Words and Symbols: How Media Richness of Electronic Word of Mouth Influences Receivers' Purchase Intention

ABSTRACT Scholars thoroughly investigated how textual electronic word of mouth (eWOM) influences its receivers; now they should focus on eWOM in nontextual formats, a recent and popular phenomenon. Therefore, we investigate how the media richness of eWOM affects its receivers' purchase intentions. As a richer media format, we chose eWOM in text with textual paralanguage (TPL) (vs. eWOM with only text). TPL—popular and contemporary linguistic style—employs emojis, emoticons, various punctuation marks, and so forth. Grounded in media richness theory, imagery processing theory, and social presence theory, we argue that eWOM with TPL impacts purchase intentions through two parallel mechanisms: by enhancing the vividness of mental imagery and by increasing perceptions of sender warmth. Two online experiments test these mechanisms: a between‐subjects study ( n = 332) and a 2 (high vs. low language variety) × 2 (high vs. low multiple cues) factorial study ( n = 486). PROCESS mediation analyses support the proposed parallel mechanisms: the language variety dimension of media richness enhances vivid mental imagery, while the multiple cues dimension increases perceived warmth, both leading to higher purchase intentions. Theoretically, our findings demonstrate that different dimensions of media richness exert distinct yet parallel effects on eWOM receivers, extending media richness theory in eWOM contexts. Our results can guide managers to identify and leverage persuasive eWOM to stimulate consumer engagement. Socially, the study offers insight into how individuals can more effectively interpret eWOM for informed purchase decisions and communicate warmth and vividness in online interactions.