Cues Customers Seek in a New Website to Gain Trust towards the Brand and the Service
What cues do customers look for in a new website to gain trust towards the brand and the service?
These are the main variables to be aware of and look for as an interviewer(they are not hypothesis as such, but rather guidelines to walk by):
H1: Trustworthiness is a major factor customers asses before deciding to purchase a product or service online from, especially if it is an unknown vendor. (Theory has proven this)
H2: Website Design cues (what design cues get mentioned the most and with what attitude?) a) does it look modern b) does it look like something better known, c) is it easy to use d) is it logically laid out e) is it dynamic(vs static) – maybe how many times would you return to a site before ordering? f) Logo g) Header, Footer h) Main menu
H3: Price cues – how does the prices match with expectations – too high or too low can be both bad, to what extent does price signal quality and trustworthiness?
H4: Delivery/Returns schemes a) does the delivery structure match expectations? b) does the delivery structure match competitors’? H5: Textual Content a) How does Quantity of content affect trustworthiness? b) How does Quality of content affect it? c) Is the text engaging? H6: Photographic content: a) Again quality versus quantity? b) Dry(functional) versus lifestyle(edgy, dynamic)? H7: Mission statement: Clear mission statement, value proposition, eco & diversity programmes? H8: Social network connectivity: Number of social networks active in, how active those feeds are?, number of followers? H9: Testimonials: Number versus quality and believability? a) Customer reviews/ Product reviews b) Testimonials from “famous” people H10: About us page: a) To what extent the story behind the company is important? Maybe it is not going to give a plus, but it could hurt reputation if its bad? H11: Origin of products? – how influential is the “made in” statement?
These are the main variables to be aware of and look for as an interviewer(they are not hypothesis as such, but rather guidelines to walk by):
H1: Trustworthiness is a major factor customers asses before deciding to purchase a product or service online from, especially if it is an unknown vendor. (Theory has proven this)
H2: Website Design cues (what design cues get mentioned the most and with what attitude?) a) does it look modern b) does it look like something better known, c) is it easy to use d) is it logically laid out e) is it dynamic(vs static) – maybe how many times would you return to a site before ordering? f) Logo g) Header, Footer h) Main menu
H3: Price cues – how does the prices match with expectations – too high or too low can be both bad, to what extent does price signal quality and trustworthiness?
H4: Delivery/Returns schemes a) does the delivery structure match expectations? b) does the delivery structure match competitors’? H5: Textual Content a) How does Quantity of content affect trustworthiness? b) How does Quality of content affect it? c) Is the text engaging? H6: Photographic content: a) Again quality versus quantity? b) Dry(functional) versus lifestyle(edgy, dynamic)? H7: Mission statement: Clear mission statement, value proposition, eco & diversity programmes? H8: Social network connectivity: Number of social networks active in, how active those feeds are?, number of followers? H9: Testimonials: Number versus quality and believability? a) Customer reviews/ Product reviews b) Testimonials from “famous” people H10: About us page: a) To what extent the story behind the company is important? Maybe it is not going to give a plus, but it could hurt reputation if its bad? H11: Origin of products? – how influential is the “made in” statement?
References: Adams, Anne and Cox, Anna L. (2008). Questionnaires, in-depth interviews and focus groups. In: Cairns, Paul and Cox, Anna L. eds. Research Methods for Human Computer Interaction. Cambridge, UK:Cambridge University Press, pp. 17–34. McCracken, Grant, (1988) Qualitative Research Methods 13: The Long Interview, SAGE Publications, Inc. doi: 10.4135/9781412986229