Trust Transference from Brick to Click Retailers: A Conceptual Model for Impersonal Trust

Previous researches have revealed that the creation of synergy between retailers´ channels can enhance customers´ satisfaction and loyalty. Nevertheless, little is known about utilizing such synergy in inducing customers´ purchasing behavior in electronic commerce. In an attempt to address this issue, few empirical studies have been conducted on the role of trust transference from brick to click channels to understand customers´ purchasing intentions. These studies have mainly focused on interpersonal trust as a proxy of the transference process. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to articulate the importance of impersonal trust and shed light on its expected role during the transference process. Based on this, the paper presents a conceptual model for impersonal trust to identify its transferable drivers and its relationship with customers´ purchasing intentions. The proposed methodology for testing the conceptual model is also discussed in the final part of this paper.