Positive Word Of Mouth Research Articles

Memorable customer experiences and autobiographical memories: From service experience to word of mouth

The aim of this paper is to study the relationship between customer experience and word of mouth (WOM) through two mediating variables: customer satisfaction and memorable characteristics of service experience (MCSE). Memory theory is adopted as a theoretical background, with emphasis on the key role of episodic or autobiographical memory. Memorable customer experience (MCE) is defined from this perspective, thereby enabling the connection between human memory theory and service-dominant (S-D) logic. As for the impact of the internet on WOM, two types of WOM behaviours are examined: positive WOM (pWOM) and eWOM. A methodology was designed from a survey that used a questionnaire based on measurement scales validated by the literature. The sample is of 1476 tourists who visited seven Spanish tourism destinations. The results show service experience precedes customer satisfaction and MCSE. Both pWOM and eWOM are significantly influenced by customer satisfaction and MCSE. Various scenarios are put forward in which several combinations of customer satisfaction and MCSE give rise to different intensities and valence of pWOM and eWOM.

Examining the determinants of consumer support for corporate social advocacy

PurposeUsing the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a theoretical framework, this study investigates individual level psychological determinants of individuals word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions as a way to support corporate social advocacy (CSA).Design/methodology/approachAn online survey (N = 505) using a Qualtrics panel was conducted.FindingsIndividuals' attitudes towards WOM, subjective norms, and self-efficacy was positively associated with their positive WOM intention, whereas perceived controllability over WOM behaviors was not associated with WOM intention. Age was negatively associated with WOM intention.Originality/valueThis study is one of the early attempts to test individual level factors in shaping individuals' WOM intention in response to CSA. This study also employed recent TPB argument and tested the role of self-efficacy and perceived controllability on behavioral intentions in the context of corporate communication. The findings of this study offer theoretical and practical insights to corporations when developing CSA campaigns and designing CSA messages.

Exploring Consumer Behavior and Brand Management in the Automotive Sector: Insights from a Digital and Territorial Perspective

Human beings are strongly influenced by their emotions; so, it is believed that building a close relationship between consumers and brands is a key factor for success. In this way, car brands are no exception, and despite facing numerous challenges associated with the energy transition, they have to reinvent themselves, retaining a focus on offering a unique and personalized experience for the consumer without forgetting the factors that influence the decision-making process. Therefore, current research aims to understand the relationship between brand love and other behavioral constructs, including brand attachment, brand satisfaction, brand loyalty, and positive word of mouth, as well as its influence on consumer behavior in the Portuguese automotive market, more specifically regarding the brands Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz. Based on the literature review, a questionnaire survey was conducted on a group of 324 respondents. From this sample, it was possible to develop a conceptual model and formulate six research hypotheses. The results reveal that brand attachment and satisfaction have a positive influence on brand love, which has a positive influence on brand loyalty and positive word of mouth. In addition, brand attachment is positively related to brand loyalty, which has a positive impact on loyalty. Therefore, this article presents some insights from the perspective of digital marketing (i.e., e-WOM and social networks) and territory management (i.e., notoriety and positioning of territories). In the end, the limitations of the study will be presented, and guidelines for future research will be outlined.

Is customer participation always good in service recovery? The moderating role of customers' positive psychological capital

PurposeSo far, whether customers' involvement strengthens or weakens the process of service recovery has remained unclear. Filling this gap, this study aims to investigate the effect of customers' participation on customers' post-recovery outcomes in the context of the banking industry. More specifically, this study delineates how and when customer participation (CP) proves effective in creating and enhancing favourable post-recovery outcomes.Design/methodology/approachWith the help of an online survey, this study collects responses from 314 bank customers and analyses them using SmartPLS.FindingsThe results show that customers' participation in service recovery positively affects customers' perceived utilitarian and hedonic values. Customers' perceived utilitarian and hedonic values positively influence customers' recovery satisfaction which, in turn, positively relates to their continuance intention and positive word-of-mouth (PWOM). Furthermore, customers' positive psychological capital (CPPC) positively moderates the relationship of CP in service recovery with perceived utilitarian value and hedonic value.Originality/valueThis study unveils the negative facet of co-created service recovery, which has rarely been addressed in the service recovery literature, especially in the context of the banking industry. This study demonstrates that the effectiveness of customers' participation in creating favourable post-recovery outcomes is contingent on CPPC. Moreover, this study confirms that not all customers may value customers' participation in the service recovery process.

Customer satisfaction as a mediator of service facility and word of mouth in higher learning institutions

PurposeHigher learning institutions (HLIs) need to have quality service facilities to achieve customer satisfaction and positive word of mouth (WoM). The purpose of this study is to assess customer satisfaction as a mediator of service facility and WoM in the context of Tanzania's HLIs.Design/methodology/approachA mixed-methods approach was used to achieve the study objectives. Stratified and simple random sampling techniques were adopted to obtain the names of 201 students in HLIs in Tanzania. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) were used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe findings show that service facility is significantly associated with both WoM and customer satisfaction, while the relationship between customer satisfaction and WoM is significant. The study also found that customer satisfaction mediates the relationship between service facility and WoM.Practical implicationsThe practitioners of HLIs can invest in improving service facility. Service quality is an important component that impacts WoM in HLIs. This is the most important element that impacts students' satisfaction and WoM in HLIs more than any other element of service quality.Originality/valueThis paper adds to the body of knowledge on the role of customer satisfaction in mediating the relationship between service facility and WoM in the context of Tanzania's HLIs. This study also presents a methodological contribution for a better understanding of the predictors of customer satisfaction in HLIs from the students' point of view.

Enhancing Relationships Through Online Brand Communities: Comparing Posters and Lurkers

ABSTRACT This study establishes the importance of considering both posters (interactive members) and lurkers (non-interactive members) for a clearer understanding of online brand communities. Based on organizational support theory and social identity theory, this study proposes a model a model that illustrates the impacts of perceived brand support in brands’ online communities upon members’ community identity and brand trust, leading to their positive behaviors toward the brand (i.e., purchase intention, resistance to negative information, and positive word of mouth) and how these effects differ between posters and lurkers. Using structural equation modeling, results reveal that in firm-hosted online brand communities, perceived brand support (i.e., recognizing contributions, encouraging interactions, and providing quality information) relates to members’ satisfaction by fulfilling their socioemotional needs (community identity) and increases their brand trust. Furthermore, multigroup analyses indicate significant differences in the paths to brand trust between posters and lurkers. Brand knowledge, providing quality information, and encouraging members to interact drive brand trust for lurkers. For posters, trust is driven by their sense of community identity and encouraging members to interact. This research advances the literature on online brand communities by shedding light on the scant knowledge of lurkers in online communities. It demonstrates how perceived support from brands can improve both posters’ and lurkers’ relationships with the community and the brand itself. The findings provide actionable managerial recommendations regarding how brands can manage their relationships with all members (both posters and lurkers) in their online communities.

Internet of things in Saudi public healthcare organizations: The moderating role of facilitating conditions

The Internet of Things (IoT) is an innovative technology that has the potential to help public hospitals better meet the demands of hospitalization. However, only a small portion of the research looked at patients' behavioural intentions (BI) to utilise IoT healthcare devices (IoTHD). This study intends to investigate the variables that influence the BI's use of IoTHD. The research suggests that the BI may be explained by factors of UTATU. The patients of public hospitals make up the population. A questionnaire was used to obtain the data using convenience sampling. Participants in this research totalled 161. Smart Partial Least Square results demonstrated that social influence (SI) has an impact on performance expectancy (PE). Technological complexity (TC) and playfulness (PP) had an impact on effort expectancy (EE). Additionally, the BI to adopt IoTHD was impacted by PE, EE, perceived security (PS), and perceived privacy (PV). The impact of PE and EE on BI to use IoTHD was not moderated by the facilitating conditions (FC). In order to improve patients' perceptions of IoTHD usage in public health organisations, simple process and more positive word of mouth is required.

Assessing gastronomic tourism using machine learning approach: The case of google review

This study aims to evaluate tourists' reviews of gastronomy tourism expressed in Google reviews according to the CAC model (Cognitive, Affective, and Conative), and to examine the inter-correlations between CAC model components. The study was applied to traditional restaurants in Amman downtown. The research then extracts the main themes from the textual reviews as well as a sentiment score of an affective image of traditional Amman downtown restaurants. The results of machine learning experiments suggest that the proposed approach can identify traditional restaurant reviews in Amman downtown into CAC model components. The results also show that the Random Forest algorithm performed best in the cognitive and cognitive dimensions, whereas the Neural Network algorithm performed best in the affective dimension. ML classifier revealed that most of the reviews were classified as cognitive (such as the type of food, and services) while the remaining reviews were classified as affective (such as pleasure and arousal) and conative (such as intention to recommend, and positive word of mouth) respectively. The highest probability of the cognitive components was the traditional food topic reflecting the unique image of Jordanian traditional food. Affective images formed by users were mainly positive emotions, indicating that the destination image spread well.

Understanding how satisfactory service relationships can be mutually beneficial in the higher education context

PurposeWhile extant research has predominantly focused on outcomes of customer satisfaction that benefit the focal firm such as customer engagement behaviors (CEBs), little is done to understand human capital-related outcomes that directly benefit customers and thus benefit the firm indirectly. Drawing on the theory of reasoned action, broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions and human capital theory, this study aims to understand how and why a satisfied customer benefits the firm directly (CEBs) and indirectly (human capital-related outcomes).Design/methodology/approachFollowing a sequential mixed-methods approach, two studies are conducted in an extended service encounter context (higher education) where customers also constitute key human capital of the service firm. First, a qualitative study is conducted, which is then followed by a quantitative study. Survey data collected from students working as interns in organizations and their immediate managers resulted in 209 “intern–manager” dyads.FindingsThe findings demonstrate that customer satisfaction on its own does not substantially account for either human capital-related outcomes or CEBs (except word of mouth [WOM]). Both emotional and cognitive mechanisms play key and unique mediating roles in translating satisfaction into outcomes that benefit a service firm directly and indirectly by benefiting its customers.Research limitations/implicationsWhile much research demonstrates benefits of customer satisfaction for the focal firm, this research advances our understanding of the novel consequences of customer satisfaction by shedding light on human capital-related outcomes that directly benefit customers. It also aids in explicating prior inconsistent findings on the relationship between customer satisfaction and CEBs by uncovering the underlying mediating mechanisms.Practical implicationsThis investigation provides a deeper understanding of the significance of customer satisfaction by demonstrating how and why satisfied customers increase firm value beyond purchase, for instance, by being direct (through positive WOM) and indirect (through enhanced human capital performance) promoters, consultants (through participation) or investors (through monetary giving). A key implication of this research is that simply enhancing customer satisfaction on its own may not suffice as the findings suggest that satisfaction translates into beneficial outcomes only when satisfaction is channeled toward enhancing customer perceptions of competence and their positive emotions.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the literature by providing a deeper understanding of how and why customer satisfaction influences outcomes that not only benefit the firm but also its customers in extended service encounter context.

Islamic bank customer satisfaction, trust, loyalty and word of mouth: the CREATOR model

PurposeThis study aims to investigate two primary objectives. First, this study examines the influence of modified service quality dimensions on Islamic bank customer satisfaction using a compliance, reliability, empathy, assurance, tangible, operational efficiency, responsiveness (CREATOR) model. Second, the study explores the relationship between customer satisfaction, trust, loyalty and word of mouth (WOM) in Islamic banking of Pakistan.Design/methodology/approachThe proposed model was analyzed using PLS-SEM-based approach. A total of 312 usable responses were used for data analysis.FindingsThe results indicate that all CREATOR dimensions have a significant positive impact on Islamic banks’ customer satisfaction. Similarly, this study also found a significant positive relationship between customer satisfaction, trust, loyalty and WOM. Overall, this study modified a well-established service quality framework by successfully implementing the CREATOR model in Islamic banking.Originality/valueThis study will provide helpful policy guidelines for Islamic bank managers improve their service quality and strengthen their relationships with existing and new customers. The authors are also sure that their proposed model will add value to the ongoing service quality literature by indicating the role of operational effectiveness in increasing customer satisfaction and promoting positive WOM.

How to create positive word of mouth (WOM) in the world of gaming? The social side of multiplayer games

Multiplayer games provide an interactive environment to their consumers, the gamers. In that environment, gamers experience the created world by those game products. This study aims to explore the existence of positive word of mouth (WOM) in multiplayer games based on the interactive environment that these games create due to their nature. 342 people were surveyed online and gathered data were analyzed through structural equation modeling. Based on survey results, social interaction is positively related both to social identity and prosocial behavior, social identity positively affects both prosocial behavior and positive WOM, and prosocial behavior exerts a positive influence on positive WOM. Besides, social identity mediates the relationship between social interaction and prosocial behavior, and prosocial behavior mediates the relationship between social identity and positive WOM. By discussing the results and providing implications, we present empirical evidence for the existence of positive WOM in gaming and highlight its importance for marketing research and practices.

Brand Experience and WOM: The Mediating Effects of Brand Love, Brand Image, and Brand Loyalty

In marketing, word of mouth (WOM, whether positive or negative, can have a significant impact on overall marketing success because it influences the reputation of the company and the product brand. To foster positive WOM, marketers should manage the consumer experience when consuming a product brand. This study applies brand love, brand image, and brand loyalty to the effect of brand experience on WOM. Brand love, brand image and brand loyalty are posited as mediators. The present study employed consumers of a pharmaceutical brand originating from Japan. The online survey gathered 293 data that could be used for analysis. By using the two types of positive WOM (face-to-face WOM and electronic WOM, later abbreviated as f-WOM and e-WOM) this study revealed that the brand experience was positively associated with e-WOM and f-WOM. Brand experience was associated with e-WOM through brand love, brand image and brand loyalty. In addition, brand experience was associated with f-WOM through brand love, brand image and brand loyalty. The study offers important information to marketers. Through brand property management, organizations would scan positive WOM from their consumers, in turn it may be a good spontaneous promotion at their brands.

Tourism promotion through vlog advertising and customer engagement behaviours of generation Z

ABSTRACT This study investigates the effectiveness of Vlogs as an advertising tool to promote the tourism sector in Pakistan using Ducoffe’s Advertising Value Model and stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) framework, and its subsequent effect on customer engagement behaviours (CEBs). Data were collected from generation Z through both the online and offline medium, 230 students were approached; 206 questionnaires were usable for analysis. Partial least squares–structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was used for model assessment. The results indicated that all the relationships are supported: informativeness, entertainment, credibility and irritation significantly influence advertising value; adverting value influences attitude towards Vlog; and finally, attitude towards Vlog significantly influences electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), positive word-of-mouth (PWOM), customer referral, and destination visit intention. This study is the first in this domain that measures the importance of Vlog advertising value in shaping the attitude of generation Z toward Vlog destination advertising, especially in the context of Pakistan, a developing economy. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings, limitations of the study and suggestions for future research directions are also discussed.

Service Recovery Satisfaction and Commitment in the Context of Spectator Sport Industry: Study on Croatian Football Consumers

Successful service recovery is one of the major tasks for every service provider. This paper transfers the theory of service recovery from traditional industries into the spectator sport context, more precisely - football. A satisfied and committed consumer is one of the main goals for every business entity, as well as for football clubs. The main purpose of this paper is to examine factors that predict satisfaction with service recovery and its outcomes in the context of the spectator sports industry. The research methodology used previously established scales related to service recovery satisfaction in terms of other industries, which are modified in order to meet the requirements of this research. The research was conducted on 408 active consumers of services provided by Croatian football clubs. The research results show that service recovery perceives equity impacts recovery satisfaction in terms of football as the most popular spectator sport in the world. Furthermore, it has been established that recovery satisfaction predicts satisfaction with club services and trust in football clubs. Relationships between predictors such as recovery satisfaction, satisfaction with club services, trust, and its proposed outcome, such as commitment towards the club could not be supported. This could be due to the fact that spectator sport consumers possess enormous emotional and psychological loyalty towards the club, which surpasses traditional consumer theory understanding. Furthermore, a significant relationship between consumer commitment and positive word of mouth has been established. Implications for Central European audience: Obtained results can also be of interest for audience from other Central European countries where football is also an extremely important part of their leisure activities and overall culture.

안동향토음식점의 지역이미지가 긍정적 구전, 부정적 구전, 재방문의도에 미치는 영향

This study conducted a study targeting consumers who used Jongga restaurants. For the data collection of this study, a questionnaire was conducted targeting consumers who had experience in Andong Jongga restaurants such as Yemijeong Andong and Ihwa Restaurant of the Pungsan Ryu clan. The survey period was conducted from June 20 to July 19, 2022. 460 parts were analyzed. the results are as follow. the results are as follow. It was found that the cognitive image of local food regional image had a significant effect on positive word of mouth, but did not affect negative word of mouth. It was found that the emotional image factor of the local image of local food had a significant effect on positive word of mouth, but the emotional image factor did not affect the negative word of mouth. Also, it was found that positive word of mouth factors had a significant effect on revisit intention, but negative word of mouth factors did not.

Enhancing Sustainable Cosmetics Brand Purchase: A Comprehensive Approach Based on the SOR Model and the Triple Bottom Line

Profitable and dynamic, the cosmetics industry strives to conform to the environmental ideals and practices of the 21st century. For years, NGOs, the media, and consumers have accused cosmetics brands of pollution, environmental disasters, and safety concerns. These allegations can spread faster in the online environment and cause genuine brand crises. Many cosmetic company managers continue to assess the necessity of accelerating their business toward sustainability initiatives and being more consumer centric. Therefore, this paper aims to examine the impact of economic, social, and environmental sustainability on brand attachment and brand attractiveness, which may result in a positive WOM, enhance purchase intention, and finally lead to the intention to join online brand communities. To implement the research scope, the authors developed a conceptual model based on the triple bottom line (TBL) and the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) approach. To assess the conceptual model, the authors have conducted quantitative research, through an online questionnaire, with data being collected from consumers via an online survey platform. The snowball sample comprised 1632 valid responses from consumers of sustainable cosmetics brands. Further on, the conceptual model was assessed employing structural equations modelling via SmartPLS. The results confirm the impact of the three pillars of TBL (i.e., economic, social, and environmental sustainability) (stimuli) on brand attachment and brand attractiveness (organism), which finally generates positive WOM, triggers purchase intention, and enhances consumers’ intention to join an online brand community (response). From a theoretical perspective, our research contributes to extending knowledge based on the SOR approach and TBL applied to sustainable cosmetics brands. Considering the significant effects of economic, social, and environmental sustainability on consumer perception and intention, the study also pinpoints some major management implications for the cosmetic industry.

Antecedents and moderators of positive word of mouth communication among tourist destination residents during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT Word of mouth (WOM) communication has been recognized for a long time as an activity to improve the efficiency and success of communication efforts. The purpose of this paper is to examine potential antecedents and moderators of positive WOM of tourist destination residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Three WOM predictors are examined, i.e. trustworthiness in communication of authorities, destination reputation, and prevention measures, whereas two sociodemographic variables are considered as moderators, i.e. gender and age, and more specifically, generational cohorts. Empirical research has been conducted among residents of a tourist destination, considered important stakeholders who actively participate in tourist destination branding. Data were collected through an online survey distributed through e-mail marketing lists and online panels. After obtaining 480 valid responses, data were subject to normality tests, Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), measurement invariance assessment, and multi-group analysis. Findings reveal that residents’ positive WOM is caused by their perceptions of destination reputation and adoption measures, being the role of trustworthiness in communication of authorities insignificant in residents’ WOM engagement. Among the two sociodemographic variables, only gender is found to moderate one relationship (i.e. reputation-WOM), with stronger effects among women.

Investor’s Intrinsic Motives and the Valence of Word-of-Mouth in Sequential Decision-Making: Modeling of Triple Serial Mediation

Word-of-Mouth (WoM) is a socially embedded process, and investors engage in social considerations to achieve self-motives. Investors attempt to share negative WoM (NWoM) to emotionally connect (self-affirm) to strengthen existing social ties following prior losses. In contrast, investors attempt to share positive WoM (PWoM) to self-enhance to attract others into developing new social ties. Thereby, this study aims to predict the impact of prior losses or gains on investors’ later decisions by engaging in the valence of WoM to achieve different underlying self-motives and social-motives. This study used experimental data and employed PROCESS tool model 6 to check the validity of the proposed triple serial mediation model. Findings support the viability of the triple mediation model that investors seek to achieve different underlying self-motives and social-motives manifested in PWoM or NWoM, following prior gains or losses. Investors seek to self-affirm by strengthening components of social-motives through engaging in NWoM, following prior losses. While investors seek to self-enhance to develop components of social-motives through sharing PWoM, following prior gains. Findings provide significant implications for researchers, managers, financial advisors, and analysts. Researchers, managers, and analysts can incorporate investors’ intrinsic factors in traditional economic models to better predict investors’ economic behavior. Financial advisors need to understand self-motives and social-motives that change clients’ risk attitude and frame investment advice to achieve particular clients’ self-motives and social-motives.

I trust friends before I trust companies: The mediation of WOM and brand love on psychological contract fulfilment and repurchase intention

Purpose Consumer psychology research has established the importance of customer satisfaction as a determinant of customer repurchasing intention. Nonetheless, even satisfied customers switch brands. Also, even dissatisfied customers have repurchasing intentions. This means that customer repurchasing behaviour is extremely difficult to predict, necessitating additional research to identify additional factors that can help organizations better understand the methods to predict customer repurchasing intention. To fill this knowledge gap, this study examined the mediating effects of brand love (BL) and positive word of mouth (PWOM) on psychological contract fulfilment (PCF) and customer repurchasing intentions. Design/methodology/approach This is a cross-sectional study. The study used structural equation modelling (SEM) to analyse relationships from a sample size of 400 beauty salon customers. Also, a process macro mediation test was used to analyse the mediating effects of BL and PWOM on the relationship between PCF and customer repurchase intentions. Findings The findings indicate that transactional and relational psychological contracts have a positive and significant relationship with BL and PWOM. As well, BL and PWOM positively and significantly influence customer repurchase intentions. Finally, the findings indicate that BL and PWOM mediate the relationship between psychological contract fulfilment and customer repurchase intentions. Research limitations/implications This survey sampled beauty salons solely. Given that each type of organization may have a unique way of fulfilling psychological contracts, future studies may include more categories such as restaurants and craftsmanship to broaden the sample. Additionally, this study utilized female beauty salons. Therefore, future research could include salons that cater to women and men to boost the sample's generalizability. Finally, this study concluded that BL and positive recommendations are the most effective variables for resolving consumer satisfaction challenges. However, additional factors can probably amplify this fact by focusing on additional elements to broaden the arguments. Originality/value Past studies have extensively covered customer repurchasing intention in relation to customer satisfaction. However, it was noted that even some satisfied customers could switch to other brands, and those who were dissatisfied could repurchase the brand. Given that little is known about how other factors than customer satisfaction can affect repurchasing intentions, this study examines the mediating effects of BL and PWOM on PCF and customer repurchase intentions.

Tourist–Host Identity Risk: Scale Development and Consequences

Risk perception has been an important construct in understanding tourists’ trip planning. Surprisingly, while tourists’ perceived tourist–host identity risk (THIR) plays an essential role in this process, its effects have been overlooked. Against this backdrop, this study develops a THIR scale and investigates how it shapes the intention of mainland Chinese tourists to revisit Hong Kong, and also investigates the spread of positive word-of-mouth (WoM) by conducting multiple online surveys with mainlanders. The results show that THIR is a uni-dimensional construct which is robustly measured by 12 items. It undermines revisit intention and the spread of positive WoM because of lower emotional solidarity followed by anticipation of unpleasant experience. This negative serial mediation is weaker for people who have a strong Chinese identity and perceive high THIR of an alternative destination (Macao). Meaningful implications are provided for destination marketers.