SERVICES MANAGEMENT


Te Platform Matters: Selection and Measurement Bias in


CHRISTOPHER K. ANDERSON PROFESSOR


Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration


Cornell SC Johnson College of Business Cornell University


Online Reviews Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 67, 1, March 2025 LINK TO PAPER LINK TO VIDEO


Co-authors • Christopher K. Anderson


Professor, Cornell Peter and Stephanie Nolan School


of Hotel Administration, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University • Saram Han, Seoul National University of Science and Technology


Summary Encouraging customers to post reviews after completing a survey has become a


common practice in the service industry. Tis process typically starts with a post- purchase evaluation, where customers are asked by the firm to provide feedback on their recent experience. Initially, this engagement is private, taking the form of a customer satisfaction survey (CSS). To extend this feedback to the public domain, many firms now facilitate the posting of customer reviews on public platforms such as Google Travel or TripAdvisor. Te authors’ findings indicate that platform heterogeneity significantly impacts both the likelihood of posting a review and the ratings provided, leading to biases.


Review nonresponse bias occurs when not all survey respondents post reviews, creating a selection bias. Measurement bias arises when posted ratings differ from survey responses. Tis reveals that Google Travel users with negative experiences are less likely to post reviews, but those who do post tend to give lower ratings compared to their survey responses. Conversely, TripAdvisor users show less review nonresponse bias, but their posted ratings are more positive when survey responses are negative. Understanding platform-specific biases can help managers adjust opinion weights to ensure reliability. Academically, this research advances the literature by distinguishing review nonresponse bias from measurement bias and encourages further comparative studies across platforms.


CONTENTS TO MAIN


| RESEARCH WITH IMPACT: CORNELL SC JOHNSON COLLEGE OF BUSINESS • 2025 EDITION


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