The Impact of Website Design on Users’ Trust Perceptions

Abstract

With rapid digitalization, trust has become a critical issue in designing and maintaining e-commerce platforms – without trust, no transaction takes place. Companies that design for trust have a strategic advantage over competitors. Although trust is a crucial factor in e-commerce, designing a trustworthy website can be challenging for companies that make most or part of their profits online. The study builds on prior research to propose a comprehensive and up-do-date checklist. Trust components are divided into three dimensions of website design; their impact on users’ trust perceptions is studied in an online experiment with two websites. The results present demonstrable evidence that website design has a powerful impact on users’ trust perceptions. Professional design, primarily visual aspects, is responsible for creating a positive user first impression. Furthermore, additional trust is built through different dimensions of website design, increasing the likeliness of buying from the site.