Abstract
Consumer opinions, experiences, and product recommendations posted on online WOM sites have become a major information source in consumer purchase decisions. However, prior research has largely focused on the influence of a single source of WOM-particularly retailer-hosted WOM. This study investigates the relative impact of multiple WOM information on retail sales. We collected a panel of sales data of 148 camera products from Amazon and WOM data from both Amazon and well-known third-party websites for four months. Our analysis reveals that thirdparty hosted WOM has a significant impact on retail sales while retailer-hosted WOM has much less influence on its own sales. Our finding suggests that third-party hosted WOM is an important source of information for online retail customers. We raise questions about the value and influence of retailer-hosted WOM in the presence of reputable third-party hosted WOM sources.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 2009 |
| Event | 30th International Conference on Information Systems, ICIS 2009 - Phoenix, AZ, United States Duration: 15 Dec 2009 → 18 Dec 2009 |
Conference
| Conference | 30th International Conference on Information Systems, ICIS 2009 |
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| Country/Territory | United States |
| City | Phoenix, AZ |
| Period | 15/12/09 → 18/12/09 |
Keywords
- Electronic commerce
- Experience goods
- Online word-of-mouth