant role in human
motivation to do something or act in a certain way. Extrinsic motivation is when an
