Feeling Close From Afar: The Role of Psychological Distance in Offsetting Distrust in Unfamiliar Online Retailers

• Online sales for hybrid retailers exceed those of pure, online retailers.
• Distrust of pure etailers is a key reason behind the hybrid retailer advantage.
• Etailers can manage psychological distance in ways that increase trust perceptions.
• Tangibility and social proximity can be used to reduce psychological distance.
• Simple and readily available website images offset the hybrid retailer advantage.

E-commerce offers retailers the opportunity to attract new customers online; however, consumer distrust toward unfamiliar retailers can seriously impede these efforts. Construal Level Theory suggests that such distrust can be partially understood in terms of psychological distance, and that reducing psychological distance using simple website tactics should overcome distrust and encourage first-time purchases. Studies 1 and 2 show a physically distant retail store, or lack of a physical store altogether, contribute to psychological distance, distrust, and reluctance to purchase online. Studies 2 and 3 further show that website images of an office building (increased tangibility), or the owner's name and appearance (social proximity), can improve trust and purchase intentions by specifically reducing the psychological distance otherwise associated with purely virtual or physically distant retailers.

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