Conceptualizing negatively valenced influencing behavior: forms and triggers

Abstract

Purpose -This study shows how customers engage in negatively-valenced influencing behavior (NVIB) and what triggers customers to use different forms of NVIB in an online context. Design/methodology/approach -A qualitative study is conducted using an unobtrusive netnography. Data collected comprises 954 negatively valenced online reviews posted on TripAdvisor to hotels, restaurants, and 'things to do' in twelve different destinations worldwide. Findings -Drawing on recent literature relating to customer engagement behavior (CEB), this paper identifies and conceptualizes the relationship between five cognitive (service failure, overpricing, deception) and emotional (disappointment and insecurity) triggers of six forms of direct (dissuading, warning and endorsing competitors) and indirect (discrediting, expressing regret and deriding) NVIB. Research limitations -The unobtrusive netnography has inherent limitations that lend itself to inductive rich insights rather than generalization. The study only focuses on NVIB within a specific online context namely TripAdvisor. Practical implications -This paper provides managers with knowledge of the specific triggers of NVIB. Additionally, the paper conceptualizes the various forms of NVIB, how customers use them and what triggers them to use each form. Moreover, the paper offers relevant data-inferred recommendations to service managers on how to manage each form. Originality/value -This research is the first to identify forms and triggers of NVIB, classify direct and indirect forms, and conceptualize relationships between forms and triggers.

Expanding customer engagement: the role of negative engagement, dual valences and contexts

“…Therefore, the first model where involvement has an indirect effect on WOM through positive and negative CE demonstrates better fit and is retained for this article. This is also supported theoretically, as involvement measures the degree of relevance and importance a service holds to a consumer, whereas engagement entails more interactive, collaborative and passionate dimensions, which would prompt customers to discuss their service experience with others (Islam and Rahman, 2016;Azer and Alexander, 2018). The proposed model explained 61 per cent of the variance in the WOM construct.…”

“…Negatively engaged customers may be motivated to discuss their negative experiences to warn others, vent or gain revenge on a service organisation/community, whereas positively engaged customers may seek to share feelings of happiness and passion towards their service organisation (Dolan et al, 2019;Islam and Rahman, 2016;Hollebeek and Chen, 2014). Customers are more likely to perceive the choices and opinions of other customers as authoritative information, compared to brand-initiated communication (Azer and Alexander, 2018). Customers may abide by a shared responsibility of informing others to reduce service risk and alleviate customers' reliance on traditional marketing communications (Hollebeek and Macky, 2019;Azer and Alexander, 2018).…”

“…Negative engagement has been found to result in a range of WOM activities including blogging, online reviews, complaints and negative recommendations (van Doorn et al, 2010;Azer and Alexander, 2018). These can be triggered by a range of factors, including poor customer service, dissatisfaction and unethical brand behaviour (Juric et al, 2015;Azer and Alexander, 2018). Interestingly, Hollebeek and Chen (2014) found negative CE to be a stronger driver of WOM compared to positive CE, highlighting the asymmetrical impact of negative versus positive engagement on brand outcomes.…”

“…Prior research has found that negative CE is contagious within online platforms, which can damage an organisation's reputation and lead to distrust, switching behaviour and negative WOM (Bowden et al, 2017;Dolan et al, 2019;Hogreve et al, 2019;Rissanen et al, 2016;Juric et al, 2015). It has been found to manifest through negative engagement emotions such as feelings of irritation toward other social media users and imbalanced community intimacy (Azer and Alexander, 2018). Negative cognitive engagement is suggested to manifest through frustration with site functionality and time-consuming activities (Dolan et al, 2019;Azer and Alexander, 2018).…”

The transformative service paradox: the dilemma of wellbeing trade-offs

“…This method uses online, publicly available, unprompted information, such as customer reviews, blogs and social media posts, to explore user experiences (Mkono and Markwell, 2014). Service researchers have benefitted from the unobtrusive nature of netnography to understand patients' motivations for participation in online communities (Zhao et al, 2015) or the influences of negative engagement behavior (Azer and Alexander, 2018). Heinonen and Medberg (2018) offer a review of the use of netnography in service research.…”