Revisiting electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM)

: a systematic review

Abstract

Electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) is a concept originating from traditional communication of marketing messages from person-to-person word-of-mouth. Research overtime points out to a digital shift in forms of communication. In the modern age consumers are connected 24/7 to the internet, putting products and services under their stringent vigil. Thereby-WOM arises with the emergence of online communication amongst consumers relatable to their products and services experience. The topic of e-WOM has been receiving great attention worldwide due to its power in affecting consumer’ purchase behaviour and business performance. Nonetheless as an evolving phenomenon in the market, literature has grown very rapidly and in multiple ways, becoming fragmented. Recognising the importance of e-WOM as a research topic, this systematic review was developed with the purpose of mapping the key themes of e-WOM pertaining to literature for the past ten years. By doing Given this, we used Leximancer qualitative software to extract input from a pool of 64 articles from 2010 to 2020with the keyword: e-WOM. The results endorse e-WOM relation with other four other themes such as “media”, “influence”, “hotel” and “relationship”. The content analysis of the themes not only contributed to theory by offering directions for future researchers but combining an overall reflection on the state-of-the-art of e-WOM phenomenon.

Date of Award	26 Apr 2021
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Helena Rodrigues (Supervisor)