Examination of brand knowledge, perceived risk and consumers' intention to adopt an online retailer

It is important to move the attention about online retailing from a technological standpoint to a marketing perspective. The authors develop here a conceptual model based on brand theory, risk theory and information theory to understand the causal relationships among brand knowledge, perceived risk, online search action and the intention to adopt an online retailer. The proposed model was tested in an online survey, and structural equation modelling--a powerful analytical tool-- was applied to analyse the data. Results show that brand knowledge has a direct and positive effect on intention to adopt an online retailer and this effect can be mediated by perceived risk to a large extent. In addition, perceived risk also positively relates to online search action, which is important in realizing that searching for information increases the risks faced by an online retailer through an expansion of the consumers' opportunity to find more favourable choices. This model is sustainable to additional analysis after control variables, i.e. demographic profile variables, Internet use frequency and risk preference, have been taken into consideration.