A Research Proposal on Bloggers' Impact on Online Shopping Decisions

This research proposal investigates the impact of online bloggers on consumers' online shopping intentions. It aims to determine the effectiveness of bloggers on purchase decision-making, explore how online reviews influence buyer perception, and recommend ways to improve blogging activities. The proposal reviews existing literature on blogging's influence, highlighting the importance of relatable content and unbiased reviews. It employs an exploratory, quantitative research design using primary data collected through surveys and questionnaires. The study will utilize the Omni-channel framework and social exchange theory to analyze the impact of earned content on purchase decisions, addressing gaps in existing research regarding positive and negative blogging content and its comparison with company marketing efforts. The research methodology includes data analysis techniques and considerations for accessibility and ethics, culminating in a structured research approach.

Running head: RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Proposal on Impacts of bloggers on customers online shopping intentions
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

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Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction:..............................................................................................................................1
Background and context:........................................................................................................................1
Rationale:................................................................................................................................................1
Aims and objectives:...............................................................................................................................1
Research questions:................................................................................................................................1
Chapter 2: Literature review:......................................................................................................................1
Chapter 3: Research methodology:.............................................................................................................1
Types of investigation:............................................................................................................................1
Research design and data collection:......................................................................................................1
Sampling method:...................................................................................................................................1
Data analysis:..........................................................................................................................................1
Accessibility and ethics:...........................................................................................................................1
Limitations:..................................................................................................................................................1
Chapter 4: structure of the research:..........................................................................................................1
References:..................................................................................................................................................1

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Chapter 1: Introduction:
Background and context:
The marketing industry is growing and with the technological advances the entire world
is now within the reach of the fingertips of the consumers and hence the competition has
increased between different vendors as well. The present marketing scenario is swamped with
online shopping and e-commerce websites providing the consumers with the opportunity to avail
everything they want at the doorstep without having to step into a store or leave the comfort of
the house. However, it has to be mentioned that the online shopping consumers are a huge
community and with only the internet and eCommerce websites as the manner of interaction
between the vendors and the consumers, the decision making of these consumers can be easily
swayed (Lu, Chang and Chang 2014). Researchers are of the opinion that the online bloggers are
the community that has the most influential impact on the decision making choices of consumers
over the online shopping interfaces.
Rationale:
The online bloggers use attractive and relatable content to help the consumers make best
possible decisions while buying anything online and their contribution to the scenario of online
shopping has helped them achieve a significant role in facilitating the online shopping business.
Many researchers have discovered that consumers felt safe and secure while purchasing a
particular item from online shopping websites when the online bloggers that they follow or rely
on have confirmed the safety and effectiveness of the products that they are buying (Zembik
2014). However, there have not been enough emphasis on discovering how the content published
by the online bloggers influence the buyer decision making and what are the factors that
facilitate positive or negative purchase decisions. This research proposal will attempt to explore

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the different factors associated with the influential impact that online bloggers have on the
buying decision making of consumers making online purchases.
Aims and objectives:
The primary aims and objectives of this research are as follows:
 To find out the effectiveness of the online bloggers on the purchase decision
making behavior of consumers
 To determine how the online review blogs and articles facilitate positive or
negative influence on the perception of the buyers regarding the viability of a
product
 To recommend possible ways to improve online blogging activities and
influencing the online shoppers
Research questions:
The research questions are as follows:
 What is the impact of the online bloggers’ content on the purchase decision
making behavior of consumers?
 How the online review blogs and articles facilitate positive or negative influence
on the perception of the buyers regarding the viability of a product?
 What can be possible ways to improve online blogging activities and influencing
the online blogging content

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Chapter 2: Literature review:
Blogging and the blogger content has become one of the most influential impacts on the
buyer decision making when the consumers are purchasing products or services online on the E-
Commerce websites. However, researchers are of the opinion that the extent of understanding
regarding how the bloggers and their content influence the consumer purchase decisions and the
pros and cons of the entire scenario is still vague (Hsu, Chuan-Chuan Lin and Chiang 2013). On
a more exploratory note, blogging can be defined as the practice of knowledge and Information
sharing in the form of original content and in the present day scenario it is considered as the
leading online medium that influences not only the purchase decision making of the young
generation but the impact of bloggers’ content is extended in even the lifestyle choices of the
young generation as well. However, it has to be mentioned that the practicality of online
blogging regarding different products and services has made this particular genre extremely
powerful and has taken over the purchase decision making of the target population, especially
the youngsters and adolescents (Forrest and Cao 2010).
As explained by Liljander, Gummerus and Söderlund (2015), the relationship between
the vendors and consumers are changing everyday with the technological advances. The input
provided by the online blogging content can be considered to be playing a profound role in
revolutionizing the consumer expectations and market demands. It has to be mentioned that
online blogging provides the consumers with the opportunity to be technologically enabled and
informed regarding the practicality of the purchase they are making. Hence, it can be mentioned
that the buyers specially the youngsters are gaining the opportunity to understand whether they
are making a worthwhile investment among all the different options available in the market in
order to address the exact amount or expectations from a product or service. As mentioned by Jin

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and Liu (2010), the information delivery system has changed cconsideraby by the means of
technological empowerment provided to the public by the internet. In support, Hsu, Chuan-
Chuan Lin and Chiang (2013) has mentioned that the online bloggers are known to make
sustained efforts in several domains and have become a stable and reliable source of information
for the consumers surfing social media websites. The contents generated and published by these
online bloggers are relatable and easy to understand so that the consumers can easily understand
the practicality of the purchase they are making and whether they will be benefited by the
investment or if the money will go to complete waste. It has to be mentioned that one of the most
important factors associated with the information provided to the consumer PR executive and
online bloggers is that online bloggers attempt to convey information in easy to understand and
relatable manner whereas the Public Relationship approach to Information sharing is much more
technical and corporate which is not relatable neither understandable for the general public. The
online bloggers do not represent any label or association with the manufacturers hence the
content generated and shared by the online bloggers are considered to be much more unbiased
and authentic by the consumers. That is the reason the online bloggers and their honest reviews
and recommendations are trusted with much more intensity and gravity by the consumers when
compared to the PR information conveyance by the vendors and manufacturers. Hence, it has to
be mentioned that the impact of the content of online bloggers are exerting an extremely
influential power on the consumer purchase decision in the present scenario and it can benefit the
consumers exponentially in order to help consumers make the right decisions. As mentioned
above research studies have emphasized on the extent of impact of online blogging content of the
consumer purchase decision making, although there are research gaps left behind in order to
discover the exact contributing factors influencing the online blogging community is making.

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In order to explore the impact of the online blogging content on the behaviors of the
consumers when shopping online, the help of a theoretical framework can be taken. The Omni-
channel framework can be implemented very easily in the scenario as it focuses on the different
communication channels and their impact on the consumers. One of the most important elements
of the Omni-channel framework is the social media channel, which provides the power of self-
controlled interaction to the customers (Cummins, Peltier and Dixon 2016). Although the
interaction of the consumers in the social media is influenced by the social media marketing and
PR approaches by the manufacturers to some extent, a far more profound impact is exerted by
the online bloggers and their content including product reviews, brand comparison, after sell
usability and longevity opinion, and demonstration reviews on their final decision regarding
purchase. It has been discovered that the impact of these honest reviews are much more
appreciated by the consumers, especially for the online shopping communities. Hsu, Chuan-
Chuan Lin and Chiang (2013) have discussed that while shopping for any product online, the
description of the product on the company website is often not enough for the consumers to
understand properly. Along with that, there also are complex terminologies and jargons used in
the online marketing of the product that further confuses and misguides the shoppers. The
honest, easy to understand, and relatable reviews of the online bloggers often help the shoppers
understand a product and its use with more clarity and helps with the final purchasing decision
making. According to the social exchange theory as well, the choice of an individual to invest in
any interaction is based on the benefit the interaction is associated with (Shiau and Luo 2012).
Similarly, it can be hypothesized that the inclination of the consumers to depend on the earned
content of the online bloggers when compared to the online marketing attempted by the company
is based on the benefits provided to the consumers. Although, there is lack of any research

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focusing on the above mentioned link between earned content of online blogging and purchase
decisions of online shoppers.
However, there are more gaps in the literature on the impact of the online blogging
content on the buyers’ decision making patterns when shopping online. For instance, the
previous research has not focused on the impact of the positive and negative blogging content
and how it influences the decision making of the consumers. Along with that, the link between
the online blogging content and its comparison with the online marketing attempted by the
manufacturers of the product and why the consumers favor the earned content of online bloggers
over the company marketing has not been explored either. This research will attempt to explore
the link between the earned content and its impact on purchase decisions of the online shoppers,
its implications and links to the social media communication theories like social exchange theory
with the help of the Omni-channel management framework and its consumer interaction
channels.
Chapter 3: Research methodology:
Research methodology can be defined as the systematic culmination of the types of
techniques used while conducting the research and provides the research of the opportunity to
follow a step-by-step process in order to address each and every aims and objective set for the
research study (Creswell and Creswell 2017).
Types of investigation:
There are three basic types of investigation, exploratory, descriptive, and hypothesis
oriented. For this research study the type of Investigation chosen will be exploratory as the

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research will attempt to explode the different concepts and perceptions in the different
stakeholders associated with the influence of online bloggers on the consumer purchase decision
making.
Research design and data collection:
The research design for the study will be quantitative relying on numerical data and the
data collection will be of primary data. It has to be mentioned that primary data reference to the
data that is collected from interviews surveys and questionnaires (Myers, Well and Lorch 2013).
As the topic of the research is associated with the perceptions of consumers and other
stakeholders associated with the consumer decision making process and how the online blogging
community is influencing it the primary data will be the most authentic and relevant data forte
research and hence, primary data is selected for the research. Considering the research approach,
there are two main kinds of research approaches, deductive, which involving setting a hypothesis
and then testing it on the basis of the data. The other type is inductive which is not associated
with a hypothesis. As we will not be assigning any hypothesis to the study and will be exploring
new theories and themes based on the results of the study, the research approach will be
inductive. The purpose behind a qualification research design using primary data Instead of
quantitative design is the need for understanding the perception of the participants. Numerical
data will not be able to extract the individual perception of the buyers regarding the online
blogging content. On the other hand, a interviews based on quantitative data will be more
inclusive of the perception and idea of the study participants and will serve the purpose of the
study.
Sampling method:
Sampling method is of two common types, probability sampling and non-probability
sampling. What is research analyst population will be samples for the primary data collection

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hence the sampling method for the result is probability sampling method. The interview will be
done electronically with the aid of online survey tools and the questionnaire will have both open
ended and close ended questions. the sample size for the research study will be 150 participants
to include a broad range of idea and perceptions avoiding bias as much as possible.
Data analysis:
The data analysis is of two common types. qualitative and quantitative. Qualitative data
analysis is based on secondary data collected from secondary sources. Whereas, quantitative
study is based on analysis of quantifiable numerical data and it's statistical analysis. The most
suitable data analysis procedure for the study will be primary data collected from survey
questionnaires and hence for the study as well the data analysis will be quantitative based on
statistical methods (Christensen et al. 2011).
Accessibility and ethics:
The accessibility of the data can become an issue as it will be completely based on the
response rate and opinions of the different consumers chosen for the study. As the answers and
responses provided by the consumers will be completely based on the best understanding and
perception of the participants, the possibility of data having bias is also high (Mitchell and Jolley
2012). The research will attempt to comply with all of the ethical standards of conduction of
research involving human sample. The consumers participating will be informed appropriately
and made to understand the activities of the study and the purpose of the study. Informed consent
to be taken from the participants and they will be given complete liberty to discontinue the
research procedure in at any moment they please. In order to respect the privacy and
confidentiality of the information shared by the participants the data calculated and analyzed will
be protected under the data protection and confidentiality maintenance legislations of standard
research practice.

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Limitations:
Time constraints and limited budget can be two considerable limitations of the study.
Chapter 4: structure of the research:
On a concluding note, it has be mentioned that this research will contain an introductory
chapter with background context rationally for the research aims and objectives and Research
questions. The second chapter will be a literature review outlining the key concepts and
information available on the topic collected from relevant and authentic literature published from
2012 onwards. The chapter will be the research methodology outlining the research design,
investigation type, data collection, data analysis, accessibility and ethics, and limitation of the
research.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Literature review
Chapter 3: Research methodology
Chapter 4: Data findings and interpretation
Chapter 5: Conclusion and recommendation

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References:
Christensen, L.B., Johnson, B., Turner, L.A. and Christensen, L.B., 2011. Research methods,
design, and analysis.
Creswell, J.W. and Creswell, J.D., 2017. Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed
methods approaches. Sage publications.
Cummins, S., Peltier, J.W. and Dixon, A., 2016. Omni-channel research framework in the
context of personal selling and sales management: A review and research extensions. Journal of
Research in Interactive Marketing, 10(1), pp.2-16.
Forrest, E. and Cao, Y., 2010. Opinions, recommendations and endorsements: The new
regulatory framework for social media. Journal of Business and Policy Research, 5(2), pp.88-99.
Hsu, C.L., Chuan-Chuan Lin, J. and Chiang, H.S., 2013. The effects of blogger
recommendations on customers’ online shopping intentions. Internet Research, 23(1), pp.69-88.
Jin, Y. and Liu, B.F., 2010. The blog-mediated crisis communication model: Recommendations
for responding to influential external blogs. Journal of Public Relations Research, 22(4), pp.429-
455.
Lee, J., Park, D.H. and Han, I., 2011. The different effects of online consumer reviews on
consumers' purchase intentions depending on trust in online shopping malls: An advertising
perspective. Internet research, 21(2), pp.187-206.
Liljander, V., Gummerus, J. and Söderlund, M., 2015. Young consumers’ responses to suspected
covert and overt blog marketing. Internet Research, 25(4), pp.610-632.