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Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science

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28-07-2017 | Original Empirical Research

An exploratory study of business-to-business online customer reviews: external online professional communities and internal vendor scorecards

Authors: Michelle D. Steward, James A. Narus, Michelle L. Roehm

Published in: Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science | Issue 2/2018

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Abstract

This research examines the increasing use of online customer reviews in business-to-business (B2B) decision making. In contrast with other research on B2B decision making, we study a unique aspect wherein buyers draw on two sources: external reviews posted on online professional communities and internal reviews in the format of vendor scorecards. This method creates a conundrum: What happens when a buyer is confronted with conflicting reviews from two different sources? To shed light on this problem, we (1) interviewed 48 B2B buyers, (2) conducted a field experiment with 293 B2B buyers to examine the effect of review source, (3) conducted a second field experiment with 587 B2B buyers to examine the effect of conflicting reviews, and (4) solicited insights from 82 B2B buyers regarding the findings. The results indicate that B2B buyers are driven to resolve differences in reviews rather than to dismiss negative reviews. In addition, even positive internal reviews prompt exploration to confirm that relational bias is not present.

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For the sake of brevity, we refer to online customer ratings, reviews, and comments simply as OCRs.

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Title: An exploratory study of business-to-business online customer reviews: external online professional communities and internal vendor scorecards
Authors: Michelle D. Steward
James A. Narus
Michelle L. Roehm
Publication date: 28-07-2017
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science / Issue 2/2018
Print ISSN: 0092-0703
Electronic ISSN: 1552-7824
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0556-3

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