What is it about?
When people share negative opinions about products online, it can seriously damage a brand's reputation. This study investigated whether companies can use advertising to reduce the harm caused by negative online reviews. We conducted an experiment with 100 university students, showing them different combinations of negative reviews and advertisements for hands-free devices. Our research found that advertising can indeed help counter negative word-of-mouth, but the type of advertising matters. Surprisingly, simple, non-comparative advertisements (that don't compare the product to competitors) were sometimes more effective than comparative advertisements (that directly compare products). This suggests that when facing negative reviews, companies might be better off focusing on their own product's positive attributes rather than making direct comparisons with competitors. The study used fake brands to avoid bias and tested how different advertising approaches work alongside negative reviews. This research is particularly relevant in today's digital age where online reviews heavily influence purchasing decisions.
Featured Image
Photo by Pop & Zebra on Unsplash
Why is it important?
This research addresses a critical challenge facing businesses in the digital era: how to effectively respond to negative online reviews that can quickly damage brand reputation and sales. With social media and review platforms making it easier than ever for dissatisfied customers to share their opinions widely, understanding how to counter negative word-of-mouth has become essential for business survival. Our findings challenge conventional marketing wisdom by showing that comparative advertising - which directly compares products to competitors - isn't always the best response to negative reviews. Instead, non-comparative advertising that focuses on the product's own strengths may be more effective. This insight could help companies allocate their advertising budgets more strategically when dealing with reputation management. The research also contributes to academic understanding by integrating two important psychological theories (the Elaboration Likelihood Model and Accessibility-Diagnosticity Model) to explain how consumers process negative information alongside advertising messages. This provides a theoretical foundation for future research in digital marketing and consumer behavior.
Perspectives
This research bridges my two worlds - academic research and my previous career as an international television commercial producer. Having created ads that faced negative word-of-mouth in the marketplace, I was eager to study this challenge scientifically. What surprised me most was how our findings challenged industry assumptions. In advertising, we often believe comparative approaches are stronger, but our research showed that subtlety can be more effective when countering negative reviews. This reinforced my belief that academic research offers insights beyond industry intuition. The cross-cultural collaboration was particularly meaningful. Both Thailand and Pakistan avoid comparative advertising - we prioritize harmony and avoiding confrontation, while Pakistan views it as unethical. This shared cultural similarity, despite different underlying reasons, made our findings especially relevant for both contexts. I hope this study encourages more research examining how traditional advertising principles apply in our digital age, where consumer voices have unprecedented power and cultural sensitivity remains crucial for effective communication.
Dr. Smith Boonchutima
Chulalongkorn University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Impact of negative word of mouth on consumers’ attitude. Moderating role of advertising under cognitive involvement conditions, Cogent Social Sciences, July 2025, Taylor & Francis,
DOI: 10.1080/23311886.2025.2526800.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
