Comparing customer trust in virtual salespersons with customer trust in human salespersons

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35. Komiak S. Wang W. Benbasat B., 2005, Comparing customer trust in virtual salespersons with customer trust in human salespersons, Hawaii, IEEE 0-7695-2268-8/05.
a. Virtual salespersons (computer agents) act in a similar role in online stores as human salespersons act in physical stores. Customer trust in a salesperson is key in generating transactions and managing customer relationships.
b. In order to design a trustworthy virtual salesperson, it natural for researchers and practitioners to draw upon the rich literature on interpersonal toast.
c. These questions are important both theoretically and Practically.
i. Theoretically, the answers will affect the boundary between the human-computer interaction area and Interpersonal Interaction area.
ii. Practically, the answers will improve on how to better design virtual salespersons and how to more effectively market in online stores.
d. It is widely accepted that trust in a person can be conceptualized as trust in the person's competence, benevolence, and integrity.
e. Many other researchers believe that trust in a technological artifact still contains trust in competence benevolence, and integrity.
f. While we are concerned on both trust in computer agents and trust in human:
i. Competence Assessment: Customers ascribe competence to a trustee based on their general evaluation of the knowledge and expertise chat the trustee possesses to accomplish the tasks.
ii. Expectation Confirmation: When a trustee actions and features confirm or exceed a customer's expectations customer trust will develop
iii. Control Process: When customers feel that they have more control over a trustee, this feeling builds trust , while the feeling of less control may build distrust.
iv. Awareness of the "Unknown" Process: The process deals with how customers Process their awareness of the ‘’unknown" during their interactions with a trustee
v. Integrity Assessment: A customer ascribes integrity 'to a trustee based on observable evidence.
vi. Information Sharing: Ashen a trustee explains her reasoning process explicitly or shares detailed product information with customers, customers trust will build.
vii. Verification process: When customers are able to verify that the Information provided by a trustee is true or good, their trust builds. Lack ot' venticatlon facilities builds distrust.
viii. Media Assessment: A pleasant interface helps to build trust, while an unpleasant interface helps to build distrust.
ix. Benevolence Assessment: A customer ascribes benevolence to a trustee based on observable evidence.
x. Connection Process: 'Aphis process relates to customers' feeling of being connected to a salesperson
xi. Prediction Process: A customer assesses whether or not the trustee is reliable, consistent, and predictable
g. For practitioners, the results shed light on the design of trustworthy virtual salespersons for online shopping. In particular, three areas deserve attention
i. First, we need to maintain the agent features and capabilities that induce the benevolence assessment and control processes.
ii. Second, more agent features and capabilities need to be provided to inhibit the distrust related connection and media richness process.
iii. Third, some agent features should be carefully designed because some processes can engender both trust and distrust.