INVESTIGATING THE DYNAMICS OF ONLINE REVIEWS, ELECTRONIC WORD OF MOUTH AND CONSUMER PURCHASE INTENTIONS WITH RESPECT TO E-TAILERS

In the era of digitalization, Electronic Word of Mouth (eWOM) has emerged as a pivotal factor influencing consumer behavior, particularly in the context of online purchases. This study investigates the dynamics of eWOM and its impact on consumer purchase intentions within the Indian e-tailing market. Drawing upon insights from prior research, this study explores the multifaceted nature of eWOM by considering parameters such as review consistency, quality, credibility, expertise, platform reliability, product quality, and review complexity. These parameters are incorporated into a comprehensive scale adapted from established measures utilized in previous studies. Additionally, customer purchase intentions are evaluated using a scale adapted. The findings of this study contribute to the existing literature by shedding light on the intricate relationship between eWOM and consumer purchase intentions in the Indian e-tailing context. The path coefficient between the construct, e-WOM, and purchase intention (PURINT) is 0.845, indicating a strong positive relationship where higher values of e-WOM are associated with increased purchase intention; this relationship has a significant standardized effect size (beta = 0.845, R-square = 0.714, f- square = 2.491). The findings also suggest that dimensions such as platform reliability, product complexity, product quality, review consistency, and review credibility significantly influence consumers' purchase intentions, while reviewer expertise and review quality show negligible impacts. Keywords- eWOM, e-tailing, Purchase Intension, Online Reviews