The effect of foodie’s reviews on

the behavioral intention of

potential customers
Daniela Martínez González
Customer Experience Management
Msc in Strategic and Digital Marketing
Rennes School of Business
Rennes, France

Abstract

Many studies have shown the positive impact of social media influencer marketing on the
popularity and income of restaurants, however, a non-marketing topic that also has great
effects is the reviews made by foodies on social media. In this research paper, the impact of
foodie reviews on behavioral intention was studied in depth through the review of literature
and scientific research that allowed the analysis of the variables involved in the power of
foodie reviews. The research results show that the format and the channel in which foodies
make their reviews are the reasons why their audience is so sensitive to change or have a
behavioral intention.

Key words: Social media influencer, restaurants, behavioral intention, online reviews,
e-worth of mouth

Introduction

Nowadays, thanks to technology people can easily share their opinion and experience
in any place, likewise, read millions of reviews online as a method of reducing the risk of

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

having a bad experience (Park et al., 2021). Over time, the interaction of people through
reviews has increased and studies have shown that the main reasons are the desire to help
others make better decisions, share their experience or reward a company for a good
experience (Ledesma, 2020). Currently, online reviews are a trusted information channel for
customers to get details about products and services that other customers have purchased,
reflecting real experiences and opinions of buyers (Kuan et al., 2015).
One of the reasons why the interest in providing a post-purchase review increased is
the use of web 2.0, which facilitates participation, collaboration and content creation for end
users (Premordia & Gál, 2021) and offers different ways to provide a review that suit
different types of people, whether it is just a score, a comment or a short survey. As a result,
by having so many diverse opinions at hand, consumers feel more confident and empowered
to make their decision based on online reviews.
From the point of view of the hospitality industry, studies show that the behavioral
intention of customers can vary according to the type of review of products, such as
intangible services and tangible products (Park et al., 2021). Along with the importance of
trust online reviews, for the restaurant industry in particular, trust online reviews is especially
important, as the intangibility and expiration are critical characteristics of the product (Paivio,
1990).
The perceived trust of online restaurant reviews can be shaped by different types of
online reviews, such as image-based, which have been shown to capture the user's attention
much more than text-based reviews (Aydınoğlu & Cian, 2014). Furthermore, social networks
and the growing number of users created a very suitable space to share all types of reviews,
especially about the hospitality industry as it attracts a lot of visitors, giving way to content
creators, however, throughout this research article we will focus on those who call themselves
"foodies" whose work is based on visiting restaurants, trying different dishes on the menu and
giving a image-based review about the food and their experience on social media.

Objectives of the investigation

This research paper aims to determine the effect of foodie’s online reviews on the
behavioral intention of potential customers.
To fulfill the purpose of this study, the following specific objectives are proposed:
● To critically review the literature concerning online reviews and impact on behavioral
intention.
● To identify the effect on potential customers according to the type of review.

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

● To assess how potential customers are influenced by foodies’s reviews.

Background

Online restaurant reviews

Customers are often looking for new restaurants to visit and are motivated to search
social media reviews to make sure the place is what they are looking for in terms of cuisine,
prices and experience (Carranza et al., 2018). About 58% of people read online customer
reviews before visiting a restaurant (Weiche, 2018), that is why e-WOM has become the
source of first-hand information for restaurant diners. Due to the ease of sharing reviews on a
digital channel, they can go viral and have a positive or negative effect on the overall
impression of the restaurant (Gupta & Harris, 2010).
The number of times searched and interactions on social networks of consumers who
visit restaurants are highly related to the quality of the service, food, atmosphere, coexistence
with other customers, perceived value, intention to return, prestige of the restaurant, search
for novelty or trust (Mannan et al., 2019), all very relevant factors that can bring great
benefits to restaurants in terms of having a real and organic image towards the client. Studies
have shown that consumer confidence increases when the restaurant's score is between 4.2
and 4.5, both positive and negative reviews contribute to brand´s trustworthiness, as well as
manipulating reviews and buying or censoring fake reviews decreases it (ReviewTrackers,
2021).

Social media influencers and foodies

The sector of social media influencers is currently becoming quite large and varied
with the passing of time and the emergence of new trends, an example of this is the group of
influencers called "foodies", a person interested in food and beverages who seek varied
experiences that involve them as a hobby, who also shares the experience in detail through
image and text reviews on social media (Reynolds, n.d.). Influencers are characterized by
having an authentic image to their audience, which provides their followers with a sense of
approachability and confidence despite not having a physical interaction (van Eldik et al.,
2019).

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

Theoretical background

e-WOM about restaurants

Currently, the importance of e-WOM has grown considerably due to the fact that
restaurants have noticed that it greatly influences the purchase decision and consumer
behavior, as well as it has become a reliable, impersonal tool and accessible anytime and
anywhere (Haro et al., 2022).
Different aspects are linked to the concept of e-WOM that led it to become popular
and be studied by different sciences, these are the commitment, motivation and adoption of
e-WOM. The commitment refers to the behavior and interaction of the clients through
comments (Brodie et al., 2013), the motivation is the impulse to search and read reviews
before the purchase or to leave a review after the purchase, finally, the adoption is the most
important factor since it is the process in which the customer assimilates the comments read
and incorporates them into his thinking, affecting his purchase decision positively or
negatively (Yan et al., 2016).
The conclusion reached after the investigation is, despite the fact that the motivations
to write a review are not as relevant as the motivations to seek a review, motivations
represent a high adoption of e-WOM (Haro et al., 2022).

Image-based online reviews

When it comes to the hospitality industry and specifically, the restaurant sector,
customers are much more attracted to visual pieces, this because it allows the user to extract
more information using less effort and are considered more helpful than text-based reviews
(Minjeong & Sharron, 2008). Experts claim that image-based reviews improve the trust of
online restaurant reviews because images reduce the risk of consumer sensitivity to the
intangible nature of the restaurant industry (Park et al., 2021). Additionally, studies have
shown that reviews including user-generated photos are perceived by the customer as more
useful (Liu et al., 2022) as well as stimulate brand trust and purchase intention (Park et al.,
2021).

Social media influencers and restaurants

The relationship of these concepts in the literature refers only to influencer marketing,
this is commonly based on the fact that the restaurant invites one or a group of influencers to

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

the restaurant and as an exchange, the influencer shares his experience in detail on his social
media. Prior to this, the restaurant's marketing team must study whether the influencer
reflects the values ​and atmosphere in the restaurant, as well as whether they have an audience
that could become a potential customer. This is a mode of marketing that restaurants are using
because the ROI of influencer marketing is comparable to or better than other channels
(Bailis, 2020).

Literature review

Online reviews and restaurant visit intentions

Over time and with the increased use of online reviews, many studies have shown that
e-WOM has significant effects on restaurant visit intention, however, reviews that are more
emotional than functional have a greater effect on customers with low restaurant
involvement, who are not motivated by the number of reviews or the rating of the restaurant.
It can be concluded that customers use the information to infer expectations of the restaurant.
(Aureliano et al., 2021).
An important aspect that should be highlighted is that the interaction in reviews
increased by 50% in relation to pre-pandemic levels, demonstrating consumers' heightened
sensitivity about places, products or services, and brands (ReviewTrackers, 2021).
On the other hand, S.Hlee et al. (2018) state that customers look for different types of
reviews depending on whether it is a casual restaurant or a fine dining restaurant, the first
group is more influenced by images and visual content than the second, who also look for
text-based reviews. In addition, other studies have shown that although image-based reviews
are more attractive, text-based reviews have a greater effect on purchase impulse. However,
reviews that use images and text can stimulate imagery processing (Minjeong & Sharron,
2008), thus, encouraging purchasing impulse.
Furthermore, knowing that online reviews play a critical role in influencing the
attitudes and behavioral intentions of potential customers in the restaurant industry, it is
possible to state that is a predominantly sensitive public to customer evaluations through
online review due to the inability to detach from immediate feelings, also it is observed that
the judgments of common customers in this industry are more persuasive compared to the
reviews made by food critics (Premordia & Gál, 2021).

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

Social media influencers reviews and audience

Nowadays, due to technology and social networks, the popularity of influencers
grows exponentially, statistics show that the most popular content formats are Instagram
Posts, Instagram Stories, YouTube Videos and Instagram Videos (Bailis, 2020). Although
some influencers achieve more engagement with their audience than others, studies have
shown that a brand's sales can increase through reviews if there is a match between the needs
of the audience and the product (Popy & Bappy, 2022). Moreover, people trust reviews made
by people they find online more than recommendations on websites made by other companies
(Puccinelli et al., 2015).

A concept that has emerged with social media influencers is customer inspiration,
which explains that customers are seeking inspiration to adjust their ideal self and lifestyle to
what they aspire to be (Rauschnabel et al., 2019). The state of inspiration provoked by the
content of social media influencers leads to positive emotional responses, such as a positive
emotional bond between the influencer and the audience, which subsequently results in
imitating the influencer's decisions, for example buying the same products or brands,
purchase the same services or visit the same places (Ki et al., 2022). Studies have shown that
people are relying on reviews from various influencers, whether they are common people or
celebrities because they trust them for their unbiased review with many followers, in
addition, as influencers are dedicated to creating content, the quality of this is much larger,
showing in detail relevant aspects such as the environment, architecture, service, food, among
others, which allows people to obtain information beyond ratings and prices (Dutta et al.,
2022).

Discussion

The findings of this research show that foodie reviews have a high impact on the
behavioral intent of potential customers. Influencer reviews are trusted sources of information
for their followers, plus provide content both for the audience that is more attracted to
images, as well as for those who prefer text-based reviews reach more audience and in a
personalized way, which has a psychological and behavioral effect that the audience cannot
perceive and is driven to visit a restaurant or not.

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The effect of foodie’s reviews on the behavioral intention of potential customers
Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

Likewise, as is high quality content and its level of detail provides more information
than the found on websites, it has a greater psychological impact due to visual stimulation.
Another aspect to highlight in this section is the relationship that exists between the
influencer and his audience, although the interaction and engagement vary depending on the
influencer. The fact that there is a relationship between the influencer and his audience
increases even more the trust and value that the audience gives to the review that already
existed for being an online review of a person.
As a last aspect to highlight, because the influencer shares his review on social media
channels such as Instagram or Facebook, it allows easy access since it is in a frequently
consulted channel, even when the user of the applications is not looking for reviews.

Limitations

One of the main limitations during the research is the little research that exists on the
effect of social media influencer reviews on the audience, this aspect has been linked to social
media influencer marketing.
In addition, the concept of "foodies" emerged recently, so there are no professional
studies on the matter.

Conclusion

Is possible to affirm that foodies’s reviews can be one of the ways of review with
greater impact since it have all the type of content needed by the audience in the most
psychologically and behaviorally stimulating format, they have built a relationship with their
followers that involves trust and a feeling of closeness and their content is posted in the most
used social media channels.
The impact of their reviews on behavioral intention is high, in addition to having a
high reach in terms of volume of people, the implication of the other variables related to the
fact that beyond wanting to share an experience, the objective of the influencer is to create
stimulating content to generate interaction with his audience.
Foodie reviews could be very beneficial or detrimental for restaurants if an influencer
with a large number of followers and high engagement makes a review, which is why social
media influencer marketing is growing in the hospitality industry, specifically restaurants. .
Finally, it is a positive aspect that restaurants are aware of the power of e-WoM as it

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Martínez, D.
Rennes School of Business

motivates them to provide better service to their customers and to innovate in the combined
experience as customers are looking for more than a score and a price range.

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Rennes School of Business

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