The impact of electronic word-of-mouth on consumer behavior : the role of motivations and individual characteristics

Abstract

The development of Internet technologies has revolutionized the way people interact, both socially and economically. Nowadays, people have many more opportunities to communicate with one another online and make better informed economic decisions. The internet also enables consumers to exchange electronic word-of-mouth and share their experiences, which is expected to have a significant impact on the success of goods and services. The overall purpose of this thesis is to investigate the role of electronic word-of-mouth in this modern digital marketing environment. To do so, this paper studies the impact of individual characteristics and motivations on consumer behavior using a quantitative research method. The results demonstrate the impact of the type of motivation in determining consumers’ evaluations and buying intentions of a product. Moreover, it confirms the significant influential power that electronic word-of-mouth possesses. Additionally, the thesis introduces a discussion about the practical implications of electronic word-of-mouth and its potential ethical issues in the context of marketing.