Trust development in e‐services: a cohort analysis of Millennials and Baby Boomers
Abstract
Purpose
Building trust is crucial for e‐service providers looking to develop long‐term customer relationships. But consumers from dissimilar demographic groups behave differently. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the question, how do consumers from different generational cohorts develop trust in a website?
Design/methodology/approach
An experimental study focuses on the navigation, vendor advice, privacy, and feedback mechanisms of an e‐tailer website. The between‐subjects design tests the effects of these four drivers on the online trust of 197 Millennials and 201 Baby Boomers.
Findings
The presence of feedback mechanisms, navigation, and vendor advice are stronger determinants of online trust for Millennials than for Baby Boomers; privacy is a stronger determinant for Baby Boomers.
Research limitations/implications
This study focuses on four crucial variables of the website interface; further research should include other variables. Extensions to other e‐service settings, beyond online retailers, would be interesting. Finally, this study includes only Millennials and Baby Boomers rather than members of other generations.
Practical implications
The results provide insights into how different generational cohorts dissimilarly develop online trust and highlight the need for managers to consider the online behaviors of cohorts when developing websites. Managers should emphasize the privacy elements for Baby Boomers but highlight navigation, vendor advice, and feedback mechanisms for Millennials.
Originality/value
This study is the first to research generational differences in the development of trust online.
Keywords
Citation
Obal, M. and Kunz, W. (2013), "Trust development in e‐services: a cohort analysis of Millennials and Baby Boomers", Journal of Service Management, Vol. 24 No. 1, pp. 45-63. https://doi.org/10.1108/09564231311304189
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited