What Determines an E-Commerce Website as Trustworthy?

What determines an e-commerce website as trustworthy?

Trust is very important when consumers make online transactions. There are many factors we can consider to determine whether an e-commerce website is trustworthy. As trust depends very much on the perception of the consumer, some consumers may view judge the website from an aesthetic viewpoint as well, such as how professional the website is being done up, or whether it is easy to navigate.

According to a report by the eCommerce Trust Study from Studio Archetype/Sapient and Cheskin Research, the report describes 6 main components that suggest trustworthiness of an e-commerce website, which I will elaborate on my own. (Please see http://www.philosophe.com/commerce/trust.html)

Seal of Trust/Approval

Consumers can look out for seals of trust or approvals in the websites, accredited by established organizations in the industry. Symbols such as VeriSign and Visa are very common in most well-known e-commerce websites worldwide, such as Amazon.com. For local commerce websites in Singapore, the established ones will have the TrustSg symbol. These symbols will reassure the visitors that the site is verified for its security, and approved by the organizations.

Brand

How credible the merchant is can also be very important to the consumer. You will most likely feel more assured buying books from Amazon.com than a private seller on eBay. Established brand names can provide attributes that the consumer may associate with, such as on-time delivery or lowest price guaranteed. It can also suggest how long or successful the website has been, reinforcing its credibility.

Navigation

An easy to use website such that the visitor is able to find what he is looking for easily gives consumers the impression that the site knows what it is doing, such as able to facilitate to the needs of the customer.

Fulfillment

The company's policies are stated clearly. This includes information which ranges from the procedures of buying from them, how payment will be processed or delivery made such that