| Abstract | A growing trend in relationship marketing concerns personalized and tailored content for consumers. Academic and industry research has recently focused on the importance of delivering customized content to consumers through their social networks. Today’s consumers demand more customization and personalization because it allows consumers to feel “recognized and cared for by a brand” (Buryan, 2018, para. 13). Another trend in consumer behavior is the use of social networking sites (SNS) to post negative comments about brands. These messages are defined as electronic negative-word-of-mouth (e-NWOM) and they have the potential to harm a brand’s reputation. This experimental study considers the effect of customization in the context of brand responses to e-NWOM, as compared to the effect of apologies— two possible response strategies. These strategies are studied to determine their effects on brand attitudes and purchase intentions. |
