Writing emotional product reviews increases our brand loyalty – study

New research finds that writers of online reviews are more likely to recommend products and services to others – and repurchase themselves – if they are induced to reflect emotionally on their experiences rather than factually. 

The study is from by Bayes Business School at City St George’s, University of London and is published in the academic publication Journal of Marketing. 

Three separate studies explored how the language and length used in customer reviews influenced the behaviours of their authors. Key findings from the research of more than 14,000 sample reviews include: 

• Leaving emotionally charged reviews that focus on feelings toward a product or service strengthens the likelihood of referring a product or service and making repeat purchases. 

• Conversely, writing reviews using rational analysis and factual, cognitive content reduces a writer’s propensity to repurchase or recommend, because it often fosters greater criticism and deliberation. 

• The length and detail of a review have varying effects. Longer reviews have a significant negative impact on loyalty when the product or service is simple, costly, or when the customer is highly experienced. 

Results suggest how review writing can be effectively engineered by companies and customer review platforms to encourage repeat purchases and referrals from review providers.  

For example, questions like ‘How did this product make you feel?’ or ‘What was the highlight of your visit?’ can induce emotions. Conversely, ‘What are the pros and cons of this service?’ and ‘Describe your experience’ might encourage more cognitive discussion. 

The study is co-authored by Dr Wanqing Zhang, Senior Lecturer in Marketing at Bayes Business School, along with academics from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, and Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago. 

There’s a loyalty compromise 

The findings shed light on the compromise between ‘informativeness’ and ‘loyalty’. While informative (factual) reviews benefit readers, writing such reviews can hinder the authors’ referral and repurchase behaviours.  

Retailers and service providers must therefore carefully balance the goal of eliciting informative feedback with the need to protect the brand loyalty of review writers, the researchers conclude. 

“Many companies use reviews to collect valuable customer feedback, develop brand awareness and establish customer loyalty. Previous studies have investigated the impact of reviews on their readers, but little is known about how authors generate their own affinity through writing reviews,” Zhang says. 

“Our research shows that although informative reviews can be useful to companies for shedding light on complex or lesser-known products and services, writers tend to think in more negative terms about a product or service experience they are reviewing if encouraged to over-elaborate on their consumption experiences. 

“This trade-off has important implications for companies, marketers and customer service providers, who should tailor their review solicitation strategies according to the product and service they are offering and the characteristics of potential reviewers.” 

You can find out more about the study, titled ‘Customers’ Review Content and Their Referral and (Re)Purchase Behaviours’, here.