• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.73-98
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• 2019

As information and communication technology continue its remarkable development, the exchange of information online becomes as prevalent and frequent as face-to-face communication in daily life. Therefore, the management and application of WOM (word of mouth) practices will become more important than ever to companies. Currently, there are various types of communication channels for online WOM, and each channel has its own unique traits. Most of the previous research studies online WOM by examining the information inside a single communication channel, but this research chooses two different communication channels and analyzes the effects of online WOM with each channel's unique characteristics. More specifically, this research focuses on the expectation that the effects of information from Twitter and blogs on product sales may differ because Twitter and blogs, two different communication channels for online WOM, have their own unique traits. Our particular aim is to perform an in-depth examination on the effects of communication channel's volume and valence on product sales, two important attributes of online WOM. Furthermore, while most of the empirical research focuses on online WOM and analyzes its effect on markets of temporary experience goods, such as movies and books, this research highlights focuses on the automobile market, a durable goods market. The results of our analysis are as follows: First, regarding blogs, a positive valence significantly and positively affects the sales of products, and this result indicates that consumers are influenced more by the emotional aspect of a product presented in a post than by the number of blog posts. Second, regarding Twitter, the volume of online WOM significantly and positively affects sales, an indication that as the number of posts increase, the sales increase. Through this research, we suggest that even those firms that sell durable goods can increase sales through the management and application of online WOM. Moreover, according to the characteristics of communication channels, the effects of online WOM on sales differ. As a practical implication of this research, we suggest that companies can and should create marketing strategies appropriate to their targeted communication channels.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.77-85
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• 2020

Purpose: This study examined marketing value as online word-of-mouth media in the foodservice industry, and it did research on online word-of-mouth (e-WOM) communication marketing schemes using mass communication in the industry. The study is also intended to investigate the impact of electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) information and communication on product awareness risks, benefits, and word-of-mouth (WOM) impacts on restaurant consumers. Research design, data, and methodology: The analysis was conducted on a valid questionnaire of 425 menu product consumers. The survey was conducted for two months in March 2019. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS and hierarchical regression analysis was applied. Results: It did empirical research on the reciprocal casual relations to online and the existing word-of-mouth communication that have to be preceded to understand characteristics of online word-of-mouth communication for the purpose of this study. The result is summarized as follows. First, the online word-of-mouth (e-WOM) effect on product recognition risk shows the statistically significant effect of information sender characteristics, information recipient characteristics, and online word-of-mouth (e-WOM) communication on product recognition risk. Second, the influence of online word-of-mouth (e-WOM) on product risk benefits shows that the information sender characteristics, the information receiver characteristics, and online communications have a statistically significant effect on product risk benefits. Third, online word of mouth risk recognition had a statistically significant effect on word of mouth acceptance. Fourth, online risk benefit had a statistically significant positive effect on word of mouth (WOM) effect. Conclusions: The communication between online word of mouth (e-WOM) sender and recipient had a positive influence on the product evaluation and attitude change in the foodservice industry, and the word-of-mouth (WOM) effect affected financial and non-financial performance. The results mentioned above indicated that the communication between the sender of the information and the receiver of the information had a positive effect on the product evaluation and attitude change of the menu consumer, and the word-of-mouth (WOM) result affected the financial. Therefore, the online word-of-mouth (e-WOM) effect has a positive effect on the word-of-mouth (WOM) effect of menu products when performed simultaneously and positively between the information sender and the information receiver.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.27-38
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• 2013

Word-of-mouth (WOM) communication (traditionally important in consumption) is expanding its influence into cyber space and is playing an important role in online shopping. Consumers who use online shopping might not readily make purchasing decisions due to information overload, lack of accurate product recognition, and the distrust of commercial information. Subsequently, people use WOM communication for a mutual interchange with others who share common concerns, interests, and purposes. This study examines the consumer characteristics, perceived risk on online shopping and benefits of online shopping according to WOM behavior that may significantly affect consumer actions. Factor analysis, t-test, one-way ANOVA, cluster analysis, and Chi-square analysis were used for statistical analysis to identify the differences in consumer characteristics. Online WOM behavior consumers purchased more various items than offline WOM behavior consumers; however, the most influential purchasing factor was price regardless of WOM behavior. Offline WOM behavior consumers have shown higher perceived online shopping risks and benefits.

• The Journal of Economics, Marketing and Management
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.51-64
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• 2018

Purpose - This study is intended to look into the influences of restaurant consumers' e-WOM information communication on product perception risk, benefit and WOM effect. Research design, data, and Methodology - To achieve this, a survey was empirically carried out to 426 restaurant consumers. Results - The findings are as follows. First, the influence of e-WOM on product perception risk showed that WOM information sender characteristics, WOM information recipient characteristics and online community had a statistically significant positive influence on product perception risk. Second, the influence of e-WOM on product risk benefit showed that WOM information sender characteristics, WOM information recipient characteristics and online communication had a statistically significant positive influence on product risk benefit. Third, WOM risk perception had a statistically significant positive influence on WOM acceptance. Fourth, WOM risk benefit had a statistically significant positive influence on WOM effect. Conclusions - As for the above-mentioned findings, the communication between e-WOM sender and recipient had a positive influence on the product evaluation and attitude change in the restaurant industry, and the WOM effect had an influence on the financial performance and non-financial performance. The communication attaches importance to a direct using and tasting experience due to the nature of restaurant industry when it is simultaneously performed as a positive mechanism between sender and recipient through each channel of these factors. But the e-WOM culture can lead to the WOM effect when both sender and recipient share the persuasive communicability in reality that diversifies communication methods, having a positive influence on the management performance.

• The Journal of Information Technology
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.73-82
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• 2005

The present paper aims to examine the relationship between the online word of mouth(WOM) contents and the WOM effect and to see how receivers' features such as product knowledge and involvement level influence the WOM received. For that purpose, we categorize WOM contents into two subcategories; product news and personal experience. The WOM effect, in turn, is into the WOM received. Survey questionnaires were given to 268 collegians as to their online WOM activities to purchase MP3 players. SPSS 10.0 package was employed as the method of statistical analysis. We report the following results. First, product news is shown to exert a greater effect on the WOM received than personal experience. Second, their product knowledge plays a moderating role in the relationship between the WOM contents and the WOM received. Finally, it is shown that the factor of involvement level moderates the relationship between the WOM contents and the WOM received. The current paper attempts to develop a hypothetical relationship between WOM information and WOM received and to provide a theoretical foundation for the practical online marketing. We must admit the methodological limitations with respect to subjects and samples. It should be worthwhile, however, to compare online and off-line marketing and to expand the range of research in the current line of thought.

• Fashion & Textile Research Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.183-194
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• 2022

This study aims to understand the consumers' negative responses to communication failure of chatbots caused by their imperfections. Specifically, this study examines 1) the relationship among chatbot's communication failure, dissatisfaction, negative behavior (complaint, negative word-of-mouth (nWOM), and inertia); 2) the moderating effect of technostress on the relationship between chatbot's communication failure and dissatisfaction; 3) the differences in the negative responses between the generation MZ and the previous generations. Data were collected via an online survey. First, the participants interacted with the chatbot developed for this survey, to experience the chatbot's communication failure. Thereafter, they responded to a questionnaire. PLS-SEM was conducted using the R software environment to test the hypotheses. This study empirically identified that chatbot's communication failure positively affected dissatisfaction. In addition, the customers who were more dissatisfied with the chatbot's communication failures were more likely to complain than engage in nWOM. Compared to the generation MZ, chatbot's communication failure caused a higher level of dissatisfaction in previous generations. The results suggest that online shopping malls should carefully introduce an improved chatbot service after minimizing its communication failure rate. The chatbot developers of online shopping malls targeting middle-aged and elderly consumers should strive to develop and implement strategies to further alleviate consumers' dissatisfaction in the situation of chatbot's communication failure.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.31 no.8
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• pp.1157-1167
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• 2007

Internet communications have provoked new forms of online word-of-mouth(WOM) communication and it has become more powerful. At this point, this study analyses the effects of information characteristics(direction, consensus) of online WOM. Especially, quasi-experiment can systematically manipulate the direction and the consensus of online WOM information and it perceived the difference in the effects in this study. Female consumers who have purchased clothing at online shopping mall in past 6 months participated in the experiment by completing 4 type questionnaires(N=600). Data are analyzed using Cronbach's ${\alpha}$, t-test, one way ANOVA, two-way ANOVA, Duncan's multiple range test. The Results of this study are as follows: (1) The direction of online WOM information significantly influences consumer's reliability of information, attitude, and purchase intentions. These effects are more significant when negative WOM information than positive information and two-sided information was given. (2) Though there is the difference in reliability of information, the consensus of online WOM information does not have influences on consumer's attitude and purchase intentions. (3) Consumer's clothing involvement is related to WOM information searching. The highly involved consumer is more effected by online WOM information than the lowly one.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.228-237
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• 2018

The importance of eWOM (electronic word-of-mouth) communication through online communities is increasing on a daily basis. This study analyzed how the relationship between eWOM (electronic Word-Of-Mouth) factor and eWOM communication depends on the cultural orientation of users in the online community. The research model was developed based on four cultural orientations of individual affect Social tie and usefulness. The model consists of variables such as social tie and perceived usefulness as predecessors of eWOM, four dimensions of cultural orientation (Horizontal Individualism, Horizontal Collectivism, Vertical Individualism, Vertical Collectivism), and eWOM. The model was tested empirically using the PLS (partial least squares) structure equation model. Survey was conducted for online community users in South Korea. Data was statistically validated whether fits on research model. The study results reveal that Social Tie have a positive effect on Perceived Usefulness. Social Tie and Perceived Usefulness have a positive effect on eWOM. 3 of cultural orientations (HC, VI, VC) have a positive effect on Social Tie. Only one of cultural orientations (HC) have an negative effect on Perceived Usefulness. Especially, horizontal collectivism (HC) shows strong correlation with perceived usefulness, whereas vertical collectivism (VC) shows weak correlation with perceived usefulness andvertical individualism (VI) shows strongly correlation with social tie, whereas horizontal individualism (HI) shows weak correlation with social tie. Based on the study results, customized service strategy could be formulated according to the different vertical styles and various eWOM factors.

• Journal of Intelligence and Information Systems
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.85-105
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• 2012

In recent years, IT advancement has brought out the new Internet communication environment such as online social network services, where people are connected in global network without temporal and spatial limitation. The popular use of online social network helps people share their experience and preference for specific products and services, thus holding large potential to significantly affect firms' business performance through Word-of-Mouth (WOM). This study examines the role of online social network in raising WOM effect on the movie industry by comparing with the similar role of Internet portal, another major online communication channel. Analyzing 109 movies and data from both Twitter and Naver movie, we found that significant WOM effect exists simultaneously in both Twitter and Naver movie. However, we also found that different figures of online viral effects exist depending on the popularity of movies. In the hit movie group, before the movie release, the WOM effect occurs only in Twitter while the WOM effect arises in both Twitter and Naver movie at the same time after the movie release. In the less-popular (or niche) movie group, the WOM effect occurs in both Twitter and Naver movie only before the movie release. Our findings not only deepen theoretical insights into different roles of the two online communication channels in provoking the WOM effect on entertainment products but also provide practitioners with incentive to utilize SNS as strategic marketing platform to enhance their brand reputations.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.424-432
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• 2011

Today's wide-spread Internet technology allowed consumers to access much Word-of-Mouth information through an online board. As communication and exchanging information between travelers becomes easier and faster, e-WOM (Electronic Word-of-Mouth) is recognized as one of the most influencing communication methods in today's society. This new trend implies a significant impact to travel industry. This study focuses on interaction between Credibility on e-WOM, brand attitude, WOM acceptance, WOM activity and purchasing intention of travel product. The result of this study suggests: (1) Credibility in e-WOM provides positive effect in brand attitude, (2) Brand Attitude gives positive effect on WOM acceptance, WOM activity and purchasing intention of travel product, (3) WOM acceptance gives positive effect on WOM activity, but it is not effective on purchasing intention of travel product. Regarding e-WOM management of travel agencies through its website or online community, authors would like to argue that travel agencies need to build positive brand attitude based on Credibility in brand, which would lead consumers to positively acknowledge its brand and spread words out to other consumers.