Service failures in times of crisis: An analysis of eWOM emotionality.
J Bus Res
; 154: 113349, 2023 Jan.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2086378
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt consumer experiences as well as service operations. Despite the magnitude of this exogenous shock, little is known about the pandemic's impact on consumers. Building on engagement theory, this study examines consumers' emotional responses to service failures on social media. Contributing to the brand equity literature, we test whether electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) emotionality is contingent on brand strength. To do so, we analyzed 327,205 tweets directed at airline brands over the first 12 months of the pandemic in addition to data from a nonaffected period. The models show that consumers' overall emotionality in tweets was lower during the pandemic than before it. Over the course of the pandemic, levels of joy were lower while levels of sadness and anger were more prominent in tweets directed at weaker brands. Thus, brand strength still acts as a "buffer" if service failures are caused by exogenous shocks.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
Language:
English
Journal:
J Bus Res
Year:
2023
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
J.jbusres.2022.113349
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS