Title: WORD OF MOUTH COMMUNICATION AS A MEDIATOR FOR INTEREST IN BUYING A SMARTPHONE: DATA FROM PRIVATE STUDENTS IN SURABAYA
Authors:
Feliks A.B.K. Panjaitan, Hotman Panjaitan and Johanes Silalahi
Abstract:
Consumers always want to get good quality products based on technological and cognitive aspects. This study investigates the effect of product quality, price perception, brand image, and word of mouth communication on consumer buying interest. Also, investigate whether word of mouth communication is a good mediator. This study conducted a survey of private university students who use smartphones in the city of Surabaya, Indonesia. Using a purposive sample of 390 respondents aged 15 years and over. Descriptive statistics show that age background is a strong factor affecting buying interest in smartphone products. The data were then analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling. The findings show that product quality and price perception contribute positively to word of mouth communication, while brand image does not. Research also proves that word of mouth does not mediate the relationship between brand image and buying interest. Word of mouth communication mediates the relationship between product quality and price perception on buying interest. This research shows that smartphone product quality, which has attractive features, is durable, and word of mouth communication strengthens consumer buying interest. This study contributes to understanding the consumer behavior of smartphone products by using a buying interest framework that can also be applied to the selection of various other industrial products.
Keywords: Product quality, price perception, brand image, word of mouth, purchase intention.
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