High Involvement and Low Involvement in Searching for Product Information Essay Example

and her positive past experience with purchases from the website. Grace prioritized features, pricing, and convenience in her decision-making process.

The consumer discovered that buying a toaster involves more than just price, as her individual requirements are key in the decision-making process. The internet is vital for accessing extensive information to make informed choices when presented with many options. Online data is often more comprehensive and concise, empowering consumers with greater control and knowledge during their search. Some websites offer side-by-side comparisons which save time and money by aiding analysis. Without the internet, shoppers would need to visit multiple stores in person to gather enough information before making a purchase.

The internet enhances efficiency by providing a multitude of information, enabling consumers to identify essential evaluative criteria and accelerate their decision-making process (Neal, Quester & Hawkins, 2004). Retailers acknowledge the significance of the internet and furnish precise information about their products or services on their websites. This ensures that consumers do not encounter inaccurate data. Furthermore, review websites allow consumers to view other customers' evaluations of specific products or services, aiding them in making decisions when they are indecisive.

Despite the availability of reviews, consumers should approach them with caution, as different individuals may have varying opinions. Grace, for instance, utilized Epinions to browse for information categorized for ease of searching. This transformed a low-involvement shopping experience into a high-engagement one without much exertion. If not for the internet, she would have only dedicated five minutes to compare three brands from different stores and purchase the cheapest option, as noted in the case study. If Grace were to do a physical visit to the shops and scrutinize the

toasters, she would probably spend days only on information gathering, let alone analysis of the information to make a decision.

Grace has benefited from the internet's ability to improve efficiency and save time and money by allowing her to easily identify her needs and find information online. The improved quality of trustworthy sources available on the internet allows consumers to make informed purchasing decisions, regardless if they are low- or high-involvement consumers, using laptops or mobile phones for easy search capabilities.

While investigating different websites with online consumer reviews, it was observed that the majority of customers tend to offer neutral ratings for products. This indicates that on a rating scale from 1 to 5, the average rating typically falls within a range of 2.5 and 3. However, these assessments often lack crucial details to aid readers in making informed decisions based on consumer feedback. For more information, please see Appendix 1.

Many reviews written by online users on forums tend to be imprecise and rely on subjective language. One instance is the Sally Hansen product reviewed on makeupalley.com, where multiple users only contributed brief, subjective statements.

(See appendix 1.2) The precision of feedback may be affected by reviewers who take part in the review procedure without any genuine intention, even if they have not utilized the product. Also, a single website can display significantly different ratings for the same product, with one reviewer rating it low at 1 out of 5 and another giving it a high rating of 5 out of 5. This creates difficulty for other users to assess the trustworthiness of ratings. Download.com offers an instance.

As per Appendix 1, the ICQ app received a rating

of 4/5 from one user, while all remaining users gave it either 1/5 or 2/5. Furthermore, some reviewers may exhibit bias by only providing positive reviews for their preferred brand. Hence, personal opinions might not be representative of all users.

According to Independent Newspapers UK Limited (2007, p.1), the review's trustworthiness decreased because people tend to write about products they dislike more than those they like. Moreover, online reviewers can exhibit bias by only including what they consider good or bad, leaving out important information.

It is believed that online reviews cannot be relied upon due to the motivation of reviewers seeking sizeable readership and response. As evidence, a reviewer on Epinions website claimed to have written a review three years ago that had been read by over 8000 people, and thus decided to adjust it. This phenomenon is more likely to happen when users encounter interesting topics or products they are familiar with, prompting them to share their opinions through comments.

Online forums provide a platform for reviewers with shared interests and experiences to communicate. This creates a sense of community and motivates members to contribute reviews. However, dissatisfied users may use these forums to express negative thoughts and feelings, resulting in a biased representation of the product or service being reviewed.

When individuals remain anonymous, they can freely communicate without hindrances. However, this could cause them to disregard the positive aspects of a product and solely concentrate on its drawbacks. To guarantee the credibility of an online source, users have several evaluation methods at their disposal, such as determining if a review was compensated for (eHow).

When reading reviews that may have been sponsored or funded by a

particular organization, consumers should be mindful of potential bias. To make sure they purchase products that are suitable for their personal requirements, customers can eliminate sarcastic remarks and concentrate on reviews that analyze the product's attributes and abilities. It is also crucial to consult various review sources to authenticate the information provided. Epinions offers a rating mechanism for reviews, providing more precise assessments of reliability and precision.

Although online consumer reviews are often not very trustworthy, they offer important external perspectives on products that cannot be found on the manufacturer's website. Consequently, the internet has become a crucial resource for consumers who need information to make informed purchasing decisions. Many organizations now include additional details to improve the quality of their information, which allows consumers to gather sufficient data and buy with confidence online. In conclusion, the internet can influence low involvement consumer behavior and turn it into high involvement.