<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><xml><records><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Nora Schütze</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Electronic Word-of-Mouth Communication for Local Service Providers</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Technology Innovation Management Review</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">agent-based simulation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">electronic word-of-mouth</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">local service provider</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">threshold model</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2014</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">04/2014</style></date></pub-dates></dates><urls><web-urls><url><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">http://timreview.ca/article/783</style></url></web-urls></urls><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Talent First Network</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ottawa</style></pub-location><volume><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">4</style></volume><pages><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">35-42</style></pages><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Word-of-mouth communication is a valuable means of marketing for small, local service providers. Face-to-face transmission is most prevalent, but electronic word-of-mouth is on the rise. Through the results of an agent-based simulation, this article shows that the penetration of word-of-mouth for a small service provider, who is locally restricted due to the inseparability of production and consumption, could benefit less from a growth in word-of-mouth connections than a larger service provider. Only if the added electronic connections are mainly local, small and larger service providers have similar effects on the penetration of word-of-mouth. The article includes a discussion of how small service providers could react to this threat.</style></abstract><issue><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">4</style></issue><custom1><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Cottbus University of Technology
Nora Schütze is a PhD student at Cottbus University of Technology, Germany. Her current research focuses on e-commerce and the network formation phase of small service providers. In addition to her research, she works as a management consultant to help clients change mindsets and behaviours. She has also studied sociology and political science at the University of Mannheim, Germany.</style></custom1></record></records></xml>