e-WOM: How do Fake Reviews in the Saudi Tourism Sector Impact Consumers’ Purchasing Intentions?

Abstract

e-WOM (Electronic Word of Mouth) is a practical way of exchanging and discussing views on the quality of goods, services, ideas, and organizations that provide them. In the age of mass digitalization, people find it easy and practical to review/rate the output of any institution through Social Media channels available to them. However, the ease of Mass-communication is itself responsible or at least a contributor to fake/false/biased reviews of purchased products and services. This research will investigate e-WOM as expressed by service reviewing in the Saudi Tourism/Hospitality sector, which has been booming in recent years due to the 2020-2030 transformative Plan. We propose to study how different variables may influence the service provider (Brand Reputation), the consumers’ attitudes towards it, the quality of the information provided, and the ease of accessibility of them. To our surprise, we found no significant impact of e-WOM on Brand Reputation, while for Customer purchase intentions, all the above-mentioned factors proved to impact significantly.