The Influence of Online Product Recommendations on Consumers' Online Choices

Prior to digital media, purchasing items came down to going to a store and purchasing what they had in inventory. At times, one could get something that was not in the store by having it ordered but this took a lot of time and often came with an extra cost. The shopping experience took more time and a customer could leave feeling that they may not have made the most informed decision. This is quite different from what the shopper experiences now with digital media. Merely typing in a description of what you are looking for produces thousands, if not millions of results. These results show variations of the items that you have searched for at different price points and options for receiving the item. One can truly research an item and its choices and feel informed about the price and the product itself before making a decision.

Numerical publications such as, “…32,805 kilofrankles… wearing MagnaSoles for seven weeks, I’ve noticed a significant decrease in pain… I can pay $20 for insoles clearly endorsed by looking up somethingan intelligent-looking man…” are recognized throughout this article to immediately give statistics, numbers, and plausible facts to sell the product. This is a strategy applied in advertisements today to eliminate any doubts in a consumer. This approach however is tremendously risky because of the social groups we have now, online reviews that offers their insights as a first rated costumers of that said product such as Amazon Customer Reviews, Angie’s List, and Choice that can quickly determine whether the product is factual or not.

1. What factors influence the perceived credibility of an informal information source?  List and discuss factors that determine the credibility of formal communication sources of product information.

Consumers are bombarded with multiple options everywhere they go. Instead of there being one brand available, there are thousand. Some of the same elements that are challenges for USA Today regarding technology are elements that are associated with product selection. Consumers have the options of viewing blogs, watching 24-hour news stations, using search engines, and viewing online news

Such a bold position requires a new approach to marketing.  The authors present a thesis of the Influence Mix, which introduces that there are three influences on consumer decision-making — the individual’s prior preferences, beliefs and experiences (P), other people and information services in the form of reviews and

Buying a car is a high-involvement purchase as you can be faced was a large selection of choices. When figuring out which car to buy, consumers consult the advice of family and friends. However, according to a vehicle customer survey from Maritz Research, the most important information that is also the most influential in the buying decision tends to come from an individual that has a lot of knowledge on the product, such as a cars salesperson at the dealership. Considering the complex nature of this decision, reference groups play a large role. A reference group is ‘an actual or imaginary individual or group conceived of having significant relevance upon an individual or group’s aspirations

Looking at option choices is one crucial stride in choice making that we do each day. For instance, on the off chance that somebody is keen on specific items, for example, computerized cameras, he or she would need to realize what the options are and think about distinctive cameras before making a buy. This kind of examination action is extremely regular in our day by day life however requires high information expertise. Magazines, for example, Consumer Reports and PC Magazine and online media, for example, CNet.com endeavor in giving article examination content and studies to fulfill this need. In the World Wide Web period, an examination movement commonly includes: hunt down applicable site

The idea behind this study is of great significance because e-commerce (online shopping) has grown tremendously since the turn of the century. It has shaped the way people do shopping for the most part.

There are many reasons why consumers patronize Internet shopping. To a consumer, one reason is that they believe that they pay a cheaper price for the products and services by using the Internet than they would, for similar products and services at the conventional retail stores (Koch, 2003). Research by Harris and Abate (2000) indicates that most Internet prices are cheaper than those charged by traditional retail stores, even with the additional shipping costs that need to be borne by the customers. However, getting a better price ultimately depends on the consumer’s information search behaviour. Consumers who spend more time searching over the internet are more likely to find lower prices or a wider

The Web became social and participative. It plays a role more and more important in the funnel buying, because it is frequent that customers try to make good deals by using a price comparator, by going on a site of e-commerce offering the best prices, or by consulting the opinion of Internet users about a product to facilitate the choice, in particular for strongly implied purchases which

The relative influence of these information sources varies with the product and the buyer. Generally, the consumer receives the most information about a product from commercial sources-those controlled by the marketer. The most effective sources, however, tend to be personal. Personal sources appear to be even more important in influencing the purchase of services. Commercial sources normally inform the buyer, but personal sources legitimize or evaluate products for the buyer. For example, doctors normally learn of new drugs from commercial sources, but turn to other doctors for evaluative information.

First the results of this study indicate that brand awareness (H1) has a significant influence on the purchase intention of online shoppers. Specifically this means that when people consider buying a product or service online, they would prefer a brand which has been advertized and they know about it. Nevertheless, brand awareness is likely to be a leading factor in the search for information stage in the online pre-purchase process. In this also called consideration stage (David Court, 2009), the largest number of brands takes place, but since today’s customers are awash in choices, it is eventually reduced based on other factors. This study reveals that consumers could change their preference in favor of an unknown brand if

The important role of e-WOM has and has been acknowledged as the most important communication source between consumers .At its core, WOM is a process of personal influence, in which interpersonal communications between a sender and a receiver can change the receiver's behavior or attitudes . The role that interpersonal communication plays in influencing opinions has also long been acknowledged by sociologists, who identified the importance of “opinion leaders” in this process. The ability of individuals to influence other people's opinions is of particular interest to organizations seeking to market

The authors stated product offerings, convenience, cost saving and richness of information as critical reasons that makes Indian consumers go shopping online derived on the basis of literature review and study of market statistics through case study. However an in-depth research was required to analyze the factors affecting the online consumer’s behavior. The efforts of e-marketers which can influence the outcome of the virtual interaction and buying process by focusing their marketing efforts on elements shaping the customer’s virtual experience, the Web experience, were not concentered upon. “Efthymios Constantinides, (2004), Influencing the online consumer 's behavior: the Web experience", Internet Research, Vol. 14 Iss 2 pp. 111 – 126”

This current study aims to provide a more holistic view of the factors that influence online shopping behavior in the clothing industry, by comparing the important criteria for purchase decisions between online shoppers and traditional shoppers. The factors that were examined include (1) Product variables: price, usefulness, quality and available information; (2) Seller attributes: trustworthiness, reputation and marketing strategies; (3) shopping experience: convenience, quality of service, design and ease of use; and (4) consumer factors: gender, socioeconomic status and attitude towards online shopping. A quantitative survey was conducted wherein 206 consumers have completed the questionnaire through convenience sampling. The results of the study showed that male online shoppers for clothes are significantly more than females, most of whom still prefer traditional shopping. Traditional and online shoppers have been seen to differ in the importance they give to product price, seller credibility and marketing strategies, and purchase experience in terms of convenience, quality of service and ease of transaction, wherein online shoppers put more value on these factors in making their purchase decisions. In accordance to the technology acceptance model, the participants who have more positive attitudes towards online shopping are more likely to actually purchase their clothes