Understanding Consumer Trust: Issues and Challenges of E-commerce in India

Abstract

In this quantitative research paper, we explore the connection between faith in a buyer towards an online seller/website and whether they can try or test products before they buy them in the Indian e-commerce sector. A hypothesis was tested using different statistical analyses that used data from 100 participants in Delhi. The findings show a significant positive correlation between trust among buyers and their ability to try/test products (r = 0.65, p < 0.01) challenging the conventional wisdom that suggests trust develops from mechanisms established by electronic commerce firms for security purposes only. These results confirm the importance of adding new product-try options when trying to boost consumers’ assurances of safety during online transactions which leads to positive influences on trustworthiness within online purchasing scenarios for customers. In this case, the study enhances understanding of what builds the trust of customers and gives useful tips to online businesses to improve service delivery within their domains.