The origination of online reviews in B2B markets: A qualitative study of the underlying motives of review writers

Although online reviews in business-to-consumer (B2C) markets have reached an advanced state of maturity in theory and practice, the study of reviews in business-to-business (B2B) markets is only just emerging. Such studies are needed to understand review writing in the context of B2B, characterized by the diversity of stakeholders and the complexity of their relationships. In this research, I investigate the motives for writing reviews on B2B online review platforms. In-depth interviews with 26 B2B review writers reveal three types of motives: (1) those that are similar to the prevailing motives from B2C, (2) those that differ from B2C but share some similarities, and (3) those that are new to the online review literature. In the latter category, I find motives such as the desire to offer “Feedback to the Supplier,” an “Appreciation of the Relationship with the Supplier,” and, more broadly, the desire to “Contribute to a B2B Review Community”. The study contributes to marketing theory by demonstrating that motives for writing online reviews in the B2B context differ from those in the B2C context while sharing some similarities. It contributes valuable practical insights to the two main stakeholder groups, i.e., suppliers and review platform providers. By better understanding the motives behind B2B online reviews, both stakeholder groups can improve their processes and offerings and, specifically, elicit reviews in a more targeted and effective manner.