Electronic Word of Mouth as a Promotional Technique New Insights from Social Media

Recent years have seen digital advertising grow to the point where it will soon overtake television as the no. 1 advertising medium. In the online environment, consumers interact and share their thoughts on brands and their experiences using them. These electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) communications have become a very important to the success of products. In today?s cluttered environment, it is especially important to study how the practice of eWOM advertising operates, and how marketers can influence eWOM in social media and other online sites.

This volume starts with a chapter on the current state of knowledge on eWOM and then turns its attention to current research articles on a variety of eWOM formats. These include the posting of selfies on social media, the influence of review types on consumer perception and purchase intention, the effects of preannouncement messages, and how user-generated content can be used to induce effectiveness of eWOM on social media. The relationship of eWOM to brand building is emphasized in several of the chapters.

This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of Advertising.

1. The current state of knowledge on electronic word-of-mouth in advertising research2. #Me and brands: understanding brand-selfie posters on social media3. Understanding the effects of different review features on purchase probability4. Preannouncement messages: impetus for electronic word-of-mouth5. The power of e-WOM using the hashtag: focusing on SNS advertising of SPA brands6. Do we always adopt Facebook friends’ eWOM postings? The role of social identity and threat7. When brand-related UGC induces effectiveness on social media: the role of content sponsorship and content type8. What does the brand say? Effects of brand feedback to negative eWOM on brand trust and purchase intentions9. The interconnected role of strength of brand and interpersonal relationships and user comment valence on brand video sharing behaviour

Shu-Chuan Chu is Associate Professor and Program Chair of Public Relations and Advertising in the College of Communication at DePaul University, Chicago, USA. Her research interests include social media, electronic word-of-mouth, and international advertising. Her work has been published in leading advertising and marketing journals.

Juran Kim is a Professor of Business Administration at Jeonju University, South Korea. She currently serves as Associate Executive Secretary for the Global Alliance of Marketing and Management Scholars. Her work has appeared in the Journal of Advertising, International Journal of Advertising, Journal of Business Research, Journal of Consumer Mediate Communications, and several other leading publications.

Charles R. Taylor is the John A. Murphy Professor of Marketing at Villanova University, USA. He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Advertising. He has published more than 100 peer reviewed articles and has received the Ivan L. Preston and Flemming Hansen Awards for lifetime contribution to advertising research. He is a past President of the American Academy of Advertising.