Effects of consumer characteristics and product presentations on online apparel impulse buying

ABSTRACT In the current study, we examined three consumer characteristics (i.e. perceived hedonic value of apparel, perceived symbolic value of apparel, and impulsive apparel shopping tendency) and ten online product presentation methods (i.e. organized product displays, attractive product displays, detailed product descriptions, large images, good quality pictures, products pictured from various angles, products pictured in all available colours, images that coordinate various items, helpful size charts, and a visual model) to understand the interactions between themselves and their relationships with online apparel impulse buying. The data were collected by an online survey that involved U.S. college students of ages 18 to 22 who had purchased apparel online within the past six months, and 262 useful responses were received. The results show that perceived hedonic value and symbolic value of apparel are antecedents of impulsive apparel shopping tendency. Impulsive tendency is a predictor of online apparel impulse buying. Three of the ten product presentation methods have both significant direct effects on online apparel impulse buying and moderating effects on the relationship between impulsive tendency and impulse buying. Four presentation methods do not have significant direct effects but have significant moderating effects, making the effect of impulsive tendency on impulse buying stronger.