Abstract

This research investigates product presentation mode influence on the process and outcomes of online shopping. The growth of online shopping brings with it cognitive challenges for consumers attempting to assess large numbers of options in purchase decisions. Further, there is little guidance for vendors in terms of presenting large numbers of product options to aid consumer decision processing and the shopping experience. In this study, online shopping is viewed as an information processing, decision task. This approach is ameliorated by looking at the experiential aspects of shopping online. Flow, the theory of optimal experience, is introduced as a lens to study experiential aspects in online shopping scenarios. This study provides guidelines to vendors for supporting consumer shopping processes and optimising consumer experience in online shops. Evidence is presented to indicate that optimising the consumer experience during their shopping trip may be of greater importance for vendors than supporting better decision processing. The findings relating to online shopper flow experience are more substantial than those relating to consumer decision behaviour, though both hold significance. Ultimately, the study shows that online shopping experiences may be influenced through the careful design of presentation modes. In our study, consumer experiences online influenced behavioural intentions to a large degree. As such, affecting the online consumer experience is a fruitful avenue for research and has important implications for online vendors.

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