The Impacts of Virtual Community’s Online Word-of-mouth on Consumer’s
Intention
Yi-ling Zhang 1
1
Pinghu Campus, Jiaxing University, Zhejiang, China
(zhangyiling-310@163.com)
Abstract - Based on relative studies of home and abroad,
this essay made brand trust as mediator variable and
established a model that online WOM have influence on
buying intention, which is proved by the questionnaires of
network consumers. The study has found out that the online
WOM influences its receiver’s brand trust and consumer’s
willingness of buying positively. It provides suggestions for
websites on how to use WOM to make an effective
marketing strategy.
Keywords - Virtual community, online WOM, purchase
intention, brand trust
I. INTRODUCTION
At present, most theoretical research about online
WOM concentrate on factor analysis, the comparison of
traditional WOM and online WOM, the communication
and motivation of online WOM at network, and the effort
of it on purchase intention. In addition, there are some
researches focused the regulation of various factors about
the effect of online WOM on consumer purchase
intention. Based on relative studies of home and abroad,
this essay made brand trust as mediator variable and then
established a model that online WOM have influence on
consumer’s purchasing intention, which is proved by the
questionnaires of network consumers.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW AND STUDY
HYPOTHESIS
Trust in virtual community is that members of
community trust the community and all kinds of
interaction in the community. When shopping at network,
consumers often search relative comments about the
brand, product or service in order to get enough
information about them to reduce the risk of buying at
network. Virtual communities’ trust can influence
consumer’s brand trust. Consequently, many researchers
regard brand trust as a key during consumer making
purchase decisions in the past research. Accordingly, this
paper put the assumptions: virtual community trust effect
on quality trust (H1a), goodwill trust (H1b) and ability
trust (H1c) of brand positively.
And professional level of WOM is the reliability and
accuracy of the information about a brand, product, or
service. Hovland & Weiss’ (1951) [2] research result
shows the higher reliability of the information, the more
effective on the attitudes of consumer, the lower
reliability of the information, the less effective on the
attitudes of consumer. Namely, it is say that the
professional level of WOM significantly impact attitudes
of recipient. Therefore, this paper assumes hypothesis that
professional level of WOM effect on quality trust (H2a),
goodwill trust (H2b) and ability trust (H2c) positively.
Furthermore, homological level of MOW is the
similarities between information recipient and massage
sender in the preferences, tastes and lifestyle. The
homology, among members of community, makes them
more likely to accept other's views and suggestions. Gilly
et al. (1998) [1] regard homological level of information
could effort information credibility. Brown, Broderick &
Nick (2007) [3] will also consider homological level of
MOW is a cause of affecting consumers’ attitude and
purchase intention. And consider higher homological
level of MOW can influence consumers more effectively.
In the network, consumers tend to trust similar consumers
and their comments [5], and high homological affect
consumers’ purchase intention through increasing
consumers’ brand Trust. Accordingly, we put
hypothesizes that homological level of MOW impact on
quality trust (H3a), goodwill trust (H3b) and ability trust
(H3c) of brand positively in a virtual community.
When in uncertainty risk environment, consumers
through meeting brand quality, and its ability which
fulfills its commitments, to increase the positive
expectation of product, and finally enhance the
willingness of a brand. Brand trust is so-called that
consumers’ willingness to brand. It includes the quality of
trust, goodwill trust, and ability trust of a brand [6]. The
credibility of a brand is an important affecting-factor of
consumers’ purchasing intention. Establish a good brand
trust and reputation will increase consumers’ brand trust,
further enhancing their purchase intention. Accordingly,
this study proposes assumptions that consumer purchase
intention would be effected by quality trust (H4),
goodwill trust (H5) and ability trust (H6) of brand
positively in network.
This paper reviews researches of the virtual
community, the network WOM. And we analysis all sides
of purchase intention of consumers. Then drawing on the
basis of previous studies, we propose an initial model in
this paper. This paper establish a initial model from the
virtual community trust, professional level and
Homological level three aspects to research how virtual
communities play a role on consumers’ purchase
intention. Further, the paper discovers brand trust
intermediary actions that may exist between consumers’
interaction and purchase intention in virtual communities.
IV. ANALYSIS AND RESULTS
There were two parts of our analysis. Firstly, we use
factor analysis and Cronbach’s ɑ to test reliability and
validity of the model. By the purification of the measuring
item, analysis the survey date using SPSS13.0; the results
are as follows in table 2.
TABLE II
Fig. 1.
RESEARCH VARIABLES ANERAGE, RELIABILITY CONEFFICIENT,
AND CORRELATION CONEFFICIENT
Research model 1
Variables
TABLE I
1
SOURCES OF SCALES
Reliability
Coefficients
Variables
Original source
1.Virtual
Community Trust
2.Homological
3.Level
Professional Level
Zeitham, Berry & Parasuraman [7]
Bansal & Voyer [8]
Netemeyer & Bearden[09][10]
Brown Broderick & Nick [3]
Gilly et al. [1]
0.829
0.911
0.891
4.Quality Trust
5.Goodwill Trust
6.Ability Trust
Denghua Yuan et al. [6]
0.863
0.841
0.846
7.Purchase
Intention
Monroe, Dodds & Grewal [11]
Paul A. Pavlou [12][13]
2
3
4
5
0.911
III. METHODOLOGY
The study of online shopping by consumers, the
research goal is to investigate and analyze the virtual
community word of mouth on the impact of online
shopping population mechanism. Data for this study were
collected through online and offline questionnaires
approach to validate the model. Investigate lasted 4
months, 458 returned valid questionnaires were initially
screened for usability and reliability from 630 responses,
the percentage is 72.6%.
In order to ensure the reliability and validity of
questionnaires, this study refers to the relevant literature
and on the basis of the scale used by domestic and foreign
scholars, adding, considers with the development of
virtual communities’ WOM to modify scales to fit the
context of online WOM. The references and sources of
each variable in the scales for the questionnaire were
provided in Table 1. To make sure the effectiveness of
independent variables, mediating variables and outcome
variables, the questionnaire was formed in three steps:
first, the existing scales translation; second, expert advice
collection and investigation; third, sample-validation.
This test respondent was asked to indicate agreement with
each statement in a measure using a 5-point scale Likentype scale. The questionnaire consists of two parts: the
first part is the description of consumers’ individual
characteristics with 10 questions, and the second part is to
measure variables within the first research model, with 33
questions in total.
6
7
M
3.8
20
3.7
51
3.6
84
4.0
03
3.9
98
4.0
09
3.8
58
SD
0.8
72
0.8
75
0.8
64
0.8
79
0.8
63
0.8
57
0.8
59
1
2
3
4
5
6
1
0.15
6**
0.15
1**
0.36
6**
0.40
5**
0.39
1**
0.33
5**
1
0.28
6**
0.28
4**
0.16
8*
0.21
3**
0.06
0**
1
0.27
3**
0.22
7**
0.04
5*
0.05
0**
1
0.55
8**
0.46
3**
0.36
6**
1
0.54
8**
0.18
3**
1
0.29
7**
p*<0.05,p**<0.01,p***<0.001
Secondly, the study used SEM to test the causal
structure of the proposed research model. The causal
structure of the research model (Fig.1) was tested using
SEM. 458 samples of data from respondents were
analyzed using Amos 5.0 to test the SEM. The goodnessof-fit indices for this model were shown in Table 3 and
the test demonstrated reasonable fit between the data and
the proposed structure model. The results showed that not
all of the parameters were significant.
TABLE II
FIT MEASURES FOR SEM
Fit Indicators
χ /df
2
Criteria
<5(Wheaton et al,1977)
Results
[15]
3.28
GFI
≥0.85(Bentler,1992)
0.902
AGFI
≥0.85(Bentler,1992)
0.870
IFI
≥0.9(Bentler,1992)
0.916
CFI
≥0.9(Bentler,1992)
0.915
RMSEA
<0.1 (Steiger,1990)
0.065
Χ2/df is 1.845, this indicator fit for the statistical
requirements. RMSEA is 0.043, according to Steiger’s
opinion [14], if the RMSEA is less than 0.1 indicated good
fit, lower than 0.05 indicated very good fit, and lower than
0.01 indicated very beautiful fit, so this indicator fit for
the statistical requirements, too. In addition, according to
Bentler’s advice [4], when the CFI ≥ 0.90, it's a great
matching model as long as the GFI ≥ 0.85.Therefore, the
result of the theoretical model has a very good fit (Fig.2).
consumers’ attitude to optimize the next round of product
design and development.
REFERENCES
[1]
[2]
Fig. 2.
Research model 2
[3]
V. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS
To figure out the validation degree and comparison
of the research model with SEM. At the same time,
removing two non-significant path (professional level of
WOM——>goodwill trust, homological level of WOM—
—> ability trust). Finally, we got the optimal model
(Fig.2). Our work generated the following research
suggestions:
(1) Establish brand communities to create a good
community environment. Virtual communities should
develop professionally, enhance the reputation in their
own field and build authoritative position. Additionally,
improving the community system to provide consumers
with convenient, fast and reliable communication
platform in the virtual communities in order that,
consumers can be more effectively interact and
communicate with each other and companies. In a good
environment, consumers can trust each other; thereby they
also trust others’ comment about product, brand or
service; finally, they can reduce the risk of shopping at the
network through others’ comment; and WOM also can
further enhance the consumers’ brand trust.
(2) Virtual community exclusion. When companies
build brand virtual or brand community Union, they
should pay attach to community exclusion, that is to say,
the brand community should face to target consumer
group. On the one hand, the consumers, who have similar
values, lifestyles, hobbies and so on, can easy to get a
common topic in communication. And compared with
non-similar ones, consumers tend to interact with similar
consumers and also incline to trust their comments. On
the other hand, enterprises can take advantage of the
exclusive community to provide particular service for
consumers to improve their satisfaction, loyalty, and
brand reputation.
(3) Improve professional level of WOM. Companies
can dig the more professional groups in virtual
communities, and encourage or stimulate them to
recommend products. When spreading the positive WOM
about products to maximize the effect of publicity online.
Companies also can culture the opinion leaders, not only
to provide other consumers some reliable information on
products, brands or services; but also to feedback other
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