Who says what to whom in what channel? A rules theoretic perspective on word-of-mouth marketing

ABSTRACT

We investigate how word-of-mouth marketing campaign participants select communication partners, content and channel. Rules Theory, which we adopt from the interpersonal communication literature, indicates that socially constructed contextual rules explain participants’ choices. Our analysis suggests that campaign participants are sensitive to the socially constructed contexts within which interaction takes place and adjust their communication choices accordingly. We identify four contexts that account for variance in participants’ choices: episode, relationship, life-script and family narrative. We show that specific communication choices may be obligated, legitimated or prohibited dependent on the activated context.

KEYWORDS:

• Word-of-mouth marketing
• WOMM
• word-of-mouth
• WOM
• directed content analysis
• Rules Theory
• context
• contextualised rules
• deontic logic
• conversation partner
• communication content
• communication channel

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Francis Buttle

Francis Buttle is Honorary Adjunct Professor at Macquarie Graduate School of Management, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia, and Principal of Francis Buttle & Associates, the Sydney-based customer management consultancy.

Lars Groeger

Lars Groeger is lecturer in marketing at Macquarie Graduate School of Management and affiliated Professor at RWTH Aachen, Germany.