The Influence of Website Quality on Customer Purchase Intention through the Mediating Role of E-satisfaction and Flow Experience

Abstract:

To attract customers and ensure a competitive advantage in the e-commerce environment, it is crucial to identify which website attributes encourage customers to purchase by offering them overall satisfaction and online customer experience. Although various website attributes have been widely analysed in the literature based on traditional marketing theories, limited studies have applied the holistic view to categorise these website attributes and online consumer experience in the context of flow state. Inspired by the DeLone and McLean IS model and flow theory, this study represents the first to analyse the effect of website quality as the unified perspective of information quality, system quality, and service quality on purchase intention via the mediation of flow experience and e-satisfaction in online travel agencies. This study conducted an online survey with 442 individuals from Turkey who used an online travel agency during the last 12 months. It confirms that telepresence and enjoyment were strongly influenced by system quality and service quality. Further, telepresence and e-satisfaction had a direct effect on purchase intention, while enjoyment did not impact. E-satisfaction was strongly influenced by information quality. Service quality and system quality positively influenced satisfaction but had less significant impact. In terms of the mediation variable, telepresence had mediating effects on the relationship between system quality and purchase intention. E-satisfaction mediated the impact of information, system, and service quality on purchase intention. However, enjoyment had no mediation role in this study.  This research provides various unique contributions to the online consumer behaviour literature and e-retailers.