A Culturally Informed, Resource-Based Theory

Online-based business models, such as shopping platforms, have added new possibilities for consumers over the last two decades. Aside from basic differences to other distribution channels, customer reviews on such platforms have become a powerful tool, which bestows an additional source for gaining transparency to consumers. Related research has, for the most part, been labelled under the term electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM). An approach, providing a theoretical basis for this phenomenon, will be provided here. The approach is mainly based on work in the field of consumer culture theory (CCT) and on the concept of co-creation. The work of several authors in these streams of research is used to construct a culturally informed resource-based theory, as advocated by Arnould & Thompson and Algesheimer & Gurâu.