Do inconsistent online reviews reduce sales for merchants on the platform? Evidence from China

Inconsistent online reviews are the norm in online shopping. However, platform merchants often believe that inconsistent online reviews have a negative impact on sales. They delete or hide negative reviews in pursuit of consistent praise. So, do inconsistent online reviews really reduce sales? In view of this, this study explores the impact of inconsistent online reviews on the sales of platform merchants based on the stimuli-organism-response (S-O-R) theory and service remediation theory, as well as its mechanism and boundary conditions. And using 5,487 crawler data and 447 questionnaire data, employing both ordinary least squares (OLS) model for empirical analysis. Moreover, in order to verify the robustness of the empirical results comprehensively and rigorously, four methods of changing the measurement model, adjusting the sample size, changing the data source and transforming the assignment were used to carry out the robustness test. The results show that the inconsistent online reviews have a significant inverted U-shaped effect on the sales of platform merchants. Brand image plays a significant mediating role in the influence of inconsistent online reviews on consumers' purchase intention. And peer response conflict has a significant moderating effect on the impact of online review inconsistency on consumers' purchase intention. Therefore, platform merchants should take a rational and open attitude towards inconsistent online reviews. In addition, platform merchants can adopt intelligent management methods for online reviews, pay attention to the shaping and strengthening of brand image, and pay attention to peer effect through social marketing, so as to maximize the benefits brought by the inconsistency of online reviews and minimize the potential negative impact of the inconsistency.