Showing papers in "Journal of Interactive Advertising in 2006"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used data from a survey of 309 consumers to develop a 32-item self-report scale measuring consumer motivations for online opinion seeking and found that consumers seek the opinions of others online to reduce their risk, because others do it, to secure lower prices, to get information easily, by accident (unplanned), because it is cool, because they are stimulated by off-line inputs such as TV, and to get pre-purchase information.
Abstract: Online interpersonal influence or electronic word-of-mouth (“eWOM”) is an important aspect of ecommerce. Consumers give and seek opinions online in much the same way as they do offline, thereby affecting the sales of many goods and services. To further the understanding of eWOM, the present study used data from a survey of 309 consumers to develop a 32-item self-report scale measuring consumer motivations for online opinion seeking. This study revealed eight distinct factors. Consumers seek the opinions of others online to reduce their risk, because others do it, to secure lower prices, to get information easily, by accident (unplanned), because it is cool, because they are stimulated by off-line inputs such as TV, and to get pre-purchase information. A second study using data from 109 consumers showed that: (1) the scales measuring these motivations are free from social desirability response bias and acquiescence, (2) other consumers’ information is more important than advertising, and (3) consum...
645 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors have heralded the end of advertising as we know it, with the increasing penetration of digital video recorders (DVRs), the New York Times and Wall Street Journal both recently...
Abstract: Recent media reports have heralded the end of advertising as we know it. With the increasing penetration of digital video recorders (DVRs), the New York Times and Wall Street Journal both recently ...
338 citations
TL;DR: The authors examined the effects of a political candidate's blog on attitudes towards the website, attitudes toward the political candidate, and intentions to vote, and found that the effects were mediated by parasocial interaction.
Abstract: The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of a political candidate’s blog-a form of eWOM (electronic Word-of-Mouth)-on attitudes toward the website, attitudes toward the political candidate, and intentions to vote. The results showed that interactivity in the form of a blog significantly influenced attitude toward the website, but not attitudes toward the candidate or voting intention. However, perceived interactivity influenced all three dependent variables, but did not interact with interactivity, suggesting that these are two separate constructs. The effects were mediated by parasocial interaction.
292 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the acceptability of product placement in advergames and found that negative attitudes towards advertising in general have a stronger influence on attitude towards product placement than being positive about advertising.
Abstract: Advergames are increasingly being used as part of a marketing campaign to promote products and brands. Previous research investigating the extent to which game players absorb messages in interactive environments has focused on video and more general online gaming environments. Using a snowball sampling technique we examined the level of recall of products, brands, and companies in advergames and whether the acceptability of product placement in advergames is related to attitude towards advertising in general. Our investigation shows recall of products and companies is high and that being negative about advertising in general has a stronger influence on attitude towards product placement in advergames than being positive about advertising. We conclude that advergames might work more effectively for products and brands that are already known to the game players and that advergames may be more suited to enhancing and altering brand impression rather than building awareness of products that are new to...
210 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the theory of psychological reactance to understand consumer attitudes towards two major direct marketing techniques: unsolicited commercial e-mail and postal direct mail, and found that recipients perceived unsolicited e-mails as more intrusive and irritating than traditional direct mail.
Abstract: Using Psychological Reactance as the framework, this study sought to understand consumer attitudes towards two major direct marketing techniques: unsolicited commercial e-mail and postal direct mail. In particular, audience perceptions of advertising intrusiveness, perceived loss of control (as conceptualized by Psychological Reactance), and irritation regarding the direct marketing techniques were investigated. The results of this survey study (N=119) indicated that recipients perceived unsolicited e-mails as more intrusive and irritating than postal direct mail. This study contributed to the theory of Psychological Reactance by indicating that recipients did not feel a loss of control regarding spam, thus Psychological Reactance was not fully supported in the context of these marketing communication techniques. Suggestions for direct marketing practitioners conclude the paper.
164 citations
TL;DR: It was showed that the network structure affects innovation adoption timing in the electronic communication environment, as a centralized network structure leads towards early adoption and as tie strength and adoption timing are related.
Abstract: This article presents a network analysis of electronic word-of-mouth referral communication in a real life online environment. The goal of the paper was to clarify the existing terminology of electronic word-of-mouth behavior, to examine the kind of network structure that will emerge in the electronic environment, and finally to explore the impact of the network structure on the acceptance of an innovation in such a communication environment. Results indicated that the structure of an electronic communication network is different from the traditional interpersonal communication network structure. This study also showed that the network structure affects innovation adoption timing in the electronic communication environment, as a centralized network structure leads towards early adoption and as tie strength and adoption timing are related.
135 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the extent of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) on electronic discussion boards within U.S. and China based websites was examined and compared.
Abstract: The important influence of peer recommendations on consumer purchases has been strongly established. However, recent growth in electronic discussion boards has increased the potential for electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) between people who have never met. This study examines and compares the extent of eWOM on electronic discussion boards within U.S. and China based websites. Using online surveys (N = 214) and observation of discussion postings (N = 3029), data was collected from the “Digital Photography” discussion boards on eBay, Yahoo, and Google (U.S. based websites) and EachNet, Sina, and Netease (China based websites). The findings indicated both similarities and differences in the information giving and seeking behaviors, with the U.S. participants more likely to provide information than Chinese participants, resulting in the U.S. based discussion boards containing a richer source of information relative to requests.
95 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the presence of human and brand personality attributes as well as information characteristics in over one hundred websites and found that a strong presence of information characteristics was found, verified along dimensions of content quality, access, and time.
Abstract: A Website Personality Scale (WPS) was developed and validated through a multi-phase process. We investigated the presence of human and brand personality attributes as well as information characteristics in over one hundred websites. A strong presence of information characteristics was found, verified along dimensions of content quality, access, and time. A number of traditional human and brand personality attributes also were present. These attributes correlated with overall attitude and liking of the websites, which helped to validate the scale. There was little evidence to support the presence of interactivity, real time, and customization-characteristics believed to be central to the Internet and Web technology. The findings suggest that the WPS is both a reliable and valid measure of website personality.
63 citations
57 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the effect of consensus information on consumer trust and found that trust varies positively with the valence of a firm's reputation and is similarly dependent upon whether the trend decreases or increases over time.
Abstract: Sellers’ reputation, as conveyed by consensus information, influences consumers’ trust in the company. Two experiments were used to investigate the effects of consensus information on consumer trust. Consensus trends were manipulated over three reporting periods. The results indicated that trust varies positively with the valence of a firm’s reputation and is similarly dependent upon whether the trend decreases or increases over time. Effects of valence and sequence direction were further explored in conditions wherein variation between periods was attenuated. Results showed that valence continued to drive trust. However, effects of sequence direction ceased to be significant when the change in reputation between periods was reduced.
48 citations
TL;DR: In this article, an exploratory study investigates the knowledge, perceptions, and intentions of advertising professionals in Belgium toward the introduction and use of IDTV as a marketing communication tool, and the results show that their knowledge about the possibilities of the IDTV was still very limited one year after the launch, reflecting also a rather troublesome result in terms of intentions to adopt IDTV.
Abstract: This exploratory study investigates the knowledge, perceptions, and intentions of advertising professionals in Belgium toward the introduction and use of IDTV as a marketing communication tool. In the first wave, a total of 320 advertising professionals cooperated in a web-survey that was posted just before the commercial launch of IDTV. 437 advertising professionals participated in the second wave, just one year after the commercial launch. The results show that their knowledge about the possibilities of IDTV was still very limited one year after the launch, reflecting also a rather troublesome result in terms of intentions to adopt IDTV. The intention rates measured in the first wave were relatively promising, taking into account that IDTV was not available at that moment, and the lack of knowledge about its possibilities. These intentions did not appear to be increased one year after IDTV launch. The growing perception of the low effectiveness of advertising on IDTV in combination with technolo...
TL;DR: The way information was shared among consumers in relation to two product categories was described as following a power law, and implications for marketing and research are provided.
Abstract: While consumer behavior researchers have long studied word-of-mouth and diffusion of information among reference groups, the emergence of the internet has recently provided the means to empirically establish just how this process takes place, as well as who contributes to it. In this study, the way information was shared among consumers in relation to two product categories was described as following a power law. Implications for marketing and research are provided.
TL;DR: Online word of mouth takes many forms, from individual blog posts to threaded message board conversations, but one particular form is quickly emerging as the new consumer-generated media of choice as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Online word of mouth takes many forms, from individual blog posts to threaded message board conversations, but one particular form is quickly emerging as the new consumer-generated media of choice ...