Today, CIC released its latest white paper Making Sense of IWOM – “Topic Three: How Brands Can Participate in Online Communities.” This white paper is the final installment in a series of three white papers, including two earlier studies, “The Role of Internet Word of Mouth in Purchase Decision” and “How IWOM is generated and disseminated.”

Topic 3 looks to evaluate consumer online behavior and provide suggestions for how brands can participate in online communities based on these consumer preferences. Below are some top-line findings and highlights from the study……

In the first topic (The Role of IWOM in Purchase Decisions) of CIC’s “Making sense of IWOM” white paper series, CIC suggested that the majority of consumers use IWOM to help them make purchase decisions about products and brands they plan on purchasing. What CIC did not do look at was if they found answers if they left, stuck around or if they posted comments about those products and answer other consumer questions about those brands and products.

To answer these questions, CIC today releases the second topic titled “How IWOM is generated and disseminated”……

CIC, leading Chinese Internet Word of Mouth (IWOM) research and consulting agency, released a new IWOM whitepaper called “Making Sense of IWOM” – the Role of Internet Word of Mouth in Purchase Decisions on June 18th.

1. Do consumers pay attention to IWOM?
2. Why do consumers pay attention to IWOM?
3. How does IWOM influence consumers’ attitude towards brands?
4. How does IWOM affect purchase decisions?