| Abstract [eng] |
102 pages, 7 charts, 7 pictures, 95 references. Main problem – what influence do positive and negative E-WOM recommendations have on the intention to buy dietary supplements of different price levels? Main purpose – to analyze the effect of positive and negative E-WOM recommendations on the purchase intention when evaluating dietary supplements of different price levels. The work consists of three main parts ‒ the analysis of literature, the research and its results, conclusion, and recommendations. The Internet has enabled people not only to communicate online, but also to use it as a channel of exchange, and E-WOM recommendations have for some time now become one of the forms of advertising that help consumers to find the information they need and to become players in the online world. The field of E-WOM research on this form of communication is broad and has received a lot of attention from researchers, and its different components are being examined. This paper aims to determine how the synergies between different E-WOM sources, emotions and price affect the intention to purchase dietary supplements. It reviews the main work of researchers in the field of E-WOM research and tests the relationships between positive and negative emotions, different price levels and different communicator positioning in terms of the influence of all these components on purchase intention. The paper applies a factorial experimental design consisting of 2 different communicator positions, different emotions ‒ positive and negative ‒ and different price offer sizes ‒ low and high price. To obtain the required results, 8 questionnaires were designed and a total of 320 respondents of different gender, age category, education and income were interviewed. The experimental survey method has been selected for the research. The results of the research were statistically processed with IBM SPSS Statistics program. Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient was used to determine the alignment of the Likert scales and in most cases, it was higher than 0.6, which indicates that the scales were reliable. The homogeneity of the groups was checked, the Independent Samples T-test, linear regression, correlation, and moderation effect were used in the analysis. The results of the study show that E-WOM recommendations appealing to positive emotions elicit positive emotions, while those appealing to negative emotions elicit negative ones. The study showed that the communicator of E-WOM recommendations is more important as a person who has tried the product than as a professional. Positive emotional reactions and positive price perceptions are higher when the E-WOM recommendation is made by the person who has tried the product rather than by the professional. The results also show that a low-price offer is perceived more favorably than a high-price offer. There is no moderating relationship between health consciousness, involvement in the dietary supplement category and intention to purchase dietary supplements. It has been found that although consumers are health conscious and interested in health claims, this does not influence their intention to purchase dietary supplements. |
