the set of all adopters [10]. For instance, in the case of a word processing package, the benefits
from the increased probability of having knowledgeable users to turn to for help when
encountering problems or the ability to exchange documents easily are network externalities
created when a workgroup or community adopts and uses the same software. Together,
these two dimensions highlight four quadrants—regimes in which the nature of the influence
and the factors underlying the recipient’s decision to comply with the influence
attempt are qualitatively different (see Figure 1). The descriptive labels used for the four
quadrants of the framework are:
Awareness Creation and Benefits Signaling (ACBS). In this quadrant, the role
of the influencer in persuasion is passive and the network externalities are minimal.
Users emailing online greeting cards from Web sites such as Hallmark or BlueMountain
to connected others represent typical instances of ACBS. When a user sends out
a card from the site, the recipients get a personalized email message informing them
of a greeting created by the sender available at the site and providing the URL to
access it. The URL directs visitors to the card on site and once there, he or she is
offered the choice to send a greeting to the original sender or to a connected other.
In this process, recipients are made aware of the service offered by the site and are persuaded
to use it. The role of the influencer is mainly to create awareness and signal
benefits to others within their social network and can be particularly influential in
encouraging trial and adoption of novel products and services. As in the case of Hotmail,
this can be very important in helping to build a large user base in a very short
time.
Targeted Recommendation (TR). This quadrant comprises contexts in which
the influencer plays an active role in spreading the word and the network externalities
are minimal. A user emailing a news story from an online content site to a connected
other is an instance of this quadrant. Most online content sites such as ESPN,
MSNBC, and NYTimes offer the “send this story to a friend” option on their sites
[8]. These features make it possible for the a recommender to send an email message
with the URL of the particular story in it.
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