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The purpose of this study is to review and analyze the status of word-of-mouth (WOM) research in the business-to-business (B2B) context and discuss and identify new possible future directions.

A systematic review was conducted and 36 articles on B2B WOM were collected to evaluate the current state of the literature and clarify possible future research directions.

This thematic analysis categorize these articles into three themes: WOM generation, WOM usage and reference marketing. Under each theme, the authors reveal research findings unique to B2B research and different from business-to-consumer (B2C) WOM research. This study identifies several research questions that should be addressed by future research.

Both academic researchers and business practitioners recognize that WOM plays an essential role in B2B marketing. However, no review paper focuses on WOM in the B2B context. Findings in the B2C WOM literature suggest that WOM substantially influences firms’ performance, but that managers cannot simply attempt to extrapolate B2C findings to the B2B arena. By synthesizing and assessing prior research on WOM in the B2B context, this study contributes to a better understanding of the B2B WOM phenomenon and facilitates future research on this topic.

The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of service recovery experiences on customer engagement in negative word-of-mouth (WOM) in the hotel industry and explore the psychological motives and mediating mechanisms driving consumer behavior.

A scenario-based experimental design on Qualtrics was used, with a pre-test (N = 200). The main study data were collected using Amazon's Mechanical Turk platform.

Findings reveal that negative service experiences lead to higher engagement in negative WOM compared to positive and satisfactory recovery service experiences. Even well-executed recovery efforts may not completely eliminate negative WOM. The mediating role of emotional responses is substantiated, as heightened negative service experiences result in more intense negative emotional responses, leading to increased engagement in negative WOM.

The study emphasizes the importance of service recovery strategies and the need for businesses to consistently strive for exceptional service quality. It also highlights the complexity of customer reactions to service experiences, suggesting that further research is needed to explore the factors that minimize negative WOM across various service contexts.

This study examines handmade clothing consumption as a means of self-expression by exploring the interrelationships between consumers' self-expression, brand love and word of mouth.

Using a descriptive research design, data were collected from 295 respondents in South Africa who posted about fashion on social media and who had bought handmade clothing in the 6 months prior to data collection. Structural equation modelling was used to examine the interrelationships between consumers' self-expression, brand love and word of mouth.

Brand love intervenes between consumers' self-brand connections and word of mouth about handmade clothing. More specifically, brand love strengthens positive word of mouth online and mitigates negative word-of-mouth intentions following a handmade clothing product failure scenario.

The study enlightens scholarly understanding of consumers' self-expression motivations for using ready-made handmade clothing that results in brand love and positive word of mouth.

Handmade clothing marketers who tap into consumers' self-expression and who can establish brand love among consumers can similarly create beneficial consumer–brand relationships.

Consumers often use handmade clothing for the purpose of self-expression, which provides subsequent spin-offs for brands in the form of brand love and positive word of mouth. Objective self-awareness theory provides a parsimonious lens to reveal the important role that brand love plays as a mechanism to explain the linkage of consumers' self-brand connections to word of mouth about handmade clothing.

The paper analyzes the effect of country of origin (COO) image, word-of-mouth (WOM) and brand distinctiveness toward overall brand equity (OBE) and its dimensions (brand awareness/associations; perceived quality; brand loyalty) in the brewing sector.

A quantitative research has been conducted by adopting the survey technique and structural equation modeling based on a sample of 401 Italian beer consumers.

Results corroborate a positive effect of (1) COO image and brand distinctiveness on brand awareness/associations, perceived quality and brand loyalty; (2) WOM on perceived quality and brand loyalty; (3) brand awareness/associations and brand loyalty on OBE. Findings also verify the mediating effects of the OBE dimensions on the relationships between the analyzed antecedents (COO image, WOM and brand distinctiveness) and OBE.

Although the selection of a sample composed of Italian students guarantees good research internal validity, findings are not generalizable.

The study offers valuable strategies for brewing firms to reach high levels of brand equity. In particular, it identifies the key role of COO image, WOM, brand distinctiveness and OBE dimensions in realizing careful brand management processes.

The paper focuses on analyzing the influence of COO image on brand equity in the brewing industry, thus enriching an area of investigation that requires further insights within an under-investigated sector.

This study aims to outline the role of causal attributions in consumer responses to irresponsible corporate behaviour. Specifically, this paper presents a moderated mediation model that explains how four types of perceived motives behind an irresponsible action shape corporate blame and word-of-mouth recommendations.

To test the hypotheses, the study uses data from a large survey assessing consumer reactions to a real case of corporate socially irresponsible behaviour in the banking industry.

The findings show that market-, unethicality- and rogue employee-driven attributions increase corporate blame and subsequently make people more likely to spread negative comments regarding the culprit. The difficult situation of a bank, as a perceived reason for wrongdoing, does not reduce the blame attributed to the irresponsible organisation.

The literature offers little information on the attributions people make following egregious corporate behaviour; however, such cognitions can play an important role in stakeholders’ reactions to wrongdoing. This study therefore extends the understanding of how irresponsibility attributions affect consumers’ responses to misbehaviour. Given the empirical context, the findings might be particularly important for communication and bank managers.

This paper aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of Vietnamese consumers’ perceived value and to explore the relationships between its constructs, satisfaction and (e)word-of-mouth (WOM) intentions towards Airbnb. Moreover, the relationship between traditional WOM and electronic WOM (eWOM) was also investigated.

An electronic survey was applied to collect data on a sample of Vietnamese Airbnb guests. A total of 352 questionnaires were collected, from which 163 eligible Airbnb users remained for data analysis. The partial least square approach to structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data.

The findings suggested that monetary, functional and hedonic benefits significantly impact Vietnamese customer satisfaction (CS) with Airbnb accommodation, which, in turn, acts as a direct effect and mediator in encouraging customers’ (e)WOM-giving intentions. Moreover, traditional WOM intention positively influences eWOM giving intention.

This study provides a better comprehension of customers’ perceived value that influences CS and their (e)WOM intentions towards Airbnb. Secondly, it extends the literature on WOM intentions from the message communicator’s perspective by confirming the positive association between traditional and eWOM-giving intentions. Finally, this paper reveals insights into the sharing accommodation in a fast-growing market in South East Asia (Vietnam), which supports sharing accommodation platforms and service providers to develop appropriate marketing strategies.

本文旨在全面了解越南消费者的感知价值, 并探讨其结构、满意度和 (e) 对 Airbnb 的口碑意图之间的关系。此外, 还研究了传统口碑（WOM）和电子口碑（eWOM）之间的关系。

应用电子调查收集越南 Airbnb 客人样本的数据。共收集问卷 352 份, 剩余 163 名符合条件的 Airbnb 用户进行数据分析。 SEM 的偏最小二乘法用于分析数据。

调查结果表明, 货币、功能和享乐方面的好处显着影响越南客户对 Airbnb 住宿的满意度, 这反过来又在鼓励客户的 (e)WOM 给予意图方面起到直接作用和中介作用。此外, 传统口碑意向对网络口碑给予意向有正向影响。

本研究提供了对影响客户满意度的客户感知价值及其对 Airbnb 的 (e)WOM 意图的更好理解。其次, 它通过确认传统和 eWOM 给予意图之间的正相关关系, 从信息传播者的角度扩展了关于 WOM 意图的文献。最后, 本文揭示了东南亚（越南）快速增长市场中共享住宿的见解, 从而为共享住宿平台和服务提供商制定适当的营销策略提供支持。

This study delves into the psychological processes underlying sport fans' post-purchase innovativeness behaviour. This exploratory research aims to establish a theoretical framework that elucidates the formation of sport fans' word-of-mouth (WOM) behaviours, particularly emphasising the structural relationship between motivated consumer innovativeness and satisfaction in using AR live-streaming services.

Utilising an online survey and convenience sampling, the study garnered a total of 243 usable responses from three online baseball fan communities in South Korea. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to assess the psychometric properties of the constructs. Subsequently, a structural equation model was used to probe the influence of motivated consumer innovativeness on WOM, with a particular focus on the mediating role of satisfaction.

Three dimensions of motivated sport fans innovativeness – functional, hedonic and cognitive – showed a positive association with WOM, partly mediated by satisfaction. In contrast, socially motivated sport fans innovativeness did not directly lead to WOM but influenced it solely through satisfaction. The full mediating role of satisfaction in the relationship between socially motivated fans innovativeness and WOM was found.

This research stands out as one of the scant studies exploring motivated sport fans innovativeness in the context of AR live sport streaming. The findings not only corroborate but also augment the extant literature by empirically confirming that three dimensions of motivated fans innovativeness, coupled with satisfaction, are pivotal antecedents to WOM intention.

Drawing on the contemporary literature and the theory of employer attractiveness, the authors aimed to examine key antecedents and consequences of employer attractiveness by proposing functional hypotheses and relationships between some endogenous variables.

Using the quota-cum-purposive sampling method, the unit of analysis selected for this study was millennials aged 18–35 years and working in the hospitality, travel, tourism and leisure (HTTL) sectors for the last two years. A total of 218 responses were collected in three months (June–August 2022). The data were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).

For young employees, company recruitment behaviour, company image and source credibility are significantly and directly related to company attractiveness. The relationship between company image and employee word of mouth (WOM) was significantly positive. Company recruitment behaviour was found to significantly influence employee commitment. Company attractiveness was found to be directly related to young employees' WOM about the company and commitment to it.

The study establishes the significance of company attractiveness because a company's success largely depends on the company's ability to attract and retain a talented and skilled workforce. Moreover, the present study provides much-needed insights to policymakers and regulators that can help the policymakers define and implement favourable policies to promote and protect the country's job market and offer directions to youth employment.

Studying tourist behavior provides the privilege of diverging in the competition between destinations to attract tourists. Previous studies have explored the effects of tourist behavior on brand satisfaction, attachment and loyalty. However, there is a lack of studies that investigated the intuition behind shaping tourist behavior. To address this issue, this study aims to contribute to providing a viewpoint to apply locus of control (LOC) theory in the tourism context. LOC studies how individuals believe in controlling their feelings and judgment toward events.

Over time, the concept of word of mouth (WOM) has spread beyond marketing into other disciplines. This is because WOM is important in decision-making at both the individual and organisational levels. Also, people are more likely to trust recommendations from their peers than those from companies. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the perceived usefulness of WOM messages for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suppliers in participating in Tanzanian public procurement opportunities.

The study collected cross-sectional data from 214 SME suppliers who supply common use items to public procuring organisations in Dodoma City, Tanzania. Structural equation modelling was used to test the direct relationships between study variables, and Hayes' PROCESS macro was used to test for the indirect effect of WOM message delivery on WOM attributes and the perceived usefulness of WOM.

WOM attributes that include expertise differential, perceptual homophily, and trustworthiness are related to the perceived usefulness of WOM. Also, WOM message delivery mediates the relationship between the WOM attributes and the perceived usefulness of WOM in enhancing public procurement participation. Therefore, the study's findings revealed that WOM is applicable in the public procurement context, under which public buyers act as senders and suppliers act as receivers. The latter finds out about public procurement opportunities and responds to them, while the former gives suppliers whatever information they need to respond to public procurement tenders that have been advertised.

Because the study was cross-sectional, it was difficult to determine whether the opinions gathered over time remained consistent. Furthermore, only suppliers who are parties to framework contracts under Government Procurement Services Agency were included in the study. Therefore, the sample was limited to only suppliers supplying common use items to various public organisations in Dodoma City, Tanzania.

This paper integrates the concept of WOM from the marketing discipline and public procurement. As a result, the study adds to the understanding of the use of information transmission in terms of the contribution of WOM messages from public buyers to suppliers to enhance small and medium enterprises' participation in public procurement opportunities.