Title: Innovative products on the internet: the role of trust and perceived risk

Authors: Francisco-Jose Molina-Castillo, Carolina Lopez-Nicolas

Addresses: Department of Marketing, University of Murcia, Campus de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain. ' Department of Marketing, University of Murcia, Campus de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain

Abstract: The emergence of e-commerce has brought a new opportunity for selling new products on the internet. However, little research has been conducted to analyse the implications of product innovativeness on purchase intention and other related variables such as perceived risk and website trust. The intrinsic characteristics of new products and the open nature of the internet as a transaction infrastructure can enhance the positive or negative relationships between these variables. The aim of our investigation is to assist organisations in their innovative initiatives through a survey among 1396 internet customers. According to our results, firms selling innovative products on the internet should take into account not only the positive implications on purchase intention or website trust, but also the negative consequences that can arise from the increase in customer-perceived risk. This study has proven important recommendations from academic and managerial points of view.

Keywords: e-commerce; electronic commerce; product innovation; perceived risk; website trust; internet marketing; innovative products; internet advertising; purchase intention.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIMA.2007.014797

International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, 2007 Vol.4 No.1, pp.53 - 71

Published online: 09 Aug 2007 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article