Project Details
Projekt
New Product Buzz: Measurement, Mode of Action and Influence of Dynamic, Collective Anticipation in Digital Social Media; first funding phase: Trash-Talk and Firestorm: Influences of Negative Customer Comments in Digital Social Networks on Brand Value
Subject Area
Accounting and Finance
Term
from 2014 to 2022
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 163849297
In the first funding phase of B1, with a total of six academic papers, we arrived at an encompassing understanding of the effect and management of negative word of mouth (nWOM) in general and social media firestorms in particular. In the first step, we i. a. experimentally showed that nWOM –contrary to pWOM—is valued in functional brand communities, but triggers negative reactions in socially-oriented brand communities in DSM. In a second step, we analyzed reaction strategies to the occurrence of nWOM of brand managers. Here we showed that there is no generally superior strategy, but that the effectiveness of handling consumer criticism in DSM depends on the tonality of the management’s response and the goals of the users, thus making the preferable choice of reaction strategy context-dependent. The third step addressed the social media firestorm phenomenon. We showed experimentally, that the number of firestorm participants and their expressed outrage increases particularly if the reason of the firestorm involves a moral failure which, in turn, increases the perception that firestorm participation is socially appropriate as well as the perception of shared similarity with other participants. The firestorm reason is also a central driver for explaining the effects of social media firestorms on consumers and brands. Using a unique combination of primary and secondary data, we showed that the strength of the firestorm, its vividness, and its reason explain which firestorms affect brand perceptions negatively and which firestorms are remembered even years after their occurrence – and which are forgotten sooner rather than later.In the upcoming project of B1, we want to use this gained knowledge on firestorms in DSM to investigate the related phenomenon of “new product buzz” (NPB). We define NPB as the aggregation of consumer behaviors that express anticipation for a new product and are observable by others. This consumer movement, which is also collective and dynamic in nature, is –in contrast to firestorms—characterized by forward-looking anticipation and is thus typically inherently positive in nature. In the second funding phase of B1, we first want to introduce a theory-based measurement approach for the NPB construct. Building on that, it will be very interesting to investigate the psychological effect of NPB on the individual consumer – what kind of value does NPB provide to consumers, what makes NPB impactful? How does this impact evolve over time – are there satiation points, can there a “too much” of NPB? Finally, we want to analyze the economic consequences of NPB and identify its drivers. The expected findings shall cover the relevant aspects of NPB for scholars and practitioners and provide important implications for further research on NPB as well as its management.
DFG Programme
Research Units
Co-Investigators
Dr. Ann-Kristin Kupfer; Professorin Dr. Franziska Völckner
