Buying or browsing?

Abstract

Consumer selection of retail patronage mode has been widely researched by marketing scholars. Several researchers have segmented consumers by shopping orientation. However, few have applied such methods to the Internet shopper. Despite the widespread belief that Internet shoppers are primarily motivated by convenience, the authors show empirically that consumers' fundamental shopping orientations have no significant impact on their proclivity to purchase products online. Factors that are more likely to influence purchase intention include product type, prior purchase, and, to a lesser extent, gender.