Consumer Behavior: Analyzing Blogs and Customer Reviews' Influence

This essay delves into the significant influence of blogs and customer reviews on consumer behavior and purchase decisions. It highlights how online platforms provide consumers with easy access to product information, shaping their choices through blogger recommendations and customer feedback. The essay discusses how both positive and negative reviews impact consumer perceptions, affecting brand image and purchase intent. It examines the role of social media in disseminating information and influencing buying behavior, emphasizing the importance of online reputation management for businesses. The analysis covers various aspects, including the impact of bloggers, the role of customer suggestions, and the overall influence of online content on the decision-making process. The essay concludes that blogs and customer reviews are crucial factors in contemporary consumer behavior, assisting customers in making informed choices and maximizing satisfaction. The paper also mentions the role of bloggers in the current marketing landscape and the impact of rating and reviews on companies.

Running head: Consumer Behavior
Consumer Behavior

Consumer Behavior
"Blogs and Customer Reviews influence on purchase decision”
Blogs and reviews are one of the popular sources of getting the information. By sitting
anywhere the individual can easily get the information of the products and services offered by
the company. When a customer wants to purchase a product it is seen that they read the blogs
written by the bloggers and also reviews the comments of the customers who have already
experienced the service. The suggestions and feedback given by them help an individual to
choose the best product among the various ranges. The feedback can be negative as well as
positive also, so by reading it the customer get an idea whether to purchase the product or not.
Blogging is considered as a source from which the customers can get proper knowledge about
products and services (Krestel and Dokoohaki, 2015). The motive if the bloggers are to give
information about the products and services experienced by them. There are many types of
bloggers like food bloggers, fashion blogger, travel blogger and also product blogger. It is
medium through which customers or an individual can interact with the people who have already
experienced the products and the services. It is a popular search engine tool that helps the people
to gain information about the specific service or the product. There are many pages of the
bloggers on Instagram and Facebook from which the customers can easily gain the information
regarding the products and services (Fang et al., 2016).
In this essay, the discussion will be related to that how blogs and customer reviews are
considered as an important factor at the time of making a decision related to purchasing. By
reading blogs and reviews it can be easy for the customers to have a proper understanding of the
products and services. With the help of internet, it can be simple for the customers to access
blogs and reviews given by the customers. Blogs and customer reviews help the customers to
take right decisions related to the products and services (Harmeling et al., 2017). Through blogs
and reviews, the customer thinking pattern changes and they start taking correct decisions. The
information given by the bloggers helps the customers to invest time and money at a right place.
If a person if thinking negative about a product or a service, the blogs and customer review can
change the mindset in a positive manner (Colton, 2018).
If the emphasis is given to the current environment, then it can be seen that customer are
more inclined towards latest digital technologies. New and latest information can be gathered
with the help of digital technologies. People are ordering food and also the clothes and gadgets
1

Consumer Behavior
by sitting a home. They gather information by reading blogs and customer reviews. Blogs and
reviews are also given on social media and through social media, it can be spread to a large
audience in less time (Jarreau and Porter, 2018). When a person goes to purchase a product or
the service they first gather the information about the price, features, and quality so that they can
take accurate decisions. If a blogger or customer tries any product and they are not satisfied with
it then it can give negative impact on the image of the company. The negative feedback given by
the customers can induce them to try a new product or the substitute's available in the market.
There are many new products and services available in the market, so through blogs and
customer reviews, people get awareness (Leal et al., 2014).
The purchasing decisions of the customers are affected just because of the post given by
the bloggers and customers. Blogs and the reviews by the customer affect the decision-making
process of the customers. By reading blogs and customer review it can be easy for the customer
to attain knowledge of each and every field. If a person has a negative image of the product then
it can be changed to the point positive of the specific product or service (Park and Nicolau,
2015). Sometimes by seeing the image or the pictures post by the blogger or the customer can
induce them to purchase or avail the services. It is a human nature that people consider those
things which are given by the other people.If a person says that this product is not good then they
will accept and will never experience it. The tendency is made of an individual in reference to
the suggestions given by the other people (Lemon and Verhoef, 2016).
If an individual suggests or gives view to try the product then whenever a person is going
someone he or she will give a thought to that suggestion. Like a food blogger posted amazing
pictures and blogs on a café which is new in the city. Then a person who is thinking or finding a
new place to visit will take that suggestion given by the blogger as a priority and will avail the
services. Positive feedbacks can also enhance the image of the products and services in the
market. If positive feedback is given by the blogger or the customer then people think that there
is something good in this product or the service whereas as negative feedback can reduce the
demand and can also change the positive mind of a person. When a person gets confused at the
time of purchasing the product they choose to read the blogs or the customer review so that their
confusion can be reduced (Ng and Wakenshaw, 2017). Hence, it has been seen that majority of
2

Consumer Behavior
people are now days focusing on the blogs and customer reviews before purchasing any products
and services.
By emphasizing on blogs and customer reviews it can be simple to choose the best
product so that the risk related to purchase of the product can be reduced. The utility of the
product can also be evaluated by reading blogs and reviews of the customers. When bloggers
write their blogs and customers give their reviews then it has been seen that customer will take a
decision by considering the points mentioned by the bloggers and the customers (Sari,
Alamsyah, and Wibowo, 2018).
Also, when the utility of the product is related to the requirement of a person then only
they will prefer to choose a particular product. When a person goes to purchase the product then
it is seen that customers always read the blogs and reviews so that accuracy in the process of
decision making can take place. The Customers always give emphasizes on reading blogs and
reviews as it is a reliable medium for them to gain accurate information about the product and
service. When they get the idea from the blogs and review then they feel safe to avail the
services. The customers will choose those products on which positive feedback and reviews are
given by the customers and the bloggers.
Bloggers are popular on the online as well as on offline platform. It has been evaluated
that the blogger gives their idea and also the feedback on their personal experience which assists
the consumers to consider the right decisions. There are many large companies also who send
products as a sample to the bloggers so that they can post the pictures on their blogs and can give
feedback or suggestion related to purchase decision of the products (Kiang and Shang, 2015).
Bloggers provide detailed information about the products and services which are availed or
experienced by them.
If a person is a food blogger then he or she will write a blog on food. The information
which is given on their bog will be related to quality, price, taste, and ambiance of the café. They
post and write blogs in such a manner that customers can review and take correct decisions.
There are many customers also who take suggestions from the bloggers so that they can avail the
best service or the product (Toldos-Romero and Orozco-Gómez, 2015). Hence, through this, it
3

Consumer Behavior
can be stated that yes the purchasing decision is affected if the customers are engaged in reading
blogs and reviews.
Blogs and customer reviews help the customers to choose the best service and also helps
to maximize their level of satisfaction. There are many meets conducted by the bloggers in which
they are invited. They are invited to a particular café and they visit the cafes to give feedback to
the owner and also to give a review on the social media sites through their page. The followers
who are interested will follow and ask the questions in return. It can be seen that the best
suggestion is given by the blogger or a person who tries the product earlier (Kim and Krishnan,
2015).
When a person opens a new outlet or a café than they approach the bloggers of the city to
promote the products or the services can be done in a proper manner. It is seen that if positive
feedback is given by the blogger then image and demand of the product enhances in the market.
The new business also promotes their products on the social media platform so that consumers
can get knowledge about the new products and services introduced in the market. It demands
enhances then the direct impact will be seen in the profits of the company (Lobe et al., 2015).
So, bloggers and reviews by the customers play a great role in the customer decision-
making process. That is the major reason the companies treat a customer as their assets because
if they give the wrong review then it can change the mindset of the other person also. The
positive review given or mentioned by the customer on the company websites help to enhance
the demand as well as the sale of the products in the competitive market. It has also been
analyzed that the reviews and rating given by the customers and bloggers are considered as a
rating for the companies (Yogesh and Yesha, 2014). If blogger gives low rating then it will give
adverse impact on the overall rating. For example: when we visit any website of the company,
there we will see the overall rating. This rating mainly depends on the overall feedback and
reviews given by the customers and the bloggers on their products and services.
Also, it can be evaluated that there are many followers who are following the bloggers.
So, when they post an image or the blog the information is given to the large audience in less
time. This is the advantage for the company as the bloggers are promoting their products or the
4

Consumer Behavior
services in less time. It can help the company to attract more and more customer towards the
products or the services which they are offering (Zhang et al., 2016).
Therefore, by evaluating the paper it has been concluded that blogs and customer reviews
can easily change the mindset towards buying products and services. The blogs and reviews
assist the customers to avail accurate information about the product or service. This is the best
source from which the customers can gain knowledge in an easy manner.
5

Consumer Behavior
References
Colton, D.A., 2018. Antecedents of consumer attitudes’ toward corporate blogs. Journal of
Research in Interactive Marketing, 12(1), pp.94-104.
Fang, J., Wen, C., George, B. and Prybutok, V.R., 2016. Consumer heterogeneity, perceived
value, and repurchase decision-making in online shopping: The role of gender, age, and shopping
motives. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 17(2), p.116.
Harmeling, C.M., Moffett, J.W., Arnold, M.J. and Carlson, B.D., 2017. Toward a theory of
customer engagement marketing. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 45(3), pp.312-
335.
Jarreau, P.B. and Porter, L., 2018. Science in the social media age: profiles of science blog
readers. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 95(1), pp.142-168.
Kiang, M.Y. and Shang, K.H., 2015. Online purchase decision and its implication on e-tailing
strategies. In New meanings for marketing in a new millennium (pp. 212-217). Springer, Cham.
Kim, Y. and Krishnan, R., 2015. On product-level uncertainty and online purchase behavior: An
empirical analysis. Management Science, 61(10), pp.2449-2467.
Krestel, R. and Dokoohaki, N., 2015. Diversifying customer review rankings. Neural
Networks, 66, pp.36-45.
Leal, G.P.A., Hor-Meyll, L.F. and de Paula Pessôa, L.A.G., 2014. Influence of virtual
communities in purchasing decisions: The participants' perspective. Journal of Business
Research, 67(5), pp.882-890.
Lemon, K.N. and Verhoef, P.C., 2016. Understanding customer experience throughout the
customer journey. Journal of Marketing, 80(6), pp.69-96.
6

Consumer Behavior
Lobel, I., Patel, J., Vulcano, G. and Zhang, J., 2015. Optimizing product launches in the presence
of strategic consumers. Management Science, 62(6), pp.1778-1799.
Ng, I.C. and Wakenshaw, S.Y., 2017. The Internet-of-Things: Review and research
directions. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 34(1), pp.3-21.
Park, S. and Nicolau, J.L., 2015. Asymmetric effects of online consumer reviews. Annals of
Tourism Research, 50, pp.67-83.
Sari, P.K., Alamsyah, A. and Wibowo, S., 2018, March. Measuring e-Commerce service quality
from online customer review using sentiment analysis. In Journal of Physics: Conference
Series (Vol. 971, No. 1, p. 012053). IOP Publishing.
Toldos-Romero, M.D.L.P. and Orozco-Gómez, M.M., 2015. Brand personality and purchase
intention. European Business Review, 27(5), pp.462-476.
Yogesh, F. and Yesha, M., 2014. Effect of social media on purchase decision. Pacific Business
Review International, 6(11), pp.45-51.
Zhang, X.K., Jia, J., Song, C. and GAO, X.Y., 2016. Ranking importance of user node in micro-
blog social network. Computer Engineering and Design, 8, p.014.
7