Swayed by the Numbers: The Consequences of Displaying Product Review Attributes
By Professor Jared Watson, NYU Stern School of Business
Consumers are shopping online more than ever, and as a result, product reviews are becoming more important than ever. In fact, reviews may be considered one of the most important product attributes today. Given this, how do consumers decide which aspects of reviews to use in their decisions?
In this research, we demonstrate when conditions will choose an option with a higher average product rating and when they will choose an option with more reviews even if it has a lower average product rating. With this knowledge, product managers can consider when to run promotions that will increase the likelihood of receiving more reviews (e.g., a broad discount for all consumers) or when to run promotions that will increase the likelihood of increasing their average product rating (e.g., a targeted discount for specific consumers). Understanding when consumers rely more on average product ratings or on the number of reviews to inform their decisions provides managers with the necessary insights to strategize the timing of promotions, new product releases, and how they should differentiate strategies across different online platforms.
For full article by J. Watson click here.
