Customer review or influencer endorsement: which one influences purchase intention more?

Abstract

E-commerce has grown steadily since internet access became more available in the mid-1990s. Informativeness plays a key role in online shopping decisions. Potential customers usually collect useful information and do a comparison before considering the purchase. Electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) is considered a reliable source of information. Customer reviews and influencer reviews can be considered eWOM. They represent customers’ sharing of experience and evaluation of a product or service with other potential shoppers. There is abundant evidence concerning the influence of eWOM on purchase intention. However, there are few studies on influencer reviews and purchase intention. This study aims to investigate the impact of customer review and influencer review to purchase intention and the mediating role of trust to those relationship. A quantitative experimental study (2 × 1) was conducted. Two hundred respondents from three cities in Greater Jakarta were divided into two groups to self-rate their opinion on customer review, influencer review, trust and purchase intention. Data collected was analysed PLS using SmartPLS. The study results showed that influencer review has a positive impact on purchase intention. On the other hand, customer review failed to show its influence. Trust as a moderating variable was also not validated in this study.