HOW COLLECTIVE REVIEW USEFULNESS INTENSIFIES BRAND AVOIDANCE FOLLOWING NEGATIVE NEWS

In the digital age, the overall impact of group comments is crucial to brand image. This study aims to examine the utility of collective comments on social media and how they influence brand avoidance through perceived betrayal. This study employed a situational experimental approach, recruiting volunteers from the Credamo platform and conducting anonymous experimental operations. The sample consists of two experimental samples with N=170 and one experimental sample with N=295. SPSS 25.0 software was adopted as the research tool. The data were analysed using analysis of variance and Hayes' SPSS process macro assessment. The results show that the perceived usefulness of high collective reviews increases brand avoidance by influencing perceived betrayal. The degree of association between consumers and brands plays a moderating role. These findings indicate how Internet users' comments transform fragmented brand crisis information into coherent narratives, thereby intensifying consumers' sense of betrayal, especially among those with a high association with the brand, whose perception of it is even stronger, ultimately leading them to avoid the brand. These findings suggest that in the digital environment, brands should promptly correct their mistakes and regain consumers' trust through counter-narratives.