There are many tangible (price, quality, features) and intangible attributes (experience, satisfaction, style, image) which affects the behaviors of consumers online. They can be divided into 5 categories by which are as follows:
• Value Proposition is one of the important attribute and it reflects the level of commitment the firms are having towards the customers during the product offering process. The needs of the customers are fulfilled at this stage helps to attract the customers to buy the product and engage with the company. The brand image of the company is enhanced when the company is able to maintain high level of interactivity with the customers leading to stronger relationship with the customers.
• Brand Building: Due to immense choices the customers are having while they purchase products online it is the website design and ease of use that attract the customers and visit the site again and again. This is the face of the firm and product portfolio offered in front of customers helps to develop a superior brand image of the firm. The firms use unique tools like similar products for use or offering on the basis of the previous purchase like Amazon has helped them to attract customers. The website content and the ease of remembering the site helps to build the brand image. Many companies are now offering translation tools to attract non native customers to buy the product and even different sites for different regions/countries have been developed.
• Trust and Security: This is of paramount importance for the customers to feel secure while purchasing the product as the customers are not aware of physical location of the seller. This is a challenge for new firms to make their position in the market as many customers don’t want to take risk on new sites for purchasing products. The age of the domain is also important as old domain sites are expected to be more trustworthy. Although it is expensive to maintain sites for a longer period of time but this is cheaper than opening physical stores for a longer duration even with less profits. So it is important that the online sites should use secure tools like encryption security, trust certificates from reputed sites, secure transmission of data while purchasing.
• Website and Technology: The design of the website plays an important role in creating first impression for consumers. Most of the firms attract customers by using pleasant designs and soothing design patterns to look professional. Pilot test is usually conducted before the final launch to see the result on consumers. The first impression that a website creates with its design plays a critical role. One step checkout is also important for the customers to quickly purchase the product and visit again or refer to others. It is also important that there won’t be lot of adverts on the site and good search facility for easy selecting the products. Most of the sites have started offering customized profile for the customers so the users can select their own theme on their sites like colors or pictures or type of products to be displayed whenever they visit the site. They use the support of cookies and sessions to handle the separate and secure interaction with the customers.
• Customer Service: This is also a prime driver to motivate the customers to visit again, as this has been discussed before. Problem solving or other additional data given by the online support helps to maintain relationship with customers. It is a common trend to outsource the customer care support to other firms who maintain rapport with the customers and provide support on the basis of the products of the website. The online shoppers want convenience or quick answers so audio help by phone is also possible &Call Me feature makes it easy for customers to get call back from the websites at a scheduled time. Not all the features are easy to implement but the development of technology tools and services offered by other firms make it relatively easy to provide additional features at a price.