Argument form and spokesperson type: The recommendation strategy of virtual salespersons

A recommendation agent (RA) at a Webstore is believed to replace the functions of communicating and facilitating purchases for which conventional salespersons are responsible in traditional stores. Seeing the RA as a virtual salesperson, this study proposed a model to demonstrate the online persuasion process between RAs and customers. Specifically, by integrating Toulminʹs model of argumentation with the spokesperson strategy from marketing theory, this study developed a model illustrating that Webstore managers may be able to manipulate the argument form and spokesperson type used in RAs’ recommendations to strengthen customers’ online purchase intentions through influencing their perceived argument quality and source credibility. Based on data derived from 270 subjects who participated in a 3 × 3 laboratory experiment, findings supported five out of six hypotheses. This study has broadened the scope of RA studies by utilizing different theoretical foundations other than the trust-assuring issues that were widely discussed in the past. Findings were able to provide crucial practical implications for both scholars and Webstore managers.