Examining the Impact of Online Consumer Reviews on Consumer Satisfaction

摘要

Recent statistics show that 92% of consumers read OCRs prior to their purchase and 40% of them form an opinion about the product by reading one to three OCRs (Shrestha 2016). While the strong impact of OCRs on consumers' purchase decision (pre-purchase stage) is well-documented, limited studies have investigated how OCRs further impact consumer satisfaction (post-purchase evaluation stage). As an increasing number of retailers aim to build a long-term relationship with their customers, it is important to understand the potential impact of OCRs on consumer satisfaction, which serves as an important foundation for long-term relationships between retailers and consumers (Orel and Kara 2014). The present research proposes and empirically examines how social influence (e.g., OCRs) that takes place prior to consumers' purchase decision impact consumer satisfaction. In other words, this research focuses on how OCRs alter consumers' product evaluation and therefore subsequently bias consumer satisfaction.