THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE ELECTRONIC WORD-OF-MOUTH COMMUNICATION IN CHOOSING A WELLNESS OFFER

Milan Kocic* and Katarina Radakovic

Faculty of Economics, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, The Republic of Serbia

In the conditions of the dynamic development of information and communications technology, the traditional way of establishing communication among consumers has significantly changed. As one of several extremely important marketing instruments, word-of-mouth communication has been assuming a new dimension via digital forms of communicating. Having in mind the significance of social media for the formation of consumer attitudes and intentions concerning the purchasing process, the paper is aimed at obtaining relevant findings on the effect of electronic word-of-mouth communication on consumer behavior. More precisely, by using a correlation and multiple regression analysis, whether the quantity, quality and timeliness of information, and the source credibility of electronic word-of-mouth communication affect consumer trust in the area of a wellness offer was examined. A simple regression analysis was applied in order to determine whether consumer trust contributed to purchase intention. The results of the conducted empirical research show that there is a statistically significant impact of electronic word-of-mouth communication on consumer trust and that consumer trust positively affects purchase intention when choosing a wellness package in the Republic of Serbia is concerned.

Keywords: electronic word-of-mouth communication, consumer attitudes, purchasing behavior, social media, wellness offer

JEL Classification: M31, D830, I0