It is safe to say that EWOM has a major influence on people including myself. Many companies and brands do their best to market what would seem most appealing and attract an audience but us consumers know that not everything is what it seems. The reviews and opinions of others are usually authentic and give you a real insight as to what to expect. It is also easy to make sense of what seems authentic and fake. When I am interested in a product, or place, I will always look at the reviews for better knowledge and recommendations. The same thing applies for social media platforms and comments. Us humans are curious individuals and value what other people think. That is why negative comments or reviews can make a major impact in decision making. For instance, if I want to go to a restaurant and notice four good reviews but one bad review, I will most likely keep the bad review in mind because there has to be truth to what is being said. An example of this are airbnb reviews and this can greatly affect the host. The moment there is a bad review, your overall rating goes down which means you are no longer a superhost. This can affect the way your rentals are listed which can affect your monthly revenue. As far as celebrity influence, most influencers and celebrities you follow and keep up with mean you look up to them and what they think. So I definitely understand why they would have major influence on consumer decision making. If I notice an influencer promoting something, I usually don't let that influence me on how I feel about it because a lot of influencers are usually trying to gain something for their benefit so theres no way to know if its authentic or not. Now I do think the opinions of my family and friends do matter to some extent. These are people you know and respect so of course their opinion would be greatly valued.
