A New Arabic Online Consumer Reviews Model to Aid Purchasing Intention (AOCR-PI)

Abstract

Currently, customers are inclined to use online reviews to make good purchasing decisions. Such reviews are believed to have a significant impact on customer buying intentions, and, thereby, sales. Almost no previous studies have been conducted to build a comprehensive model of online consumer review (OCR) factors that influence consumer purchase intention and product sales within an Arabic context. Drawing on the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) and by considering Hall’s Cultural Model (HCM) and Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Framework (HCDF), this study proposes a conceptual model to assess the relationship between Arabic Online Consumer Review and Purchase Intention (AOCR-PI), using book reviews as a case study. This position paper is focused on understanding how online review- and reviewer-related factors can influence Arab readers’ book selection and, thus, book sales. The paper also outlines the proposed methodology to be followed to evaluate the proposed framework. The findings of this study will help both consumers in choosing the best product quality and sellers in improving future sales by identifying the most important OCR factors that have a significant impact on consumer buying decisions.