Three ways the Internet can help gather consumer insight

The Internet is a promising source of consumer insight. Data can be collected in real time; we do not need to interrupt consumers with our pesky phone calls or street surveys; and we may even be able to get access to certain segments of the population not reachable via traditional surveys. Here are three ways … Continue reading Three ways the Internet can help gather consumer insight

February 2020 round-up

February was good. There were some moments of intense sadness, for instance, following the news that Caroline Flack had committed suicide. But, overall, February was a month with a definite sense of momentum at work, with several pieces falling into place. It was also a month with a sense of fun, which even included … Continue reading February 2020 round-up

Sentiment analysis of baseball stadium reviews

I was cleaning my inbox over the Christmas break, and saw a 2017 message from someone working at company called reviewtrackers. He wanted to draw my attention to some interesting work that he had done at the company, analysing 130,000 online reviews of major league baseball stadiums (since the message, he seems to have left … Continue reading Sentiment analysis of baseball stadium reviews

Credibility of online reviews typed on a mobile vs on a desktop

When our family travels to a new place, we usually get restaurant recommendations from friends who have been there before; we check Lonely Planet tour guides; or, we look at the reviews on Google maps. Have you ever used Google maps for local recommendations? We only started using it recently. But, so far … Continue reading Credibility of online reviews typed on a mobile vs on a desktop

Popular choice vs friends’ recommendations – which is most influential?

There are two sources of social influence that can shape consumer purchases: Overall popularity of the product, as evidenced by indicators such as best-selling lists or online ratings, which aggregate the choices or opinions of previous buyers in the system. Popularity of the product within the buyer’s social circle. This can be evidenced by people … Continue reading Popular choice vs friends’ recommendations – which is most influential?

Handling negative online reviews: speed and voice matter; status and action frame not so much

The question I get asked most often (after whether social media activity helps with sales and profitability) is how to handle negative online reviews. The comments left by other customers, and any responses left by the company, are available for all to see, and can impact on the company’s reputation. So, many companies worry that … Continue reading Handling negative online reviews: speed and voice matter; status and action frame not so much

When good product reviews are bad news for business

Customer reviews are a very important source of information for buyers when it is difficult to evaluate or test a product before purchase, as in the case of online purchases. Positive reviews can amplify sales by as much as 0.149, and is particularly relevant for high financial risk decisions, services, hedonic products, and new … Continue reading When good product reviews are bad news for business

Twitter conversations have the credibility of friends’ recommendations and the impact of online reviews

While we tend to discuss word of mouth in terms of traditional (i.e., face to face) vs. electronic, this paper by Thorsten Hennig-Thurau, Caroline Wiertz and Fabian Feldhaus indicates that this separation is two simplistic. The paper looks at the impact of Twitter conversations on the performance of new movies. It finds that customers … Continue reading Twitter conversations have the credibility of friends’ recommendations and the impact of online reviews