Affordances advancing user-created communication (UCC) in service: interactivity, visibility and anonymity

Abstract

PurposeDigital platform users not only consume but also produce communication related to their experiences. Although service research has explored users' motivations to communicate and focused on outcomes such as electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), it remains largely unexplored how users iteratively interact with communication artifacts and potentially create value for themselves, other users and service providers. The purpose of this paper is, thus, to introduce communicative affordances as a framework to advance user-created communication (UCC) in service.Design/methodology/approachDrawing from the literature in communication, service research and interactive marketing, an affordance perspective on UCC in service is introduced.FindingsThree UCC affordances for the service context are presented – interactivity, visibility and anonymity – opportunities and challenges for service providers associated with these affordances are discussed and, finally, affordance-specific research questions and general recommendations for future research are offered.Research limitations/implicationsBy conceptualizing UCC in service from an affordances perspective, this paper moves beyond the traditional sender–receiver communication framework and emphasizes opportunities and challenges for service research and practice.Practical implicationsInstead of focusing separately on specific technologies or user behaviors, it is recommended that service managers adopt a holistic perspective of user goals and motivations, use experiences and platform design.Originality/valueBy conceptualizing UCC as an augmenting, dialogical process concerning users’ experiences, and by introducing communicative affordances as a framework to advance UCC in service, an in-depth understanding of the diverse and ever-evolving landscape of communication in service is offered.

Technologies in service communication: looking forward

“…The article by Ciuchita et al (2022) focuses on the dialogical communication processes initiated by service customers who share their experiences, and which is termed user-created communication (UCC). The value creation for the actors emerges from the dynamic interplay between the actors, and the place and content of communication which is enabled by social media technology affordances.…”

“…The article by Ciuchita et al. (2022) focuses on the dialogical communication processes initiated by service customers who share their experiences, and which is termed user-created communication (UCC).…”

“…Some emerging technologies have the potential to change the information asymmetry and power imbalance between service providers and customers (e.g. see the article by Ciuchita et al. (2022)).…”

“…Some emerging technologies have the potential to change the information asymmetry and power imbalance between service providers and customers (e.g. see the article by Ciuchita et al (2022)). These technologies may also enhance the scope and extent of customers' ability to gain and share information and experiences by transcending the spatial and temporal boundaries of the physical world (e.g.…”

Guest editorial: Opportunities and challenges at the crossroads of communication and services

“…A key feature that distinguishes voice assistants from other AI-enabled technology is their capacity to engage in virtual conversations with customers. The fourth paper in this section (Ciuchita et al , 2022) deals with how the communication enabled, and provided by these assistants influence different phases of the customer journey, contingent on how they communicate, what they communicate, and how they are perceived by different users during the service experience. Drawing on Speech Act theory, the Elaboration Likelihood model, Social Information Processing and Social Impact Theory, the authors develop a conceptual framework and five research lines to investigate how various elements of voice assistant – customer interactions (design, humanness, intelligence, source, message and recipient factors) affect service experiences across the prepurchase, purchase and post–purchase stages of the customer journey and ultimately customers' evaluations of and usage intentions relating to voice assistants.…”