Breaking the Ice in B2C Relationships: Understanding Pre-Adoption E-Commerce Attraction

This research proposes that the forming of a business‐to‐consumer (B2C) customer relationship is part of a multiphased technology adoption process where attraction is the first step in this sequence. A conceptual model, called the electronic commerce (e‐commerce) attraction model (eCAM), offers a theoretical foundation for guiding two empirical studies (N = 345 and N = 240, respectively) investigating how initial customer perceptions of a website influence attraction toward this website. The results support the eCAM as a new theoretical lens for understanding electronic commerce‐based attraction. Comparisons are made between the proposed eCAM and previously established adoption models (i.e., the Technology Acceptance Model and WebQual) as well as the discriminant validity of the constructs in these models. Results demonstrate that the eCAM provides additional insights for understanding how website design influences e‐commerce attraction and adoption. The implications of these results for future research and website design are discussed.