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ABSTRACT For decades, marketers have trumpeted the importance of word of mouth in influencing purchase choice, but have still spent billions on brand advertising—without any proof of the link between the two. Using newly available data, we sought to resolve this contradiction by searching for the “missing link” between positive word of mouth about brands and brand advertising. We also tested the relationship between advertising and measurable behaviors of brand interest—namely, brand searches and website visits. The analysis involved 35 brands over a 26-week period using six sources of data. The results indicate that brands should redouble their efforts in using advertising to grow brand advocacy through the integration of online and offline branded consumer contact points.
Graham et al. (Sat,) studied this question.