Master’s Thesis Business BA B&ICT
The Appeal of an e-Commerce Website: Effects of
Various Design Aspects on Appeal in Online Shopping
Adam Kania (S1799320)
Supervisor C.W. Tan
The Appeal of an e-Commerce Website: Effects of Various Design Aspects on Appeal in Online Shopping
ABSTRACT
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The Appeal of an e-Commerce Website: Effects of Various Design Aspects on Appeal in Online Shopping
When considering online shopping the first image that comes to mind is probably that of the website of an online store. In a business-to-consumer (B2C) electronic commerce (e-commerce) setting, the website fulfills all the functions which in traditional, physical in-store shopping, are divided between displays, helpful store clerks, product samples and the general environment created in the store (Jiang and Benbasat, 2004). The website is the sole instrument for the vendors to convey their information and manage their relationship with (potential) customers (Jiang and Benbasat, 2004) and as such its appeal should be considered of critical importance (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). Strangely enough, in research there is only a limited mention of the notion of appeal in e-commerce, while studies on it seem to be non-existent. This study investigates the notion of appeal as applied to e-commerce and aims to fill the gap between the appeal and the research done on e-commerce website design.
BACKGROUND: ADVERTISING APPEAL
2 Utilitarian appeal
Using utilitarian appeal in advertising means that the consumers are informed of the benefits that are considered to be either “highly functional” or “important” to the target consumers (Johar & Sirgy, 1991). While it is done in a creative manner (since a simple list of functional features is not likely to draw attention), the use of utilitarian appeal is simply focussed around the highlighting of functional features of the product or brand which is being advertised (Johar & Sirgy, 1991). The “rational arguments” or claims of a certain quality (Chang, 2004; Johar & Sirgy, 1991) are used to convince customers of the value of the product for them.
The use of utilitarian appeal is often seen in advertisements for cleaning products such as laundry detergents. In the televised commercials for these products you will often see a demonstration of their usage (e.g. the removal of a tough stain) or a listing of their benefits (e.g. tough on the stains while easy on the fabrics).
Value expressive appeal
The use of value expressive appeal means that a personality is built for the product (or brand) which is being sold or that an image is created for the user of the product (Jorhar & Sirgy, 1991). This shows the difference between the utilitarian and value expressive appeal approaches. While the former is informative on the product or service itself, the latter attaches a non-tangible value to the product or brand which the advertisement is trying to sell. A famous example of value expressive advertising appeal is the “Marlboro Man”; the image of a rugged cowboy used in cigarette advertising to attach a more masculine image to filter cigarettes which previously were being sold as a feminine product under the slogan “Mild as May” (Hemdev, 2005). This advertisement created a personality for the users of the Marlboro brand; “the aspirational American who is tough, hard-working, attractive and leads a rugged and adventurous lifestyle” (Hemdev, 2005).
Applicability in, and contribution to, the field of e-Commerce
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conveyed in all of marketing through various means. When considering e-Commerce for instance, webshops have always conveyed messages about the benefits of online shopping which (in congruence with signaling theory) can be seen as signaling a quality to a potential customer (Conelly et al., 2011). This happens congruent with the earlier definition of appeal in order to “develop a direct link between the product or service and the consumer’s needs or wants” (Yeshin, 1998) to ultimately increase the likelihood of purchase.
In this research I want to apply the notion of appeal to e-commerce websites. The interaction customers have in their online shopping, happens only through the websites of on-line companies. This means that it is of critical importance for these websites to appeal to customers (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). Website appeal has been described as having both a utilitarian and an affective measure (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005), and utilitarian and hedonic (which like value expressive appeal are “subjective” and “experiential” (Hartman and Samra, 2008)) aspects of websites have been used in the e-Commerce research domain based on its background in consumption studies (Sénécal et al. 2002). To my knowledge the notion of appeal however, has not yet been applied extensively in e-Commerce research. This might be based on the fact that it is rooted in the field of advertising which in general is led by practice (Camm, 2005).
In applying appeal to e-Commerce research however, potential benefits can be seen. While, as mentioned, the division into utilitarian and hedonic website aspects has been researched (Sénécal et al. 2002) these are still at a fairly abstract level in answering the “why” question as they do not link usable design prescriptions (e.g. “add an image”) to a sale driven goal (e.g. “to increase likelihood of sale because of utilitarian appeal”). The studies on the utilitarian aspects often research the usefulness (Cenfetelli et al., 2008) of an e-Commerce website to its customers while the research on the hedonic aspects focusses on the enjoyment of the shopping experience in general (Childers et al., 2001), ultimately focussing on the influence of these aspects on the (potential) success of the e-Commerce website. Applying the notion of appeal to the research field could provide additional insight into why exactly certain aspects contribute to success beyond just providing for an increase in enjoyment or usefulness.
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Because of their background in advertising the notions of utilitarian and value-expressive appeal seem to be more explanatory in nature then just the intermediate notions currently used in this field of research, which are often rooted in information system research such as the technology acceptance model (TAM) (Childers et al., 2001).
In order to further explain the notion of appeal in this research, signaling theory can be referenced. Signaling theory deals with three basic principles; a signaler, a signal and a receiver (Conelly et al., 2011). A signaler can be described as an “insider” who has information about the underlying qualities of a person, a product or an organization which “outsiders” do not have access to (Conelly et al., 2011). It is essential in signaling theory that the signaler is someone who has a privileged position with respect to the receiver when it comes to information on certain aspects of the person, product or firm (Conelly et al., 2011). A signaler can for example be the executive or the manager of a firm (Conelly et al., 2011).
While the receiver is not in the privileged position and thus does not have information on the item, they are a party who would like to receive that information (Conelly et al., 2011). Signaling should only take place if the signaler will benefit from an action by the receiver which the receiver would not have taken if they would have not received the signal (Conelly et al., 2011). Another characteristic of their relationship is that signalers and receivers have interests which are partially conflicting: if the signaler would manage to deceive the receiver they would benefit at their expense (Conelly et al., 2011).
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they could consider that producing a false signal would be best. If this would happen in more instances the stamp would lose its meaning, as more and more false signals would spread (Conelly et al., 2011). This means that the cost of signal must be set up so that spreading a false signal would not be beneficial (Conelly et al., 2011).
As previously stated, appeal is the message conveying device used in advertisement (Camm, 2005). Based on the above, the reasoning is that appeal is the signal (send out through the e-commerce website) which conveys a certain message about qualities of the object at hand which the signaler (the party behind the website) wants to communicate to the receiver in order to get them to engage in e-commerce. As explaind in signaling theory, the party behind the website only sends out signals because they will benefit if the party receiving them will buy a product (Conelly et al., 2011).
In this sense, appeal as an advertising based notion adds another dimension to research on an e-commerce website; the degree to which it can persuade its users to make a purchase. Indeed, the ultimate purpose of this particular type of website is not to create usefulness or enjoyment for its customers but to persuade them to make a purchase. The same purpose an advertisement has and indeed the reason to send out a signal.
THE RESEARCH MODEL AND HYPOTHESES
The proposed research model is shown in figure 1. This model displays the dependent variable (“likelihood of purchase”) which is examined as being influenced by the appeal constructs of website appeal and product appeal. The two appeal constructs are being influenced by the utilitarian and value-expressive appeal for both. Each of these is considered to be influenced by intermediate variables which are themselves under the influence of the design variables which form the top layer of the research model, since the design of the website is ultimately the control tool which vendors can use to achieve influence on the lower levels. Both the intermediate as well as the design constructs are based on a review of extant literature, the results of which can be found in appendix A.
6 Likelihood of Purchase Website Appeal Product Appeal Utilitarian Website Appeal Value-expressive Website Appeal Speed Flow Navigability Social Presence Trust Usefulness Ease of use Privacy Statements / Guarantees Third Party Seals Recovery Inclusion of Ratings/Reviews Communication Reciprocity Requirements Elicitation Functionalities Acquisition Functionalities Ownership Functionalities Retirement Functionalities Enjoyment Animation Games Music Decision Support Communication Reciprocity Community features Avatars Human images Inclusion of Ratings/Reviews Virtual Domain interface Active Control Justifiability Diagnosticity Textual Specifications Visual Representations Value-expressive Product Appeal Utilitarian Product Appeal Functional control Visual control Content of Ratings / Reviews
7 Likelihood of Purchase
Considering the notion of appeal comes from advertising it seems fitting to choose an ultimate construct which is influenced by it which also stems from this domain. Many different constructs can be used to measure the effect advertising has, examples of such are: awareness; brand choice; viewing time; brand perceptions; and the likelihood of, and intention to, purchase (Chang et al., 2010). Purchase likelihood seems to be the most fitting construct for this research as it is a vital goal for any advertising construct and e-commerce website alike: ultimately all efforts must be made to increase the likelihood of a customer purchasing items. While purchase likelihood has been previously used in an online shopping setting (Huang et al., 2009), the term is self-explanatory and therefore, to my knowledge, a definition in an e-commerce setting has not previously been provided.
The definition as used in this research will be as follows:
Likelihood of purchase is the extent to which a consumer, who has experienced the e-services on an e-commerce website, is willing to make purchases from the website.
Set out below are the various levels of constructs which are considered as having an influence on the likelihood of purchase.
1. Website Appeal
In order to apply appeal to e-commerce I have chosen to split it up into website appeal and product appeal. This division will make it possible to research whether website features contribute to the appeal of a single product being sold on the website (like an advertisement selling a single item would) or that they contribute to the overall appeal of the website. The latter could be referred to as sales channel appeal which can be seen applied to e.g. a store. Stores do not only have functional attributes (such as their location and pricing) but also try to appeal to their customers through various psychological attributes such as a fancy interior or the way their personell is dressed (Rich and Portis, 1964). While these attributes are less clearly direct in their impact they are deciding factors in drawing in customers (Rich and Portis, 1964).
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Website appeal is the extent to which an e-commerce website presents itself as an enticing option for online shopping. (Yeshin, 1998)
As stated in this definition, the goal of the approach is to “develop a direct link between the product or service offered by the website and the consumer’s needs or wants” (Yeshin, 1998).
As explained by signaling theory (Conelly et al., 2011) appeal in the case of my research is aimed at conveying a certain quality of the website (in the case of website appeal) or the product being sold on it (in the case of product appeal). The ultimate goal of doing so is to entice the receiver of the signal to make a purchase. Influencing the perceived quality of the website has proven to positively influence the intentions of both initial and continued purchase (Kuan et al., 2008) which solidifies the use of website appeal as a construct in this context.
This leads to the formation of the first hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 1. Increased website appeal of an e-commerce website enhances the likelihood of purchase.
The following constructs are considered to have an influence on website appeal.
1.1 Utilitarian Website Appeal
As explained above, utilitarian appeal and value-expressive appeal are the two most common types of appeal and as such are applicable in this study. The split up between website and product appeal as described above has led to the application of utilitarian and value-expressive in four different constructs: utilitarian website appeal; value-value-expressive website appeal; utilitarian product appeal; and value-expressive product appeal.
Based on the definition of appeal as provided by Yeshin (1998) and the research of Jorhar and Sirgy (1991), the following definition of utilitarian website appeal has been formulated below in a manner which makes it measurable and best applicable to an e-commerce study:
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As previously stated e-Commerce websites have both utilitarian as well as hedonic aspects to them, and both categories contribute to the positive attitude a website’s user has towards it (Childers et al., 2001; Lopez & Ruiz, 2010). Translated to this research an increase in both the practical as well as affective appeal variations can be considered to enhance the overall appeal to the consumer. This leads to the following hypothesis for utilitarian website appeal:
HYPOTHESIS 2. Increased utilitarian website appeal of an e-commerce website enhances the overall website appeal.
Below, the various constructs which are considered to influence utilitarian website appeal and their formative indicators, are set out.
1.1.1 Trust
Trust is the first formative factor for utilitarian website appeal proposed in the research model as it has been found to be one of the three commonly cited determinants of online customer's feelings towards making online purchases (Hassanein and Head, 2005). Hassanein and Head (2005) state that trust in the context of e-commerce is believed to reduce the “complexity and vulnerability a consumer feels while engaging in e-commerce by allowing the consumer to subjectively rule out undesirable yet possible behaviours of the e-vendor” and that customer’s trust in the website of a company positively influences their attitude toward the company as well as their willingness to buy.
In general, trust can be defined as a psychological state in which one party has the intention to accept vulnerability based on the expectation or the confidence that they can rely on the other party (Bart et al., 2005).
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Bart et al. (2005) argue that when it comes to commerce, online (or website) trust is different from offline trust. Offline, the customer deals with the store while online the customer deals with the website which in the latter case needs to be used to build trust done by perceptions on the website (Bart et al., 2005). Referring back to the description of trust previously given, a customer must give up vulnerability based on positive impressions they get from the website (Bart et al, 2005). Based hereon, it is argued that “online trust includes consumer perceptions of how the site would deliver on expectations, how believable the site’s information is, and how much confidence the site commands”.
Considering the above, the definition of trust as used in this research can be stated as being the
“psychological state in which a website user has the intention to accept vulnerability based on the expectation or the confidence that they can rely on the website based on perceptions of how the website would deliver on expectations, how believable the site’s information is, and how much confidence the site commands”. (Bart et al., 2005)
According to Bart et al. (2005), “many antecedents may drive these perceptions”. The trust inducing website features which I have chosen are based on the literature review I have conducted and are privacy statements / guarantees, third party seals, and recovery. Table 1 shows which studies have linked these dimensions to the trustworthiness of e-commerce websites.
Table 1: Dimensions linked to trust
Author(s)/Year Dimension linked to trust
Belanger et al., 2002 Pennington et al., 2003 Schlosser et al., 2006
Privacy statements / Guarantees
Bart et al., 2005 Pennington et al., 2003
Third Party Seals
Collier and Bienstock, 2006 Recovery
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HYPOTHESIS 3. Increased trust in an e-commerce website enhances the utilitarian website appeal.
1.1.1.1 Privacy Statements / Guarantees
In this research the privacy statements which an e-vendor puts on his website are defined as following based on the work of Belanger et al. (2002) and Pennington et al. (2003).
“Privacy statements and/or guarantees describe the privacy and security policies of the e-vendor and are the consumer’s primary source for privacy and security information on the e-commerce website (Belanger et al., 2002; Pennington et al., 2003).
An example of information concerning the privacy policy can be seen with the Dutch branch of e-vendor bol.com (http://www.bol.com/nl/m/voorwaarden/privacy-policy/index.html, 09/07/2012). Such statements are believed to show a consumer that the e-vendor has a positive orientation towards him (beyond just focussing on profit) and that he follows moral principles or professional standards in their interaction (Schlosser et al., 2006). Such statements are believed to affect consumer's beliefs regarding the benevolence and integrity of the party they are dealing with (Schlosser et al., 2006). This forms the basis for the following hypothesis.
HYPOTHESIS 4. The inclusion of privacy statements / guarentees on an e-commerce website enhances the consumer's trust in it.
1.1.1.2 Third Party Seals
Various independent parties such as e.g. Better Business Bureau, VeriSign and TRUSTe (Bart et al., 2005) provide seals for approval which e-vendors can place on their website after being evaluated by them and getting their approval. Customers can trust the seals as often they “are designed to provide membership into privileged programs that monitor complaints and reassure the customer that security has been established” (Pennington et al., 2003).
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Third party seals refer to seals of approval which are placed on a vendor's website based on the approval they receive from a third party which can be trusted by the consumer. (Pennington et al., 2003)
They are intended to make a consumer feel more comfortable with conducting online transactions with the e-vendor (Pennington et al., 2003) and assure safety of the computer and personal and financial information (Bart et al., 2005). Considering the intention of using third party seals on a website the following hypothesis has been set up:
HYPOTHESIS 5. The inclusion of third party seals on an e-commerce website enhances the consumer's trust in it.
1.1.1.3 Recovery
Recovery is based on the notion of service recovery. Overall, service recovery is a topic on which understanding is somewhat limited although there has been attention given to it in literature (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). Service recovery is how an organization deals with service failure (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). The latter being defined as involving “activities that occur as a result of customer perceptions of initial service delivery behaviors falling below the customer’s expectations or “zone of tolerance”” (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). These activities can cost the organization significant amounts of money as they are seen as a vital component in customers switching and can lead to negative word of mouth (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). When failures occur, customers expect the organization responsible to provide effective recoveries (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). In this context service recovery has been defined as emcompassing the activities which companies engage in to address complaints from customers about perceived service failure (Holloway and Beatty, 2003). As such, it is seen as being an important opportunity for companies to make sure their customers are satisfied and will stick with them in the future (Holloway and Beatty, 2003).
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dimension for the measurement of e-service quality. It is composed of three first-order dimensions being “interactive fairness, procedural fairness, and outcome fairness” (Collier and Bienstock, 2006).
Interactive fairness is stated as being “one of the most high-profile areas that can make a customer satisfied or dissatisfied during the transaction process” and is defined as being “the customer’s ability to locate and interact with technology support on a Web site and how a company’s employees treat the customer.” Collier and Bienstock (2006) argue that this includes the availability and ease of access to: e-mail addresses; telephone numbers; online tutorials; and frequently asked questions, and the way the interaction between the company and the customer takes place (tone of communication, etc.).
Procedural fairness refers to the “policies, procedures, and responsiveness” during the process of the customers complaint being handled (Collier and Bienstock, 2006), which in an online setting refers to “a company’s return policy, the buyer’s rights in the case of fraudulent charges, and how quick a problem can be resolved” (Collier and Bienstock, 2006).
Outcome fairness is the last of the three first-order dimensions which make up service recovery (Collier and Bienstock, 2006). It is based on the notion that within service recovery a customer needs a fair compensation for the inconvenience they have had to suffer (Collier and Bienstock, 2006). “Fair” in this context means that the customer should be met in his expectations when it comes to the compensation (Collier and Bienstock, 2006). Collier and Bienstock (2006) give examples of outcome fairness as being “monetary compensation, future free services, or an apology.” They state that “in an online context” it could be “resending a product that failed to reach the customer” (Collier and Bienstock, 2006).
Considering the previously stated definition by Holloway and Beatty (2003) and the application of Collier and Bienstock the following definition of recovery will be used in this research:
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Service recovery is an interesting construct for this research as prior research has shown a direct relationship with trust (Collier and Bienstock, 2006). As such it leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 6. The inclusion of recovery features on an e-commerce website enhances the consumer's trust in it.
1.1.2 Usefulness
Usefulness as applied here is based on the notion of perceived usefulness which is one of the two main beliefs of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which has long been used as a model to understand the development of people’s attitudes towards technology and their decision to adopt it (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). The definition of perceived usefulness as provided by Davis (1989) is set out below and will be used in this research.
Perceived usefulness refers to the notion that someone will use a certain system, based on the belief that it will (to a certain extent) help them in better performing their job (Davis, 1989).
If the user believes that there is a positive relationship between the using of the system and their performance, the system is considered to be high in perceived usefulness (Davis, 1989). Theoretically the notion of perceived usefulness is based on diverse lines of research which have shown in corporate life that even if a system is implemented properly, it is not likely to be received favourably in an organization if it does not help the employees in performing their jobs (Davis, 1989). Even in later research on the constructs of the TAM, perceived usefulness has always proven to be a fundamental driver for the intentions which users have towards the usage of a system (Venkatesh and Davis, 2000).
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intermediate variable for ratings / reviews; communication reciprocity; and requirements elicitation, acquisition , ownership and retirement functionalities. Also it has led to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 7. Increased usefulness in an e-commerce website enhances the utilitarian website appeal.
1.1.2.1 Ratings / Reviews
During literature research I have found that ratings and reviews as provided by customers have an influence on an e-commerce website in two ways: as the overall option to be able to provide ratings or reviews (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006); and the actual content of the reviews (Chevalier and Mayzlin 2006, Zhu and Zhag, 2006). Considering that the former option focusses on the entire website (while the latter is more focused on individual products) this is a natural fit as a construct on the website appeal side of the research model. The definition of the construct discussed here will refer to a website's support for the provision of customer reviews or ratings on the website itself or the products it offers.
An example of an e-vendor who places their user’s ratings and reviews prominently on their website is amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com, 09/07/2012). For each item which is viewed the ratings and reviews provided by other customers can be viewed.
Reviews provided by e-commerce website users have replaced and complement other on- and offline forms of information such as word-of-mouth (Chevalier and Mayzlin, 2006). As such it becomes interesting to investigate whether or not this content can lead to an increase in sales.
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construct does lead to a higher website appeal on both the utilitarian as well as the value-expressive side.
The usefulness of the website is enhanced as reviews are considered to be useful sources of information for the products which they are considering to purchase (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006). Additionally “consumers prefer recommendations from the website and their peers over other available effort-reducing cues in decision making” (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006). This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 8. The inclusion of support for the provision of customer reviews or ratings on an e-commerce website enhances its usefulness.
1.1.2.2 Communication Reciprocity
The inclusion of communication reciprocity in this research is based on the work of Jiang et al. (2010) who (referring to it as reciprocal communication) use it as a construct on e-commerce. It is one of the two constructs they use to define interactivity in this setting (active control being the other) (Jiang et al, 2010). The justification for doing so is based on prior research which has recognized it as a facet of interactivity (while sometimes under other terms such as two-way communication) (Jiang et al., 2010). Also, the authors state that there are more practical reasons as one of the “most common issues faced by commercial websites” is the lack of customer communication (Jiang et al, 2010).
In their research Jiang et al. (2010) state that “in a social interaction context, reciprocal communication occurs when consumers make use of the website to engage in social communication with sales representatives” and that “reciprocal communication manifests on websites as communication tools” such as e-mail and live chat. Based hereon communication reciprocity as used in this research refers to:
The degree to which costumers are able to communicate with sales representatives on the e-commerce website (Jiang et al., 2010).
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email or live chat the perceived communication reciprocity will rise in the consumer’s opinion. As it is an item which influences the entire website rather than highlighting a product, it clearly can be considered to influence the website appeal, however, it seems to be applicable to both sides of the website appeal spectrum.
An increase of the perceived communication reciprocity can be considered to raise the consumer’s believe of the website being useful to them as there is the possibility to communicate with website representatives to make sure the product with the exact specifications necessary can be acquired. Because of this the utilitarian website appeal can be raised through the mediating construct of usefulness. This leads to the following hypothesis being formed:
HYPOTHESIS 9. The inclusion of communication reciprocity features on an e-commerce website enhances its usefulness.
1.1.2.3 Customer Service Life Cycle
The other independent variables which are considered here to fall under usefulness (requirements elicitation , acquisition , ownership, and retirement functionalities) are all based on the customer service life cycle (CSLC). The CSLC was first introduced by Ives and Learmonth in 1984 as a framework used by companies to apply IT throughout the life cycle which a customer follows in dealing with the product or service being provided (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). This cycle starts with the requirements the customer develops for a product or service followed by the acquisition hereof, the ownership, and ultimately, the retirement (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
Helping a customer to manage this lifecycle can lead a supplier to achieve a competitive advantage through differentiating itself from its competitors by enhancing customer service or providing cost savings (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
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1.1.2.4 Requirements Elicitation Functionalities
Requirements elicitation functionalities in an e-commerce website are defined as being considered to be those functionalities which help the customer to establish their requirements and specify them (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). The former being those functionalities which help the customer in understanding what the offered product or service does, and “how it can meet their particular need” (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). While the latter help to determine the specific features of the offered product or service that are appropriate in meeting the needs of the particular customer (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
OlieHandel.nl is a Dutch e-commerce website which focuses on selling motor oils for different purposes. They offer an example of a requirements elicitation functionality in offering to provide customised advise on which oil to use for your specific vehicle by entering its registration plate number (http://oliehandel.nl/productadvies, 09/07/2012). Once you have done so the website shows a table with information on which type of oil you should buy.
Considering the description provided above, requirements elicitation functionalities can be considered to influence a customer’s view on the usefulness of a website. If such functionalities are present on a website they will lead to the customer performing better or more effeciently in the areas of establishing and specifying the requirements in acquiring products (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002) and thus make the website more useful. This line of reasoning leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 10. The inclusion of requirements elicitation functionalities on an e-commerce website enhances its perceived usefulness.
1.1.2.5 Acquisition Functionalities
Acquisition functionalities are defined as referring to those functionalities in an e-commerce website which assist the customer in the sourcing, ordering, paying, obtaining and installing of the product or service being sold (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
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the products on your mobile device; lookup where the nearest selling point is; or buy a gift card which can be used to order the products at a later time (http://www.apple.com/, 09/07/2012).
Having such functionalities presented in an optimal manner can be considered to lead to a more useful website from the customer’s perspective since they are utilitarian in nature and most of them (such as ordering and paying) are “neccesary evils” which can turn into a tedious part of the process if not presented in the most convenient way possible. If, for example, a customer does not own a creditcard and no other paying options are presented the website becomes notably less useful for them. Consdering this, the following hypothesis is formed:
HYPOTHESIS 11. The inclusion of acquisition functionalities on an e-commerce website enhances its perceived usefulness.
1.1.2.6 Ownership Functionalities
Ownership functionalities are defined as being those which help the customer in training for and maintaining the product or service (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
The training aspect refers to the processes which help the customer become more capable of using the resources of the product to their full extent (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). The maintaining aspect on the other hand focuses on the website features which help the customer to prevent and repair problems and perform maintenance. Also, features which inform customers on how they can better use their product and when the time has come to upgrade, can be classified under the maintenance aspect of ownership functionalities (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
Examples of ownership functionalities are videos which show how a vacuum cleaner can be best used for different chores and what can be done when it becomes obstructed.
A clear example of the offering of ownership functionalities in an e-commerce setting can be seen with computer manufacturer Dell (http://support.dell.com/, 09/07/2012). They provide a seperate support site were users can diagnose the problems they have with their Dell equipment and can gather information on how to solve these problems.
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using it, and thus it can be considered to increase the usefulness of the website which sells them the product or service. This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 12. The inclusion of ownership functionalities on an e-commerce website enhances its perceived usefulness.
1.1.2.6 Retirement Functionalities
Retirement functionalities are the last of the usefulness features and are those aspects of an e-commerce website which focus on the last part of the CSLC; the retirement phase. They are defined as being the features which help the customer during the retirement phase of the product and focus on replacing, returning or disposing of the product as well as accounting for-, and evaluating it (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
Features which focus on replacing / returning / disposing of the product are those which help the customer in returning the product, to resell it, to recognize the need to buy a new product, dispose of the product, trade the product in, return a rental product or replace a product that has been consumed or is beyond repair (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). Functionalities which provide the customer with the option to resell the product like Amazon's second-hand book sale option or the trade-in option provided by Wal-Mart through ‘gazelle.com’ are both examples of retirement functionalities which focus on returning or disposing of the products.
Features which focus on accounting for the product help the customer, to understand how much the product, its use, or other resources which are used through the product costs them or helps them to save (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002). An example hereof could be a calculation option which lets the consumer fill out what type of refrigerator they are currently using and would let them calculate based on the chosen refrigerator which they plan to buy, how much money they would save on their power bill. Evaluation features let the customer evaluate whether their expectations were met by the product or service, and if they are satisfied (Cenfetelli and Benbasat, 2002).
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becomes more of a total solution for the needs which their purchase requires. As such, it will help them to better perform, and thus its usefulness for them will be improved. This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 13. The inclusion of retirement functionalities on an e-commerce website enhances its perceived usefulness.
1.1.3 Ease of use
Ease of use as used in the research model is based on the second of the two main beliefs of the TAM, being: perceived ease of use (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). Within the TAM, the notion of perceived ease of use refers to the belief which a potential user has that their use of a certain system will be effortless (Davis, 1989). This includes the effort to learn how use the technology in question (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). This will be used as the definition within this research as well. Davis (1989) references Radner and Rotschild (1975), stating that in this context effort is “a finite resource that a person may allocate to the various activities for which he or she is responsible”. It is believed that if other variables are equal the user will choose to adopt the system which is easier to use (Davis, 1989).
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Many previous studies have used the construct of perceived ease of use to research the acceptance of IT technology and websites (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005) and perceived ease of use has been shown to influence customer’s attitudes towards making purchases online (Koufaris, 2002). Based on the previously proven influence of ease of use on online customers attitudes and it’s utilitarian nature (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005), I will use it in my research model as a formative indicator of the utilitarian appeal of a website as well as an intermediate variable for navigability and speed. It forms the basis of the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 14. Increased ease of use an e-commerce website enhances the utilitarian website appeal.
1.1.3.1 Navigability
When considering how to design the navigation of an e-commerce website (or any website for that matter) the two goals should be allowing the users to “acquire more of the information they are seeking and making the information easier to find” (Palmer, 2002). This means that the interface of the website must be designed in such a manner that this is made possible. This has proven to be important as in the past several high profile websites have failed based on poor interface design (Palmer, 2002). The degree of an interfaces design being successful in attaining these two goals is expressed in navigability, which can be defined as “the sequencing of pages, well organized layout, and consistency of navigation protocols” (Palmer, 2002).
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HYPOTHESIS 15. Increasing an e-commerce website’s navigability enhances its perceived ease of use.
1.1.3.2 Speed
A review of extant literature reveals several studies which refer to the construct of the loading speed of a webpage as a factor in the website’s success (Galletta et al. 2003, Palmer 2002, Pavlou and Fygenson 2006, Udo and Marquis 2002). An often used term in these studies is download delay. When a user clicks on a hyperlink on the website which they are visiting and it seems that there isn’t anything happening a delay occurs (Galletta et al., 2003). Delay time is considered an important negative to an e-commerce website as prior research has established it as one of the prime quality aspects in e-commerce and more generally it has been found that “waiting time is the most objectionable deficiency of the medium” (Galletta et al. 2003).
While it may be seen as a problem which must dissolve over time (as faster connections are increasingly replacing low-end ones) this is not the case as speed problems can be related to processing as well as bandwidth (Galletta et al. 2003). With more bandwidth becoming available, the problems occurring with download delays might even become worse, as more users can make requests at high speeds which the website might not be able to process (Galletta et al. 2003). This makes the notion of speed relevant to this study as it places responsibility in the hands of those designing and operating the website. As such, speed becomes a design issue.
Speed in the setting of this research is based on the construct of response time, which in an e-commerce setting refers to the speed with which the website “provides a response to the user activity” (Palmer, 2002). I will use this definition for the speed construct in this study.
When applying the construct of speed to websites it essentially comes down to keeping the download time to a minimum (Palmer, 2002).
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perception of effort which a consumer puts into the transaction with the website as they lose time. This makes it an interesting research subject which leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 16. Increasing an e-commerce website’s speed enhances its perceived ease of use.
1.2 Value-expressive Website Appeal
As described, based on the definition of appeal provided by Yeshin (1998) value-expressive and utilitarian appeal can be seen as defining and formative for the notion of appeal, in creating a dichotomy of website appeal and product appeal, value-expressive- and utilitarian appeal should be considered as formative factors.
Based on the definition of appeal as provided by Yeshin (1998), and, the research of Jorhar and Sirgy (1991), the following definition of value-expressive website appeal has been formulated below in a manner which makes it measurable and best applicable to an e-commerce study:
Value-expressive website appeal is the extent to which an e-commerce website conveys a desirable image that is associated with shopping on it. (Yeshin, 1998) (Jorhar & Sirgy, 1991)
As previously stated e-Commerce websites have both utilitarian as well as hedonic aspects to them, and both categories contribute to the positive attitude a website’s user has towards it (Childers et al., 2001; Lopez & Ruiz, 2010). Translated to this research: an increase in both the practical as well as affective appeal variations can be considered to enhance the overall appeal to the consumer.
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Johar and Sirgy (1991) provide self-congruity as an explanation for why image appeal works. They refer to self-congruity as being the match between a value-expressive appeal, and the way the (potential) customers see themselves (Johar and Sirgy, 1991). The latter is referred to as “self-image”, and is broken down into four variations being “actual self-mage”, “ideal self-“self-image”, “social self-image” and “ideal social self-image” (Johar and Sirgy, 1991). An “Actual self-image” is the image which someone has of themselves, while an “ideal self-image” is the self-image they aspire to have (Johar and Sirgy, 1991). A “social self-image” involves how a person believes others view them, while an “ideal social self-image” is how they strive for others to view them (Johar and Sirgy, 1991). Research has shown that the greater the congruence is between the image created by value-expressive appeal in advertising, and the potential buyers actual-self-image, the more likely the advertisement is to succeed (e.g. to persuade a potential customer to make a purchase).
When applying the concept of self-congruity to value-expressive website appeal it can be stated that if a user finds the website more appealing in image (i.e. if the value-expressive website appeal matches their actual self-image) they will view the website as a whole more favorably. If for example a website is designed to appeal to young, outgoing people it will be appealing to those who find themselves to be young and outgoing.
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have no other purpose then to create this image for this website (images of people in nature, a “wooden” background image, etc.).
This leads to the following hypothesis for value-expressive website appeal:
HYPOTHESIS 17. Increased value-expressive website appeal of an e-commerce website enhances the overall website appeal.
The constructs enjoyment, social presence and flow, and their formative indicators have been formulated for value-expressive website appeal.
1.2.1 Enjoyment
Enjoyment as placed in the research model is based on the notion of perceived enjoyment which is rooted in flow literature (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris 2005, Kamis et al. 2008) but has also been used as an addition to the TAM (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). It has been used in prior research “as an affective measure of the individual experience” in web environments amongst other research fields (Kamis et al. 2008). It has been defined in a web context as being “the extent to which the activity of using a website is perceived to be enjoyable in its own right, apart from any performance consequences that may be anticipated” (Parboteeah et al., 2009). This definition will also be used in this research.
Perceived enjoyment is a fitting formative indicator of value-expressive website appeal as it has previously been used extensively to research the acceptance of use of web sites (Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris, 2005). Hampton-Sosa and Koufaris have used it in their 2005 research to measure overall website appeal. Apart from this it has proven to play an important part in both the off-line and online shopping experience and significantly affects consumer attitudes (Hassanein & Head, 2005) and their shopping intentions (Koufaris et al., 2001). Parboteeah et al. (2009) have referred to it as a construct which is both robust as well as well-established when used to capture the “affective reactions to an environment.”
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image can also be created for an e-commerce website or its users. Based on this it can be researched whether the various website aspects, which enjoyment serves for as an intermediate variable (being animation, games, music and decision support), can add to the creation of a fun, enjoyable image for the website, based on which the website users will enjoy using it more. This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 18. Increased enjoyment of an e-commerce website enhances the value-expressive website appeal.
1.2.1.1 Animation
When researching animation in the context of e-commerce, the research available seems to be restricted to animated ads used on websites. Within this context animation is mentioned as being “among the most prominent attention-getting devices used in Web advertising” (Sundar and Kalyanaraman, 2004). In this research however, I aim to research the influence on an online customer’s overall enjoyment of a website, and in turn its influence on the image which is created for the website or its users (the value-expressive website appeal). Based hereon it must also be stated that the animation examined within this construct must not be used to highlight a product (e.g. an animation showing the product in use), but must contribute to the overall experience of the website. An example of such animations, are moving images of snowflakes which are sometimes seen on websites in the winter season. In an e-commerce setting, an example of the use of animations in such a manner is seen on the website of aftershave brand Old Spice who use animated images of characters based on their advertising campaing on their website (http://www.oldspice.com, 09/07/2012).
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Animation refers to moving images used on a website which serve no other purpose then to contribute to the overall experience of the website.
Since, as mentioned animation is here considered to be able to be aesthetically pleasing, interesting or exciting it can add to the website use being an enjoyable experience in its own right. This leads to the following hypotheses:
HYPOTHESIS 19. The inclusion of animation on an e-commerce website enhances its enjoyment.
1.2.1.2 Games
As the use of the internet has grown, online-games have become more popular and in prior research have been referred to as an e-commerce application which is highly profitable (Hsu and Lu, 2003). In my literature research I have however found no work on online gaming in relation to e-commerce.
In their 2003 research on users intentions to play online games, Hsu and Lu describe them as being "one type of entertainment-oriented and Internet-based information technology" and state that they "typically are multiplayer games that enable users to fantasize and be entertained". Other aspects of online games defined by the authors are: they have user friendly interfaces; feature multi-media effects through graphical operations; and let online users do things such as assuming fantasy roles, interact with each other and create virtual worlds (Hsu and Lu, 2003). It is argued that on-line games are played mainly for leisure and pleasure purposes (Hsu and Lu, 2003).
Considering the above the following definition based on the work of Hsu and Lu (2003) will be used in my research:
Games refer to online games which can be played through the website, within the browser window for leisure and pleasure purposes and are intended to make the users overall experience on the website more enjoyable (Hsu and Lu, 2003).
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influence their online product sales. One organization who does so, is the American toy company Mattel. Two of their most prominent products are the well known Barbie fashion doll line and the Hot Wheels car toy line. On the website of each of the products, users can not only buy the toys of the specific product line, they can also play games based on the toys (www.barbie.com, 25/06/2012; www.hotwheels.com, 25/06/2012).
The example of Mattel raises the following question: if a commercial party such as Mattel uses games to attract consumers to their websites and keep them there, could this also function in the context of all e-commerce websites? Apparently they believe that the addition of games raises the enjoyment of their website, so it is fitting to place the following hypothesis regarding games in this research:
HYPOTHESIS 20. The inclusion of games on an e-commerce website enhances its enjoyment.
1.2.1.3 Music
In my literature research I have not been able to find literature which examines music in an e-commerce context in the way I intend to research it. The music construct is placed on the website appeal side of the model, which means that the music should not be used in order to highlight a product (e.g. being able to play a song of a CD being sold) but rather should contribute to the overall appeal of the website (e.g. background music played during a visit to the website).
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the use of background music during shopping is provided by the Dance-Tunes.com, the e-vendor of music downloads offers the opportunity to listen to their own radio station while shopping on the site (http://dance-tunes.com, 09/07/2012).
Based on this the following definition and hypothesis are used for the music construct:
Music refers to background music which can be played during the visit to a website and serves no other purpose then to make the shopping experience as a whole more enjoyable.
HYPOTHESIS 21. The inclusion of music on an e-commerce website enhances its enjoyment.
1.2.1.4 Decision Support
The decision support construct used in this research is based on decision support systems which are used in the online shopping context, “allow customers to configure products and services” and are believed to be able to “significantly affect customer decision making and behavior” (Kamis et al., 2008).
Such decision support systems can (for example) offer the consumer alternatives to the products which they are viewing on the e-commerce website, by showing other products types (different brand, style, colour, version, etc.), or different products altogether based on e.g. what other consumers who viewed the item bought, or which items are also popular amongst those who have bought the product.
A prime example of such systems are recommendation agents which “elicit the interests or preferences of individual consumers for products, either explicitly or implicitly, and make recommendations accordingly” (Xiao and Benbasat, 2007).
Based on the above the following definition of decision support will be used in this study:
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While decision support systems are applied in the field of online shopping most research done on them has not been in the e-commerce domain but rather on work related application, focusing on the direct effects of the design and use of decision support systems (Kamis et al., 2008). In my research I have not found any studies which have researched the effect of decision support systems on the enjoyment of website use while it seems to be somewhat of a natural fit. The inclusion of decision support on an e-commerce website is something which can be seen as making online shopping more fun compared to physical shopping; based on the input which you provide the online store offers alternatives and thus can help you to find products which you might have never considered. As such the decision support construct is placed in the research model as being a formative factor for the enjoyment construct and the following hypothesis is formed for this study:
HYPOTHESIS 22. The inclusion of decision support on an e-commerce website enhances its enjoyment.
1.2.2 Social Presence
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the e-commerce websites media richness and its levels of interactivity (Aljukhadar et al., 2010). Considering this, the definition of social presence which will be used in this research is: the extent to which a website allows users to experience the company which runs the website as well as other users as psychologically present (Hassanein & Head, 2005) and the degree through which the website allows them to establish a personal connection with them (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006) through website features which convey the feeling of “human contact, sociability, and sensitivity” (Hassanein & Head, 2005).
As such, website design is an important aspect when researching social presence and thus many design aspects have previously been researched (Qui and Benbasat, 2009). In the research model the notion of social presence is used as an intermediate variable for several design aspects which based on the literature review are expected to influence it. These are: communication reciprocity; community features; avatars; human images; and rating/reviews.
Based on the fact that it has recently been explored as a performance measure for e-commerce websites (Aljukhadar et al., 2010) and its affective nature, social presence is placed in the research model to examine the value-expressive website appeal. As mentioned, value-expressive appeal is based on the notion that an image is created for the product or for the user of the product (Jorhar & Sirgy, 1991). I have applied this to e-commerce stating that this can also apply to a website in the sense that an image for a website can be created so that users enjoy it more. Social presence can be seen fitting in this setting as it fits within the image of an e-commerce website: if users perceive a high social presence within a website this changes their perception of its image. This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 23. Increased social presence of an e-commerce website enhances the value-expressive website appeal.
1.2.2.1 Communication Reciprocity
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Apart from influencing the utilitarian appeal of a website it can also be considered to influence its value-expressive appeal, as it can be assumed that the addition of communication reciprocity features (such as a chat function) could raise the user’s social presence perception in a website. As such the following hypothesis is formed:
HYPOTHESIS 24. The inclusion of communication reciprocity features on an e-commerce website enhances its social presence.
12.2.2 Community Features
Community features as a construct in this research, refers to the opportunities which a website offers its users “to interact with other visitors to the same Web site by participating in a bulletin board, chat group, or similar online forum” (Bart et al., 2005). Previous research (Bart et al. 2005, Shankar et al. 2002) has examined the influence of community features on trust in websites. I, however, have chosen to examine its influence on the social presence of an e-commerce website. One reason to do so is that if social presence will be influenced by the inclusion of community features this will be done for the entire medium which carries them (in this case the e-commerce website). The trust of an e-commerce website, on the other hand, might be less influenced by community features, considering that a customer might mostly trust the community more then the actual website which carries it.
One example of an e-commerce website which uses community features is that of LEGO, a Danish construction toy manufacturer. On their website you can order various playsets but also interact with other customers using their message board (http://messageboards.lego.com, 16/06/2012).
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sense of moral responsibility” (Bart et al., 2005). These are all aspects which can be seen as indicators of a personal connection between the community members which in this context are the visitors of the e-commerce website.
The above leads to the following hypothesis being formed:
HYPOTHESIS 25. The inclusion of community features on an e-commerce website enhances its social presence.
1.2.2.3 Avatars
The term avatar stems from the ancient Sanskrit language and is defined as being “the embodiment of a deity on earth” (Holzwarth et al., 2006). In congruence with this original meaning an avatar has always referred to “the representation of an entity” (Holzwarth et al., 2006). An avatar is presented in the study of Holzwarth et al. (2006) as a solution to the problem that shopping online is not very personal in nature. The authors refer to avatars as being being “a graphic representation that can be animated by means of computer technology” (Holzwarth et al., 2006) and show the positive influence of its use on an e-commerce website in their study. The study shows that the use of an avatar as a sales agent leads to a more satisfaction with the retailer and a greater purchase intention which makes the avatar construct an interesting one for this research model. For this study it is defined as following:
A visual representation of a sales agent used on the e-commerce website to assist the users in their shopping experience (Holzwarth et al., 2006).
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HYPOTHESIS 26. The inclusion of an avatar on an e-commerce website enhances its social presence.
1.2.2.4 Human images
The inclusion of human images into this research is based on the 2009 research of Cyr et al. The authors use two types of human images defined as having a high and a medium human condition (Cyr et al., 2009). Images with a high condition are those which include facial features while those with no facial features are described as having a medium human condition (Cyr et al., 2009).
An example of the use of human images on an e-commerce website can be seen with the webpage of Dutch multinational electronics company Philips, whose business is electronics while their website is filled with images of people with little direct link to their products (http://www.phlips.nl, 09/07/2012).
Cyr et al. (2009), based on prior research, state that the inclusion of human images can result in higher levels of perceived social presence, and find in their research that images with a high human condition lead to the highest social presence compared to the medium human conditions images and no inclusion of human images. Based hereon, the inclusion of human images with facial features is interesting for this research and leads to the following definition and hypothesis being used:
Human images are website images representing humans including their facial features (Cyr et al., 2009).
HYPOTHESIS 27. The inclusion of human images on an e-commerce website enhances its social presence.
1.2.2.5 Ratings / Reviews
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additional information in the product which they are looking for in a way which is relevant to them (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006).
The provision of ratings / reviews has previously been discussed and defined as being “A website's support for the provision of customer reviews or ratings on the website itself or the products it offers”.
Much like the discussed community features (such as bulletin board and forums) a websites support for consumer reviews can be seen as being a part of the creation of a virtual community (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006). One example hereof can be found at amazon.com where visitors can view the account profile of the person who they read a review from and can then join to get in touch with them (Kumar and Benbasat, 2006). Based on this reasoning the influence this construct has on social presence is just as interesting a research subject as the influence of community features and thus leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 28. The inclusion of support for the provision of customer reviews or ratings on an e-commerce website enhances its social presence.
Previously, Kumar and Benbasat (2006) have proven that “the provision of recommendations and consumer reviews” increases the social presence of a website which is further support for this hypothesis.
1.2.3 Flow
Flow has been defined as “the holistic sensation that people feel when they act with total involvement” (Koufaris, 2002). It has been described as an “optimal state of experience”, “a dynamic state” (Guo and Poole, 2009) in which people “shift into a common mode of experience when they become absorbed by their activity” (Koufaris, 2002), “act with total involvement” and have full control over their actions without distraction (Guo and Poole, 2009). This definition will be used when applying it in this research.
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this process are “filtered out, by loss of self-consciousness, by a responsiveness to clear goals and unambiguous feedback, and by a sense of control over the environment” (Koufaris, 2002).
The concept of flow was developed in the enjoyment research of Csikszentmihalyi (Guo and Poole, 2009). For flow to occur during the execution of a task it should have a clear goal and a fast, unambiguous feedback mechanism (Guo and Poole, 2009). The former enables the person conducting the task to focus on those things essential to the activity while the latter shows the progress in trying to achieve the desired goal (Guo and Poole, 2009). An example of an activity in which achieving a state of flow often occurs is playing chess, as there is a clear goal to be achieved (beating your opponent) and the progress in doing so can be followed because there are rules which guide the game (Guo and Poole, 2009). Another important aspect in flow theory is the so called “perceived balance of challenge and skill” (Guo and Poole, 2009). This refers to the fact that if the challenge at hand exceeds the skill level of the person conducting the task they feel overwhelmed and anxious while if it is too easy of a task people get bored and won't get into a state of flow either (Guo and Poole, 2009). Guo and Poole (2009) quote Csikszentmihalyi (1988) in explaining the various dimension of flow being “concentration”, “perceived control”, “mergence of action and awareness”, “transformation of time”, “Transcendence of self” and “autotelic experience”.
Table 2 shows the various dimensions of flow and their definition (Guo and Poole, 2009).
Table 2: Dimensions of Flow
Dimensions Definition
“Concentration” “A centering of attention on a limited stimulus field
Concentration on the task at hand”
“Perceived control” “There is the sense that the outcomes of the activity are, in principle, under the
person’s own control”
“Lacking the sense of worry about losing control” “The sense of exercising control in difficulty situations” “Mergence of action and
awareness”
“People become so involved in what they are doing that the activity becomes spontaneous, almost automatic; they stop being aware of themselves as separate from the actions they are performing.”
“Transformation of time” “Distorted sense of time”
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“Transcendence of self” “Lose temporarily the awareness of self”
“There is not enough attention left over to allow a person to consider either the past or the future, or any other temporarily irrelevant stimuli.”
“The loss of the sense of a self-separate from the world around it is sometimes accompanied by a feeling of union with the environment.”
“Autotelic experience” “The key element of an optimal experience is that it is an end in itself.”
More recently flow has been researched in the field of information technology and more specifically e-commerce (Koufaris 2002, Guo and Poole, 2009). Recent research has found that flow is positively related to “exploratory behaviour, revisit and purchase intentions, and attitude towards web sites” and thus is an interesting construct for this research (Guo and Poole, 2009).
Flow theory is hedonic (and thus affective) in nature (Guo and Poole, 2009), which is why I have chosen to include it in the research model as a formative indicator of value-expressive website appeal which is the more affective of the two constructs of website appeal. This leads to the following hypothesis:
HYPOTHESIS 29. Increased flow of an e-commerce website enhances the value-expressive website appeal.
Flow serves as an intermediate factor in this research to examine whether a domain interface and active control will induce a state of flow in a website user, and in turn will contribute the value-expressive website appeal.
1.2.3.1 Virtual Domain interface
The inclusion of the virtual domain interface construct in this research is based on the 2005 study by Wells et al. in which they prove that a virtual domain interface has (compared to a categorical content interface) a positive effect on the retention and recollection of information on an e-commerce website.
