Journal of

General Management Research

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping

A Study of the Paradigm Shift in Consumer Behaviour

Dr Silky Vigg Kushwah1 and Abstract

Anjali Singh2 With the internet shopping in India pegged at
Rs. 52,000 crores and growing at a phenomenal
rate of 100%, it opens up a whole new world
1 Associate Professor, New Delhi Institute of
Management, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi of possibilities for both the consumer and the
E-mail: [email protected] marketers. In a country where mail order/
2 Associate Professor, IMM, Qutab Institutional Area, catalogue shopping does not even register its
New Delhi presence what were the factors that have had
E-mail: [email protected]
resulted in this entirely new channel and led
to a paradigm shift in consumer behavior from
traditional shopping to online shopping? The
paper undertakes a factorial study of the behaviour
of the urban educated middle class consumers in
India with respect to the online marketing sites.
To this end, it analyses the data collected from
a sample of 400 urban educated middle class
consumers selected on a non-probability basis,
using purposive sampling technique. We used
factorial analysis to analyse the data. The study
found that this consumer behaviour is actuated
by three main factors such as seller’s image,
website quality and seller’s concern for customer.
We find that the perception of privacy protection
factor was high for the websites most commonly
used by the consumers and emerged as the most
ISSN 2348-2869 Print
important factor leading to online purchases. The
© 2019 Symbiosis Centre for Management
Studies, noida
study concludes that with the likelihood of the
Journal of General Management Research, Vol. 6,
shift in shopping behavior from traditional to
Issue 1, January 2019, pp. 1–13 virtual continuing and accelerating in the future,

1
marketers will have to relook at their distribution Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) the
and promotional models in order to meet the new number of internet users stood at 164.81
challenges of changed customer behavior. million on 31st March 2013, with every 7 out
of 8 user accessing internet from their mobile
Keywords: Internet Shopping, Online Shopping,
phones. India ranks third in the internet
Paradigm Shift, Traditional Shopping,
usage and is likely to be the first by 2015 (in
Consumer Behavior, Factorial Study
the number of users).
The Internet retail in India accounts for a
Introduction market size of Rs. 52,000 crores and growing
at a phenomenal rate of 100 % per year as per
T he development of new technology as
well as evolution of existing technology
has an immense impact on business and
a report by ASSOCHAM released in August
2013. In countries like USA online retail
social patterns of society. Technology can be stood at 8% of the total sales while in UK it
considered to be a disruptive factor which accounted for 12% of the total spending.
turns products and skills obsolete while One of the properties of internet which is
changing the rules of how business should highly visible and utilized is that of its ability
be done. It can also result in new product to function as a communication channel,
and services for the consumer, reduce prices, allowing information to be exchanged between
increase the product’s efficiency and simplify buyers and sellers. A marketing channel needs
distribution. to function as a communication channel; a
One of the biggest phenomena of the recent transaction channel- generates sales activities
years, E-commerce has been built on the between buyers and sellers, and as a physical
Internet technology. The development of distribution channel-in the case of internet it
Internet been compared to the rise of radio gets restricted to certain types of products and
industry, television industry and personal services (Stern & El-Ansary, 1996, Peterson
computer industry (Kalakota & Whinston, et al., 1997, Kiang et al., 2000).
1997). Originally designed for military and There are similarities as well as differences
academic use, internet was over the years also between Internet shopping and traditional
used with increasing benefits for business shopping with advantages and disadvantages
purposes (Hanson, 2000). for both. The advantages of Internet can be
The growth of Internet as an agent of categorized into those arising mainly from
facilitating business was rapid; the first online its communication and transaction functions
shopping system started functioning within and to a lesser degree from its distribution
a year of introduction of SSL encryption of functions.
data transferred online. Probably no other
technology has evolved as rapidly and diffused Communication Functions
as profusely as the internet. There were 568 Information search and organization: customer
million internet users in China in 2012 which can search for information on products
ranked first amongst the nations, while there and services as per their requirement. This
254 million internet users in USA and 54 can be done very efficiently with minimum
million in UK. In India, as per Telephone inconvenience and effort (Peterson 1997,

2 Journal of General Management Research

Jarvanpaa & Todd, 1997, Krishnamurthy, refund. Some sites have introduced ‘try at
2003). Various search engines and web features home’ feature in order to enhance ‘touch and
also allow organization of information as per feel’ factor and as a result convert the trial into
the requirement of customers, for example purchase.
a consumer can search for products below a
Geographical spread: The internet circumvents
specified price range, by brand or by a specific
the geographical constraints by making
feature. They can also compare the various
products available to anybody who can access
products on the basis of features and or price
internet and pay for the products/services
or some other criteria.
desired. The consumers of the banking
Interactivity and consumer evaluation: industry for example can undertake several
Various measures like instant messaging and transactions without visiting their branch,
chats supplemented by traditional methods which also reduces the need for the banks to
like telephone calls allow a customer to interact open branches in different locations.
with the retailer/seller directly. However what
Transaction costs: In several instances, internet
makes the internet especially unique is that
reduces transaction costs by removing
it allows customers to interact with other
the middle man, booking travel tickets
customers as well. Consumer reviews and
online directly with airlines eliminates
ratings are a standard feature included in
the commission payable to agents. Several
most internet shopping sites which eases the
websites also offer free shipping –some of
evaluation process for the customers who may
them with a caveat of purchase of over a
be buying the product for the first time. Some
certain amount, which reduces the overall
sites also provide recommendations about
cost for the consumer. The ease of comparing
certain products based on the user’s browsing
different products also reduces the transaction
history as well as information about what
costs.
products were bought by other shoppers.
Distribution Function
Transaction Functions
Broader assortment / Niche products: Since the
Convenience: For some consumers, the biggest
online shopping sites are not constrained
advantage of the internet is that it is available
by physical space, they can offer a wider
24 by 7 around the year and can be accessed
assortment of product selection to the
from anywhere in the world. This ability of
users including products which are niche
the internet to be open at all hours saves the
or have limited demand, which may make
customer the hassle of getting to the store at
it uneconomical for traditional retailers.
a particular time and day in order to make
Amazon.com in 1990’s announced itself to
purchases. It also does away with the hassles
be the ‘world’s largest bookstore’ as it boasted
of adverse weather, bad traffic and limited
of an unlimited selection of titles, while the
parking and saves time as well, all of which
books would be shipped from the distributors
adds to the convenience of the customer
directly.
(Wolhandler, 1999). In order to aid the
customer’s decision making some online Physical distribution: The internet may have
shopping sites also offer a trial period during limited capabilities when it comes to actual
which the purchase can be returned for a full delivery of physical goods but certain products

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping 3

– music for instance can be delivered over the Shih, 2004). Similarly Koivumaki (2001)
internet, downloaded and stored in devices if proved that frequency of purchases made was
required. Travel details and tickets can also directly dependent on the online shopping
be directly available on the internet and don’t benefits. Similar findings were reported by
have to be physically delivered. Similarly Forsythe (2002), which found that the time
e-books can also be physically transferred over spent online was also positively connected
the internet. with perceived benefits of online shopping.
Benefits can also be classified as extrinsic
Literature Review benefits or intrinsic benefits both of which are
A review of the existing literature reveals that important in shaping the customer’s behavior
there exists a healthy body of work on factors online (Liu & Arnett, 2000,; Muylle et al.,
influencing online shopping (Limayem, 2004; Shih, 2004)
2003; Delafrooz, 2001). A study by Shwu-Ing (2003) found that
One of the approaches used is to look at convenience, information, homepage design,
how consumer personalities affect shopping company name, freedom selection all added
behavior, two broad categories of orientation to the benefits of online shopping. The most
being utilitarian and hedonic. Consumers significant factor that contributed to the
with utilitarian orientation prefer to shop motivation of customer’s online shopping
online in order to achieve a specific goal. was convenience.
What they look for in a shopping experience Studies have also looked at determining the
is efficiency and rationality (Babin, 1994, attitude towards online shopping which was
Wolfinbarger & Gilly, 2001, Monsuwe et defined as a consumer’s positive and negative
al., 2004). Shoppers with hedonic orientation feelings towards online purchasing (Chiu et
on the other hand are interested not only in al., 2005; Schlosser, 2003a, b) and have found
information but also seek fun, excitement, that customers with higher positive attitude
escapism, fantasy (Monsuwe et al., 2004). score should be target market (Shwu-Ing,
These experiential shoppers are focused more 2003) Two other factors which are important
on the shopping experience than the goal of in determining attitude of customers are
making a purchase (Sorce, 2005). According existing legal framework and third party
to Miller (2000), the product and services recognition (Borchers, 2001). Demographics
for Internet shopping could be influenced as a factor has also been examined in several
easily by their type, and he also indicated studies and while it plays a role in determining
four sources that could explain the nature of whether people use internet or not, it does
Internet shopping-convenience, technology, not influence which site to visit or how much
security and product and price. to spend (Bhatnagar, 2000).
We can look at online shopping from the However Bellman (1999) found that those
perceived benefits which can be physiological, consumers who use internet as a routine tool
psychological, social or material in nature. The for various functions tend to see it as a natural
earlier research has focused on identifying the channel for shopping as well. Similarly early
reasons why online shopping was beneficial adaptors of technology also tended to use
(Liu & Arnett, 2000; Muylle et al., 2004; internet more often for shopping (Koufaris,

4 Journal of General Management Research

2002). Studies which have focused whether As per his model, an important antecedent
specific consumer characteristics influence of trust is the trust propensity – a personality
online shopping found that people who focused trait of buyers. A person with a higher trust
more on convenience were more likely to be propensity is likely to be a potential buyer as
frequent buyers on internet. They preferred compared to one with lower trust potential.
sacrificing the “touch and feel” experience if As per this study the main elements of
they could save time by purchasing online (Li, trustworthiness are ability, benevolence and
1999) Perceived security risk was seen to be a integrity. Sellers have to convince customers
major barrier with respect to online shopping of their competence, ‘wanting to do good’
(Han, 2001). However, the perceived risk and adherence to a set of principles which is
could be reduced with increasing familiarity, acceptable to the buyer.
skills and experience on internet (Senecal,
2000; Han, 2001). Similarly as per a study An added feature of internet business is that
by Vellido (2000) risk perception was the customers must also trust the transaction
main difference between people who bought medium for online purchases, mere trust
online and those who did not. Some of the in the internet site is not enough (Kini &
other factors were; convenience, control over Choobineh, 1998). Public key encryption
shopping process, affordability and customer infrastructure and certification bodies build
service. Results from Jarvenpaa (2000) and trust amongst customers with respect to online
Culnan (1999) also identified risk perception shopping (Hoffman, 1999). A high level of
as being a barrier to online buying. trust by buyers has been found to stimulate
favourable attitudes and behavior (Schurr &
Another study by Jarvenpaa (2000) found Ozanne, 1985; Anderson & Narus, 1990).
that there was a direct and positive co-
relation between the level of trust and In their study, Ranganathan & Ganapathy
attitude towards store while inversely related (2002) found that purchase intention is
to the perception of risk involved in online dependent on four key dimensions of B2C
shopping. As per McAllister (1995) trust web sites; information content, design,
and risk are interlinked. The customer’s security and privacy. However the greatest
concerns regarding online shopping have to impact on the purchase intention was security
do with security of payment details, privacy and privacy dimension. Studies have also been
and product quality. Trust related issues can carried out to examine the role of gender with
be categorised into “personal information, regard to internet usage in general and online
product quality and price, customer service purchase in particular. It has been found
and store presence (Kim & Benbasat, 2003). that women spend lesser time online, view
It is more difficult for an online shopper fewer pages and spend less than men (Allen,
to physically check for product quality 2001; Pastore 2000; Kehoe, 1998). A likely
and monitor the transmission of financial explanation for this could be that women
information as well as personal details to an perceive purchasing online to be riskier than
unknown and untested entity. men do (Sheehan, 1999).
In his study Mayer (1995) combined the Besides the trust factor, another key
traditional marketing theory on consumer determinant for online shopping is the
motivation for buying with a trust model. online shopping experience. An unpleasant

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping 5

experience with a particular site can result in excitement over the ‘interactivity” potential
the customer’s refusal to revisit it on the next of the internet however businesses have
occasion (Rice, 1997). The social dimension spent huge amount without understanding
of shopping is a very important factor for what creates interactivity and how it impacts
several people (Dennis, 2002). Hou & Rego the customer. The consumer’s best source
(2002) in their study found that the online of product information is direct product
shopping still lacks social interactivity and experience (Klein, 2011). Different media
the decision to shop online is dependent on which deliver the product information in
the shopping experience to a great extent. differing terms of quality and quantity can
Attitude and intentions towards online only partially deliver the product experience
shopping impacts the shopping enjoyment in to the customer.
a positive and significant manner (Eighmey, Virtual reality stimulates a direct product
1997). ‘Experience Economy’ which is experience and exploratory studies suggest
concerned with the ‘creation of outstanding that it will improve the customer’s purchase
and memorable experience’ was highlighted intention (Jiang & Benbasat, 2002; Li, 2002,
by Pine & Gilmore (1999) in their study. They Daugherty, 2002). Lohse & Spiller (1998)
found that consumers buy not only goods and have found that there is a strong link between
services but experiences as well. The physical a website’s interface, volume of traffic and
aspects of a store such as the layout, colours, sales achieved. Similarly the virtual store’s
music and arrangement of merchandise are atmosphere influenced the site’s stickiness or
collectively called store atmospherics (Engel, the period of time spent on the site (Eroglu,
1990). Store atmospherics can directly Machleit & Davis, 2001). Part of the virtual
impact the customer’s mood and intentions store’s atmosphere is determined by the design
to purchase (East, 1997) and it can add to or characteristics of the web page and it also
distract from the customer’s experiences in affects the consumer’s online buying decision.
shopping at a physical retail store. The homepage presentation is a major
Online shopping is, however, a different antecedent of customer satisfaction along
experience from shopping in a physical retail with others such as logical support, technical,
store. Online shopping is constrained by the information and product characteristics (Ho
web interface which allows consumers to & Wu, 1999). Internet shopping malls adopt
simply read and view products and eliminates virtual reality (Lee, 2001) and 3D techniques
the touch, feel and try elements of products (Miller, 2000) to improve the presentation of
limiting their perception of the product products.
(Wolfinbarger & Gilly, 2001; Bhatnagar, The popularity of the web pages is also
2000). Creating a compelling online dependent on frequent updates (Dholakia &
experience is key to competitive advantage Rego, 1998) as well as number of links to other
but very little is known about factors which websites. Lohse & Spiller (1998) found that
create a compelling online experience (Novak, adding more products in the store resulted in
Hoffman & Yung, 2000). The web cannot increase traffic as did a FAQ section. Higher
stimulate the physical environment but one sales also resulted when a feedback section
of the advantages of internet is its property of was added for the customers. Customers gain
‘interactivity’. There has been a great deal of a feeling of increased convenience if they are

6 Journal of General Management Research

provided with customized information while This review of empirical studies has embodied
buying repeat or standard items. This leads different factors which influence online
to quicker purchase decision (Lohse, 2000). purchasers’ behavior. The antecedents of
Information in fact can be categorized as non- online purchase include many attitudinal
value added and value added, both of which components; for example, attitude towards
can be used by search mechanism in online a website and perceived risk of an online
sites (Koufaris, 2002). The study by Jarvenpaa purchase. Consumers’ online shopping
& Todd (1997) also demonstrated that value experiences, website design and fulfillment of
added information to an online shopping site quality expectations are deemed as the major
would provide an incentive for people to shop components to successful online transactions.
online as well as increase shopping enjoyment. The review also shows that good customer
service leads to customer satisfaction, which
In order to respond to the customers’ desire
in turn results in consumer loyalty to
for control and convenience, web stores
such websites. Many researchers have also
have to design an efficient system to enable
conducted studies to measure how online
consumers to easily find what they need, learn
consumers perceive web shop quality.
more about it and quickly make a purchase
decision (Baty & Lee, 1995).
Problem Statement
Irrespective of technology and the kind of
An overview of the literature in the area of
product, the central issue to retention and
factors influencing consumer attitude towards
gaining new customers is the perceived
online shopping shows that the aspect of
customer satisfaction of customers.
major underlying factors influencing the
Satisfaction is critical for an individual
shopping behavior of consumers in India has
customer because it fulfills a previous unmet
remained largely unexplored. The review of
need or the best allocation of scarce resources
above studies indicates that there has been no
(Churchill & Surprenant, 1982; Bearden &
systematic research done in this area in India
Teel, 1983). In online shopping, the quality
and the objective of this paper is to fill this
of the website is a major factor influencing the
gap.
customer’s satisfaction in an online shopping
environment.
Purpose of Study
From the perspective of antecedents and the
consequences of satisfaction, Oliver (1980) For the above identified research problem,
proposed a model that expresses consumer the main purpose of this study is to assess and
satisfaction as a function of expectation analyse the factors influencing customers to
and expectancy disconfirmation. Moreover, purchase online in India.
satisfaction significantly affected customer’s
attitudes and their intention to purchase. Research Questions and Objectives of
Many researchers have found the quality of the Study
web retailing sites is a dominant antecedent For the above problem and purpose, the study
of customer. Wolfinbarger & Gilly (2002) in seeks to answer the following specific research
their study found that website design quality questions:
was a critical factor in customer satisfaction.

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping 7

1. What is the present pattern of purchase of and that science uses objective techniques to
the urban educated middle class in India? discover what exist in the world” (Sullivan,
2. What are the major underlying factors 2001) has been used to analyse the major
influencing customers to purchase online factors influencing consumer behavior
in India? towards online shopping objectively through
Following are the specific objectives of this the use of established theoretical frameworks
study: and structured instruments to assess and
analyse it, upon which generalisations can
1. To develop and standardize measures be made from the findings. The study is
to evaluate customer’s behavior towards exploratory in nature as it seeks to find out the
online shopping. major underline factors affecting customers to
2. To analyze the present pattern of purchase buy online.
of the urban educated middle class.
3. To examine the major underlying factors The target population for the study comprises
influencing customers to purchase online. all individual customers purchasing from both
4. To open new areas of research. traditional and online shop in India. There is
no available statistics on the total number of
individual customers using both the ways of
Structure of the Paper
shopping in India. Keeping the above fact in
The study is organised into five sections. mind, non probability sampling technique
Section one is the introductory section has been used to select the respondent form
that covers the Concepts and Theoretical the target population. The non probability
Framework: Customer Behavior, Significance sampling technique used in this study is
of customer behavior, Models of customer quota. A sample size of three hundred (300)
behavior. Section two is review of relevant customers has been used.
literature, Problem statement, Purpose of
The questionnaires had two parts. Part A
the study, Objectives of the study, Research
consists of demographic questions and part
questions and Structure of the research paper.
B consists of statements having Likert scale
Section three is the research design and
and describing various factors influencing
methods section. It focuses on the research
customers for shopping online. These
perspectives, data collection: population,
questionnaires were distributed among
sampling, research instruments, data
customers who shop online in Delhi and
collection, and tools used for data analysis.
NCR region during Jan-August 2016.
It also identifies the hypotheses. Section four
To check the consistency of part B of the
is presentation of data and analysis of results
questionnaire, item to total correlation has
and findings. Section five is the conclusion
been used. To check the reliability of part B
and implications.
of the questionnaire, Cronbach alpha is used.
Percentage method and pie charts are used
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
for analyzing part A. Factor analysis has been
In this study positivism research philosophy used to come out with the major underlying
(Positivism has to do with the situation where factors influencing customer’s attitude for
knowledge or the world is thought to exist online shopping.
independent of people’s perceptions of it

8 Journal of General Management Research

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Table 2: Factor Analysis Model
Factors (%)
Items
Reliability Measure of the Questionnaire 1 2 3
The website provides in 1.872
The reliability of items was assessed by depth information
calculating the coefficient alpha (Cronbach,
The Website has adequate 1.460
1951), which measures the internal security Features
consistency of the items. Reliability measure I feel safe in my 1.078
was carried out using SPSS Software and transaction with this
the SPSS output is shown in Table 2. For a website
measure not to be rejected, coefficient value It is quick & easy to .986
in all the cases should be above .7 (Nunnally. complete a transaction
1978). It can be seen that in the reliability at this
method applied here, reliability value is more I feel that my privacy is .869
than .7, i.e. .877, so it can be said that all the protected at this site
items in the questionnaire are highly reliable. This website has a good .793
selection
Table 1: Reliability Statistics
Inquires are answered .716
Cronbach’s Alpha No. of Items promptly
.877 17 The site doesn’t waste my .674
time
Factor Analysis When you have a .554
problem, the website
Factor analysis (FA) provided enhanced
shows a sincere interest in
control for assessing the extent to which items
solving it
on a factor measure one single construct
This site has competitive .488
(Ahire, Golhar and Waller, 1996). Factor prices
analysis model was run through SPSS Company is caring & .436
software and the output is shown in Table 2. ready to respond to
The factor analysis was undertaken using the customer needs
principal component extraction method with This website understands .434
Varimax rotation. The sorted rotated values my needs
of the factor loading with minimum value of The produced is delivered .360
0.5 or more have been considered. The factor by the time promised by
analysis resulted in 3 factors. The details about the company
factors, the factor name, Eigen value, and I feel comfortable surfing .342
items converged; factor lodgings and variance this site
percentage are shown in the table. You get what you order .313
from the website
Explanation of the Major The Product that .265
Underlying Factors came was represented
accurately by the website
This section discusses the major underlying Eigen Values % of 21.63 15.53 12.86
factors evolved after applying factor analysis. variance explained

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping 9

Factor 1 – Seller’s Image ease of transaction and comfortable surfing
The total variance explained by Factor 1 the site, though self efficacy was not tested in
which we name as ‘Seller’s Image’ is 21.63 our study. Earlier studies found a high level
%. It includes some 9 diverse sub factors of trust by buyers to stimulate favourable
like good selection (variable 7), quick and attitudes and behavior (Schurr & Ozanne,
easy to complete a transaction (variable 5) 1985; Anderson & Narus, 1990). Our study
feel comfortable surfing this site (variable also found that promise fulfillment (delivers
15) doesn’t waste my time (variable 9). This as promised-variable 14, you get what you
also included competitive prices (variable order from the website variable 16, the
11), delivers as promised (variable 14) you product that came was represented accurately
get what you order from the website (variable by the website-variable 17) was critical to the
16) the product that came was represented consumer buying online.
accurately by the website (variable 17) as well
as company is responsive and caring towards Factor 2: Website Safety and Security
my needs (variable 12). We can conclude
The total variance explained by this factor is
that this factor comprises of the variable
15.53% and includes sub factors regard to
related to the seller’s image, his reliability,
safety and security of the website like privacy
and convenience offered. This includes
protection (variable 6), the website provides
product assortment (This site has a good
in depth information (variable 1), the website
selection, Variable 7), this is similar to the
has adequate security features (variable 2)
study by Shwu-Ing (2003) who found that
and I feel safe in my transaction with this
convenience and selection to influence online
website (variable 4). Privacy protection was
shopping. Similar findings were reported by
the major factor for consumers as represented
Delhagen (1997) and Khatibi (2006) who
by variable 6 which had the highest mean
found that ease of search, good price/deal,
value at 2.8145, and this can be interpreted
good selection/availability, fun, impulse and
as higher trust in the website/seller will lead
customer service were reasons for people
to online purchase. This finding is the same as
shopping online.
that of Schurr & Ozane (1985) and Anderson
Gefen & Straub (2000) have looked at & Narus (1990) who found that high level of
perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness trust leads to favourable attitude and behavior
to be important to online purchasing. This is in the traditional shopping. Maignan &
similar to the ease of purchase (quick and easy Lukas (1997) research shows that the financial
to complete a transaction-variable 5 and feel risks have been cited as a main reason to
comfortable surfing this site-variable 15 as well stop internet shopping, and security has
as doesn’t waste my time-variable 9) that this become a major concern in online transaction
study finds. Song & Zahedi (2001) have also relationships (Rowley, 1999). Another
found that website quality categorized into research shows that online trust is lower than
promotion, service, information influence, self the face-to-face interactions in the physical
efficacy and resource facilitation are important store (Cassell & Bickmore, 2000), and the
for online buying. This is revalidated by this result from Cheung & Lee (2006) shows
study which finds that website quality which that trustworthiness of Internet merchant
is part of the overall seller’s image includes (perceived integrity, perceived competence,

10 Journal of General Management Research

and perceived security control) and external and providing a feedback section for customers
environment (third-party recognition and led to increase in sales. Similarly Jarvenpaa &
legal framework) have considerable impact on Todd (1997) also found that providing value
consumer trust in Internet shopping. The web added information adds incentive to people
merchant can provide third-party verification to buy online.
to E-commerce web site. If the E-commerce
web site can provide information about their
CONCLUSION
customer services, location of the office,
contact telephone number, and a help button In this study we have examined the underlying
on the web site, customers trust increases as factors influencing the online shopping of
they feel that online retailers truly exist (Lohse Indian urban middle class. From the results it
& Spiller, 1998). is clear that (a) seller’s image – his reputation,
reliability, the convenience provided by
Similarly safety features of the website (variable internet and its ease of use along with;
2) and consumer’s perception about safety (b) the website quality which provides for
whilst using the website (variable 4) was part of safe transactions and in depth information as
this factor and led to online purchases. While well as; (c) the responsiveness of the seller
earlier studies like Barcellos (1999, 2000) and towards his customers are the underlying
Zhang & Dran (2000) have classified web factors that are driving the urban middle class
design into hygiene and motivating factors. towards online shopping.
The hygiene aspects included safety features
and technical aspects while information It is interesting to find that the most
content and its organization was motivating commonly cited advantages of internet – saves
factors. Similar classification was also used time is not a major factor for Indian shoppers.
by Linag & Li (2000) who included media In our study we can see that privacy concern,
richness as the third factor. In our study we commonly associated with being a barrier to
did not distinguish between the hygiene and internet shopping, can when resolved actually
motivational aspects of the factors. Variable 1 influence people to shop online. The study is
– this website provides in-depth information also important since it reconfirms the findings
is also a part of the factor ‘Website Quality’ that the same reasons which attract a customer
and is in line with earlier studies of Grandon to certain retailers like product assortment,
& Ranganathan (2001), Cho et al. (2001) company’s responsiveness and information
and Koufaris (2002). availability are common reasons for online
shopping as well.
Factor 3: Seller’s Concern for Customer Our study did not take into the account the
This factor comprises of the seller’s concern inter-dependence of the two shopping –online
for customer as reflected by the prompt and traditional on each other. For future
answering of queries (variable 8), the research it would also be interesting to see the
website’s understanding of the customer’s influence of these two channels on each other
needs (variable 13) and interest in solving for example information search on internet
the customer’s problems (variable 10). This is but actual physical shopping or actual physical
in line with the findings of Lohse & Spiller testing of products but purchase online in the
(1998) who found that adding a FAQ section Indian context.

From Traditional Shopping to Online Shopping 11

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