Effects of Product Review Websites
After reading the article “The Pitchfork Effect,” I started thinking about how influential reviews of albums can be on potential buyers. One negative review by a Pitchfork writer caused problems getting radio airplay for the band Travistan, while Broken Social Scene’s 9.2 score on the same site sent them catapulting toward indie fame. However, the power of reviews does not only apply to music. I am interested in finding out how much product reviews (either on the product’s website or on a separate product-review site) affect purchasing decisions of consumers. With increasing interactivity on shopping sites, the presence of product reviews is becoming more and more prominent. I, personally, always search for reviews before I purchase products online, but I want to find out if other people do as well. And, if so, how much weight do these reviews carry?
RQ 1: How much does a positive product review encourage a consumer to buy a product?
RQ 2: How much does a negative product review discourage a consumer to buy a product?
RQ 3: How dependent are consumers on product reviews when contemplating an online purchase?
Method: Survey of college students that use the internet to make purchases
I would first ask students whether or not they check product reviews when making online purchases, and how often they check them (using a scale from Never to Almost Always). Then I would have them fill out Likert scale questions asking how much they agree with each statement, such as:
- I frequently check product reviews before making online purchases.
- I rarely check product reviews before making online purchases.
- One negative review discourages me completely from purchasing the product.
- Several negative reviews discourage me completely from purchasing the product.
- One Positive review is enough to make me purchase the product. (Etc., etc…)
I’m not sure which theory I would be able to apply here, but I’m interested in investigating it. Instant access to product reviews could become standard in the near future, and I would like to know how much positive and negative reviews actually affect people’s purchasing decisions.
