WOM and EWOM Research

It has also been established that adverse WOM is noteworthy and on the other hand, pragmatic WOM is often unnoticed. This happens since a dissatisfied customer is more likely to express their concerns as opposed to a satisfied customer. The topic of eWOM emerged some time back in 1993 when the introduction of the first user-friendly NCSA Mosaic web browser took place. Consumers are usually provided with unprecedented chances of expressing their opinions which are addressed to various products and services, through various platforms of eWOM. Nowadays, various companies and business organizations take into account sites that express consumer concerns and opinions found on discussion boards and blogs as well as online feedback. The communication between these consumers involuntarily makes an impact on the decision-making exercise in addition to formal advertising efforts by the companies involved in the production.

This mode of communication is widely considered effective in influencing the behavior of consumers. This is especially in the event of products or services that are not easy to asses if they have not been consumed for instance the hospitality and tourism industry. Likewise, WOM plays a huge part in influencing decision making in terms of buying as well as the purposive behavior. Organizations in the tourism and hospitality industry, for instance, have to ensure that they satisfy their customers as well as possible. This is because it may prove uncontrollable and that is why most institutions are creating virtual spaces on their respective websites to enable them to control online reviews. In addition, eWOM enables companies to know about the needs and perception of their consumers and communicate with them in a cost-effective way.

A company's social media marketing efforts are heavily influenced by eWOM in today’s world3. Growing importance of WOM and EWOM to the Club Med Hotel Group Word-of-mouth primarily has an effect on the decision-making processes of consumers but also provides consumers with a platform for expressing their experiences with products and services. Customers might, therefore, express satisfaction or dissatisfaction with regard to their experiences. There are various forms of hospitality eWOM including asynchronous such as blogs and emails and synchronous such as instant messaging. The website tripadvisor. com provides unbiased reviews from travelers thus gives an outlook from a consumers’ point of view and better characterizes eWOM. The level of services provided by Club Med Hotel Group, for instance, could be well available on such platforms.

As a result, this would affect the company either positively or negatively depending on how well the service providers turned up while doing their job. In this case, loyal customers could be motivated so as to express their thoughts. Alternatively, these customers can be provided with links in their personal websites that are to be used to direct more visitors. • There are also other platforms for eWOM such as virtual communities and blogs which if well managed by a hospitality institution such as Club Med, would be very beneficial. In addition to increased usage of these platforms, institutions could strive to not only avail bulletin boards but also ensure they are captivating enough. This will go a long way in encouraging the users of these platforms to return.

In a competitive hotel environment, such measures could prove worthwhile and thereby maintaining a positive relationship with the clientele. • Managing eWOM by a company can lead to accumulating positive reviews in the online platform which is the ultimate goal of institutions in this industry. This can be done through strategies that involve rewarding clients with customized gifts or discounts and also providing unique treatment. This will give a client the chance to experience something of a new experience and enjoy the services provided to them. Such strategies motivate clients to talk positively about an institution through the eWOM platforms which are beneficial to the company. zapak. com and online opinion boards include www. epinions. com. The organizational websites can also be categorized as sources of eWOM for instance www.

Not only are the attitudes and ideas shared, but also online information which is good at helping more people have a better idea of products and services. In addition, reviewed web blogs and sites are a common source of eWOM for consumers, where they gather information in advance to minimize the possibility of risky and unknown products and services. Factors that influence EWOM Various factors play a huge part in influencing electronic word of mouth which in turn go on to affect the decision making of customers with regard to choosing which products or services to use. Such factors include; • Customer experience with previous online reviews- this is a crucial factor that is instrumental in assisting customers to effectively establish whether the source of information can be deemed trustworthy.

• The nature of eWOM for instance positive or negative content- to affect the decision of the customer, eWOM could possess positive or negative messages which may ultimately define whether or not a customer decides to use a service or commodity. • Characteristics of the reviewer- reviewer characteristics influence eWOM especially on how much effect it will have on a consumer. This, however, depends on whether the person with access to the review deems the source or person who reviewed a product, capable enough to make a genuine comment. For instance, this could depend on the social criteria the consumer makes a consideration for. In addition, word quality and a basis of consistency influence eWOM and to what extent it can influence a potential consumer.

• Mobile eWOM- the recent and continuous development of ICT has continuously influenced eWOM through the provision of mobile platforms. However, while using eWOM, a company can customize the messages they send to people in a manner which suits the customer’s preferences and as a result ease the search process. A practical example is such as the Amazon Company which designs tailor-made webpages for their customers and which suits the purchase patterns. Their online library allows customers to have a clue about the sources available with regard to what they are looking for in addition to the views of colleagues who have accessed the material before. • Maintaining information integrity- companies are well aware that it is difficult to have a leash on the entire process of communication from when it releases a message up to when it gets to a consumer.

This is because today’s technology provides many ways of altering the original message and also through different mechanisms and platforms. A benefit that comes along with allowing consumers to effectively express themselves is that the chances of engaging in a negative word of mouth are lowered. • Using eWOM as a product or service development tool- eWOM could be effectively utilized by companies as a market research tool since it does not require additional funds that will make it expensive thereafter. Customers use product review websites such as ciao. com, epinion. com, and doyoo. 5901/mjss. v4n11p159. Cheung, Christy M. K. , and Dimple R. 3389/fpsyg. Lee, Mira, and Seounmi Youn. "Electronic Word Of Mouth (EWOM)".  International Journal Of Advertising 28 (3): 473-499.