Explaining and Predicting the Impact of Branding Alliances and Website Quality on Initial Consumer Trust of E-Commerce Websites

Trust is a crucial factor in e-commerce. However, consumers are less likely to trust unknown websites. This study explores how less-familiar e-commerce websites can use branding alliances and website quality to increase the likelihood of initial consumer trust. We use the associative network model of memory to explain brand knowledge and to show how the mere exposure effect can be leveraged to improve a website's brand image. We also extend information integration theory to explain how branding alliances are able to increase initial trust and transfer positive effects to websites. Testing of our model shows that the most important constructs for increasing initial trust in our experimental context are branding and website quality. Finally, we discuss future research ideas, limitations, implications, and ideas for practitioners