In recent years, the study of online consumption behavior has gradually formed its research system and analysis model based on the inheritance of traditional research paradigms, focusing on the inner mechanism of consumption models explained by consumption activities. Online consumption is based on the research scenario of social e-commerce and forms a broad research network through the extension of consumer objects, consumer psychology, and consumer concepts. Although the theoretical constructs of online consumer behavior continue to improve, the relevant studies still do not fully grasp the research frontiers due to the lagging research nature. In the context of Web 2.0, it is impossible to run through the latest developments in online consumption research. Moreover, the study of online consumer behavior has shown a trend of diversification and multiple schools of thought, and a research jungle has emerged, which in essence is the perfection and new height of the study of consumerism. This paper analyses the origins, frontiers, and prospects of online consumer behavior research to clarify the formation principles, development paths, and future directions of the online consumer behavior research jungle. Ultimately based on the economic changes in the post-pandemic context, this paper integrates and proposes an evolving mechanism for studying online consumption behavior, intending to achieve a peek into and reveal the jungle of online consumption research.

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Research Jungle on Online Consumer Behaviour in the Context of Web 2.0: Traceability, Frontiers and Perspectives in the Post-Pandemic Era

The purpose of this study is to make good use of the massive amount of online user comment data to explore and analyze the dimensions of customer-perceived value and the importance of each dimension, given the background of China’s huge e-commerce market. We compiled a web crawler program to collect online comment data from online reviews. The crawled data were pre-processed and content analysis were performed. A customer-perceived value dictionary was constructed based on the extraction of frequent terms, literature review, and expert opinions. We re-identified the dimensions of customer-perceived value to include four key dimensions and corresponding subdivisions. Both the rationality and operability of the dimension model of customer-perceived value were validated and applied. Thereafter, the importance of various dimensions and the impacts of customer-perceived value dimensions on customer loyalty were analyzed and discussed. The empirical research results reveal that all four dimensions of customer-perceived value play an important role in customer-perceived value and that the patterns and degrees of the role of each dimension are rather different. Further, only certain parts of the dimensions of customer-perceived value have an impact on customer loyalty, and the degree of the impact differs substantially.

Exploring E-Commerce Big Data and Customer-Perceived Value: An Empirical Study on Chinese Online Customers

Prior literature has largely addressed corporate social responsibility (CSR) from outcomes related to organizational themes. However, its importance for achieving consumer-related outcomes is something that has been largely ignored by contemporary researchers. Likewise, how CSR communication through social media can create positive emotions on the part of consumers has to date been under-explored. Hence, the present study aims to fill these gaps by investigating the impact of CSR communication of an organization through social media on consumer loyalty. The study also proposes electronic word of mouth (e-WOM) as a potential mediator between this relationship. The proposed model of the present study was tested in the banking sector of a developing country. The data were collected from a self-administered questionnaire and analyzed through the structural equation modeling technique (SEM). The results of the present study validated that CSR communication of a bank through social media directly and indirectly, through e-WOM, influences consumer loyalty in a positive manner. The results of the present study will be helpful for policymakers to better understand how well-planned CSR communication of an organization on social media can lead towards better consumer-related outcomes such as consumer loyalty and e-WOM.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/7/3832/pdf

The Relationship of Sustainability Communication on Social Media with Banking Consumers’ Loyalty through e-WOM

PurposeOver time, the concept of word of mouth (WOM) has spread beyond marketing into other disciplines. This is because WOM is important in decision-making at both the individual and organisational levels. Also, people are more likely to trust recommendations from their peers than those from companies. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived usefulness of WOM messages for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suppliers in participating in Tanzanian public procurement opportunities.Design/methodology/approachThe study collected cross-sectional data from 214 SME suppliers who supply common use items to public procuring organisations in Dodoma City, Tanzania. Structural equation modelling was used to test the direct relationships between study variables, and Hayes' PROCESS macro was used to test for the indirect effect of WOM message delivery on WOM attributes and the perceived usefulness of WOM.FindingsWOM attributes that include expertise differential, perceptual homophily, and trustworthiness are related to the perceived usefulness of WOM. Also, WOM message delivery mediates the relationship between the WOM attributes and the perceived usefulness of WOM in enhancing public procurement participation. Therefore, the study's findings revealed that WOM is applicable in the public procurement context, under which public buyers act as senders and suppliers act as receivers. The latter finds out about public procurement opportunities and responds to them, while the former gives suppliers whatever information they need to respond to public procurement tenders that have been advertised.Research limitations/implicationsBecause the study was cross-sectional, it was difficult to determine whether the opinions gathered over time remained consistent. Furthermore, only suppliers who are parties to framework contracts under Government Procurement Services Agency were included in the study. Therefore, the sample was limited to only suppliers supplying common use items to various public organisations in Dodoma City, Tanzania.Originality/valueThis paper integrates the concept of WOM from the marketing discipline and public procurement. As a result, the study adds to the understanding of the use of information transmission in terms of the contribution of WOM messages from public buyers to suppliers to enhance small and medium enterprises' participation in public procurement opportunities.

Thank you for sharing! Unravelling the perceived usefulness of word of mouth in public procurement for small and medium enterprises

Based on the perspective of dual-system information processing, this article explores how word-of-mouth (WOM) referral affects the purchase intentions of consumers with different types of self-construal. Two experimental studies, using WeChat as a research setting, tested the interactive influence of type of WOM referral (economic vs. public welfare) and type of self-construal (independent vs. interdependent) on consumers’ purchase intention toward the referred product and its intermediary mechanism. The results showed that economic (vs. public welfare) WOM referrals, which emphasize a product’s economic benefits, increased the purchase intention of consumers with an independent (vs. interdependent) self-construal, who typically take an individualistic perspective. In contrast, public welfare (vs. economic) WOM referrals, which emphasize the social benefits connected to a company for the community at large, increased the purchase intention of consumers with an interdependent (vs. independent) self-construal, who take a more collectivistic perspective. The results also shed light on the underlying mechanism by showing that different types of self-construal activate different information processing systems in consumers, which mediate consumers’ reaction to different types of WOM referrals. Specifically, economic WOM referrals can inspire consumers with an independent self-construal to engage in more emotional processing, thereby generating higher purchase intentions; in contrast, public welfare WOM referrals can stimulate consumers with an interdependent self-construal to get involved in more cognitive processing, thereby generating higher purchase intentions. These findings contribute to WOM literature and provide practical implications for companies adopting societal marketing strategy and implementing sustainable promotional plans.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/2/645/pdf

The Influence of Word-Of-Mouth Referral on Consumers’ Purchase Intention: Experimental Evidence from WeChat

Both the consumer’s corporate social responsibility association and enterprise production capacity association are beneficial to business sustainable development. Based on Chinese traditional culture and from the perspective of Stereotype Content Model, this paper explores the relationship between two types of entrepreneur-related Word-of-mouth (WOM) and the two afore-mentioned types of consumer’s associations. On the one hand, the results show that the entrepreneur-related WOM labeled as “making yourself a person”, which emphasizes the personal qualities of the entrepreneur, may prompt consumers to form corporate social responsibility associations. On the other hand, the entrepreneur-related WOM labeled as “managing your own affairs”, which emphasizes the ability of the entrepreneur, may cause consumers to form associations regarding the enterprise’s production capacity. The mechanism underlying these effects is that the former type of entrepreneur-related WOM stimulates the consumer’s perception of the entrepreneur’s warmth, while the latter stimulates the consumer’s perception of the entrepreneur’s competence.

https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/6/1737/pdf

The Influence of Internet Entrepreneur-Related Word-of-Mouth (WOM) on Corporate Image Association

This research investigates electronic entrepreneur-related word of mouth (EEWOM), that is, the social dissemination of information about entrepreneurs via the Internet. Two experimental studies shed light on the interplay between the valence (negative vs. positive) of EEWOM, its language style (concrete vs. abstract), and the consumer–brand relationship (weak vs. strong) in shaping consumers’ brand evaluation. Study 1 shows that, when EEWOM is positive, abstract (vs. concrete) language leads to a higher brand evaluation. When EEWOM is negative, abstract (vs. concrete) language leads to a lower brand evaluation. Furthermore, an entrepreneur’s perceived personal qualities mediate this interaction effect on brand evaluation. Study 2 shows that the consumer–brand relationship moderates the interaction between EEWOM valence and language style. When the consumer–brand relationship is strong, positive abstract (vs. concrete) EEWOM leads to a higher brand evaluation. When the consumer–brand relationship is weak, negative abstract (vs. concrete) EEWOM leads to a lower brand evaluation. These empirical findings not only enrich the literature on word of mouth by exploring the consequences that EEWOM can have on brands and the mechanism underlying its effects on brand evaluation, but also carry implications for managers, who could leverage the obtained results to better handle EEWOM messages.

Bing Yuan

Papers

The Influence of Internet Entrepreneur-Related Word-of-Mouth (WOM) on Corporate Image Association

The Influence of Word-Of-Mouth Referral on Consumers’ Purchase Intention: Experimental Evidence from WeChat

The impact of electronic entrepreneur-related word of mouth on brand evaluation