Customer Online Feedback with an Identity Versus No Identity: The Influence on Review Comments

As customers’ consumption is increasingly dominated by technology-driven systems, online self-verification becomes an important aspect of customers’ online purchasing behavior and plays a significant role in shaping social interactions in the online community. Across two studies, we examine whether online self-verification with an identity versus without an identity will lead to the different quality of online reviews. Study 1 used topic modeling with actual data stripped from Facebook and TripAdvisor customer online review sites and showed no difference between customer reviews underpinned with an identity or without. Likewise, Study 2 used an experimental design and found no significant difference between customer reviews with or without an identity. However, significant mediation effects of social ties and social capital were found when measuring the relationship between online self-verification and customer reviews. The findings build on the literature of user-generated online reviews and have important implications for academics and hospitality practitioners.