Word-of-mouth recommendations have been around for a long time, and savvy companies have used positive customer reviews to add legitimacy to their products for just as long. The only difference now is that companies are using social media as a vehicle to deliver those recommendations.
I am clearly a fan of social media; it enables the average person to share information and create relationships with the general public, but I do not think that recommendations-via-social media is a good next step. While recommendations may be effective when delivered in person, when they are broadcast online some of their trustworthiness is lost.
People can (and do!) say whatever they want over the Internet without any accountability. Because of this lack of consequences, the Web has a reputation for broadcasting bogus information. Consumers would sooner trust an official movie reviewer or someone they know because people say crazy things online. Particularly in the case of the When in Rome movie, viewers may be skeptical that the ad does not feature official reviews because the omission may be indicative of unfavorable reviews.
