The effect of pictures in online consumer reviews on product evaluation: a study based on positive reviews of attractiveness-relevant products
Journal of Contemporary Marketing Science
ISSN: 2516-7480
Article publication date: 27 September 2022
Issue publication date: 11 October 2022
Abstract
Purpose
The objective of this study is to examine the effects of pictures (consumer pictures vs. product pictures vs. no pictures) in online consumer reviews on product evaluation and to determine the mechanism and boundary conditions behind such effects.
Design/methodology/approach
The research consisted of three laboratory experiments.
Findings
The results showed that consumer pictures led to the most favorable product evaluation. Study 1 showed that persuasive effect was the mechanism behind the main effect. Study 2 showed that for problem-solving products, consumer pictures increased product evaluation significantly; for enhancing products, there was no significant difference of product evaluation among consumer pictures, product pictures and no picture. The results of Study 3 showed that for the unfamiliar brand, consumer pictures significantly enhanced product evaluation; for the highly familiar brand, there was no significant difference among consumer pictures, product pictures and no picture. The present research used persuasive effects to examine the mechanism behind the interaction effects.
Practical implications
The study provides managerial implications for online store owners about how to manage pictures in online reviews.
Originality/value
This study supplements the literature on online consumer reviews and enriches the study of effects of pictures.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (71672124). The authors also acknowledge the very helpful suggestions of the anonymous reviewers. A version of this paper was published in Chinese language, see Wu et al. (2019).
This article was previously published in Mandarin as [武瑞娟, 胡艺潇, 李佩毓. 线上消费者评论中贴图对产品评价影响效应研究-基于对与吸引力相关产品正面评论的研究(J). 营销科学学报, 2019, 15(3) ]. This translation appears here with the permission of the Chinese Marketing Association of Universities.”
Citation
Wu, R., Hu, Y. and Li, P. (2022), "The effect of pictures in online consumer reviews on product evaluation: a study based on positive reviews of attractiveness-relevant products", Journal of Contemporary Marketing Science, Vol. 5 No. 2, pp. 158-175. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCMARS-06-2022-0012
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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