Determinants of customers' online purchase intention: an empirical study in India

According to Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), the size of the Indian online retail industry is INR 2000 crore and the industry is projected a steady annual growth rate of 35 per cent to reach INR 7000 crore by 2015. Given the growing importance of the online retail industry in India, it remains imperative for web retailers and internet marketers to understand the determinants of online customers' purchase intention to decipher what is important to the Indian online customer. This paper attempts to identify the determinants of online purchase intention among youth in the Indian context.

Based on a detailed literature review, customer online purchase intention shopping orientation factors such as impulse purchase orientation, brand orientation and quality orientation were considered along with online trust and prior online purchase experience. The results are based on 95 valid responses received from the online survey.

The research established that impulse purchase orientation, prior online purchase experience and online trust have significant impact on the customer purchase intention. Males are found to have more intention to shop online than females.

A bigger and more representative sample which includes respondents from all walks of life would have been appropriate though the internet savvy students contribute the major share of online buyers.

The study has implications for web‐retailers, marketing managers, internet marketers, online vendors and web‐shoppers in India. Indian online shoppers typically tend to seek offers and great value price deals instead of brand or quality. Online retailers may target the impulse purchase orientation nature of Indian consumers and should focus on increasing online trust.

In the Indian context, this is the first time shopping orientations have been studied with customers' online purchase intentions.