Paper Title
NEGATIVE E-WOM AS A RESPONSE TO BRAND FAILURES: EVIDENCE FROM AN ONLINE BRAND COMMUNITY

Abstract
This paper aims to understand how consumers spread negative e-WOM as a reaction to brand failures in online brand communities. Data is drawn from an 18-month netnographic study including participant and non-participant observation. The findings reveal that consumers in online brand communities do not only share their positive feelings but also their negative feelings as a response to brand failures. The paper offers some insights for marketing scholars and practitioners. Besides the advantages, online brand communities may also be disadvantageous to a company, as negative messages from unsatisfied consumers could threaten brand image. There are still limited studies examining negative e-WOM in online brand communities. This study extends the previous literature by demonstrating a key driver of negative e-WOM in an online brand community. Keywords� e-WOM, negative e-WOM, word of mouth, negative word of mouth, online brand communities, netnography.