Introducing Media Richness into an Integrated Model of Consumers' Intentions to Use Online Stores in Their Purchase Process

The objective of this study was to develop and empirically test a conceptual framework designed to explain consumers' intentions to use online stores in their purchase process. The proposed model integrates the variables that were identified from a literature review and introduces a new dimension: perceived media richness. An online survey was carried out and data from 749 consumers was collected and analyzed by applying structural equation modeling techniques. The results provide empirical support for media richness theory in a commercial context and for causal relationships explaining consumers' intentions to use online stores in their information search and transaction tasks. Managerial and theoretical implications are discussed.