Word-of-Mouth Referrals
Finally, our study data show that the classic word-of-mouth strategy boosts
perceptions of Web credibility. Sites that are “recommended to you by a friend”
are perceived as more credible. This is not surprising; in general, you would
expect your friends to be trustworthy, looking out for your best interest.
The power of word-of-mouth referrals is not new, but it can take on new
forms online. Some Web sites make it easy for you to send an article to a friend.
Other sites, such as the community site Yahoo Groups, ask you to compose a
personal message to a friend when you invite him or her into your virtual
group. These are all referrals, which boost perceptions of site credibility.
The Web offers other types of reputed credibility ...