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This study therefore investigates the demographic and patronage differences of consumers regarding the spread of online word-of-mouth communication about cellphones. Patronage refers to the patronage of cellphone network service providers and general cellphone usage, while the use of word-of-mouth communication refers specifically to messages about cellphones. It will be of value for the marketers of cellphones to be aware of the aforementioned differences and their influence on the spread of online word-of-mouth content, as it will assist them in determining which platforms they use when spreading online word-of-mouth regarding cellphones. Xue and Zhou (2011: 46) reveal that it is important to research online word-of-mouth in countries other than the United States of America and other Western countries, as most existing research is based on these countries. The domincance of research in these countries justifies this study. South Africa's variety of cultures presents a unique opportunity to compare online word-of-mouth and gender, online word-of-mouth and age as well as online word-of-mouth and languages.
Based upon the aforementioned discussion, the primary objective of this study is to determine the demographical and patronage differences of consumers regarding the spreading of online word-of- mouth messages about cellphones.
In order to attain the primary objective, the following secondary objectives are formulated: Ÿ To determine the demographic profile of the consumers taking part in this survey.
Ÿ To determine the cellphone patronage and online habits of the consumers taking part in the survey.
Ÿ To investigate how and why online word-of-mouth content is spread among consumers in the cellphone industry.
Ÿ To explore the demographic differences with regard to the spread of online word-of-mouth messages about cellphones.
Ÿ To explore the patronage differences with regard to the spread of communication online through word-of-mouth about cellphones.
The following hypotheses are formulated for this study:
H1 There are significant differences between means with regards to the demographic variables of consumers and their overall level of spreading of word-of-mouth content online regarding cellphones. This hypothesis is further refined as follows:
H1a There are significant differences between means in terms of gender with regards to consumers' overall level of spreading of word-of-mouth online regarding cellphones.
H1b There are significant differences between means in terms of the home language with regards to consumers' overall level of spreading of word-of-mouth online regarding cellphones.
H1c There are significant differences between means in terms of age with regard to consumers' overall level of spreading of word-of-mouth messages online regarding cellphones.
H2 There are significant differences between means with regards to the patronage variables of consumers and their overall level of spreading of word-of-mouth communication online regarding cellphones. The hypothesis is further refined as follows:
INVESTIGATING DEMOGRAPHIC AND PATRONAGE DIFFERENCES WITH REGARD TO THE SPREADING OF ONLINE WORD-OF-MOUTH COMMUNICATION ABOUT CELLPHONES