Consumer perception of interface quality, security, and loyalty in electronic commerce

This study showed that switching costs positively moderated the effect of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty and thus customer loyalty to an e-commerce website.

Abstract

Customer interface quality, perceived security, and customer loyalty are critical factors for success of an e-commerce website; however, the relationships among them are not fully understood. We proposed a model for testing the relationships among them and the important outcomes of the site: switching costs and customer loyalty. Data was collected to test the model using a web-based survey, and empirical analyses were performed using SEM. The analytical results demonstrated that customer interface quality and perceived security positively affected customer satisfaction and switching costs, and thus customer loyalty to an e-commerce website. Specifically, our study showed that switching costs positively moderated the effect of customer satisfaction on customer loyalty; this moderating effect is discussed.