Influence of consumers' trust beliefs on intentions to transact in the online environment: An e-tail study

With the increased importance of retailing through the Internet, or e-tailing, researchers and practitioners alike have been interested in the role that trust can play in intentions to transact online. However, influences of trust on intentions to provide personal information to complete the transaction, and influences of trust in the product category, and/or in the brand, on intentions to transact, have received little attention. This research fills the gap in the exiting literature by understanding the influence of product category trust, brand trust and vendor trust on intentions to transact online, a combination of intentions to purchase and intentions to provide personal information to complete the transaction. Hypotheses of the influence of the trust variables on intentions to transact were tested using a computer simulated Internet web-site and two products in a 2 (product trust) x 2 (brand trust) x 2 (vendor trust) between-subject factorial design with replication, and a sample of 422 subjects. Findings suggest that channel trust still influences online intentions to transact and that product category trust, particularly for product categories with low past experience, also influences online intentions to transact. Additionally, findings also suggest that brand trust may be as important as vendor trust in influencing online intentions to transact. Findings suggest that Internet vendors will benefit from carrying trusted brands and from increasing consumer trust towards the Internet as a shopping channel.