The effects of trust assurances on consumers’ initial online trust: A two-stage decision-making process perspective

• Displaying trust assurances positively affects consumers’ initial online trust.
• There exist interaction effects of type and displaying phase of assurances on trust.
• Consumers’ knowledge of trust assurances influences initial online trust.

This research examines the effects of type and displaying phase of trust assurances on consumers’ initial trust in an online retailer. We propose a two-stage formation process of initial online trust. The main effects of trust assurances on initial trust and the interaction between type and displaying phase of trust assurances are explored. We conducted a laboratory experiment to test our hypotheses. The results demonstrate that there exist positive effects of displaying trust assurances on initial trust. In particular, general trust assurances perform better when displayed in the information-searching stage, while specific trust assurances lead to higher initial trust when displayed in the choice stage. In the context of providing trust assurances, consumers’ knowledge of trust assurances exerts a direct and positive effect on initial trust. High knowledge level of trust assurances helps to generate the advantage of displaying assurances in the right stage. These findings have several important implications for research and practice.