Effects of Word of Mouth Communication and Perceived Quality on Decision Making Moderated by Gender: Jakarta Blackberry Smartphone Consumer’s Perspective

Abstract

BlackBerry smartphones have been very popular among business practitioners and middle-class people in Indonesia. Their popularity may be high because of the rise of mobile internet and social media. The primary objective of the study is to analyze the effect of word of mouth communication among consumers, as well as consumers" perception of product quality, moderated by gender on consumer decision making on BlackBerry smartphones in Indonesia. Insights were collected from young consumers at Jakarta in October 2010. The results reveal that both word of mouth and perceived quality have a positive significant effect on consumer decision making. In addition, there is no significant difference between young male or female respondents with respect to word of mouth communication on consumer decision making or from perceived quality on consumer decision making.