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Study of E-Services Quality and Customer Loyalty: A Moderated Mediation

Model of Perceived Switching Cost and E-Satisfaction

Article  in  International Journal of Business Information Systems · January 2020

DOI: 10.1504/IJBIS.2020.10034351

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Int. J. Business Information Systems, Vol. X, No. Y, xxxx 1

Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty:

a moderated mediation model of perceived switching
cost and e-satisfaction

Deepika
Department of Commerce,
PGDAV College,
University of Delhi, India
Email: deepikakumari656@gmail.com

Shashank Vikram Pratap Singh

Department of Commerce,
Delhi School of Economics,
University of Delhi, India
Email: ssvikrampratap@gmail.com

Sumanjeet Singh
Department of Commerce,
Ramjas College,
University of Delhi, India
Email: sumanjeetsingh@gmail.com

Binod Kumar Rajak*

School of Management Studies,
University of Hyderabad, India
Email: binodkumarhr@gmail.com
*Corresponding author

Abstract: The internet has given birth to the new industry called online
retailing, which involves vend via the internet. It is hot and fastest-growing
industries and can grab the attention of retailers as well as customers. Despite
this tremendous attention, the success rate did not meet the expectations. The
association between e-service quality (E-SQ) and customer loyalty (CL) has
remained ambiguous due to contradictory empirical results and how the
relationship between these two variables get affected when e-satisfaction (E-S)
and perceived switching costs (PSCs) also comes into the picture. There is such
study which talks about the moderated mediation effect of PSC and E-S
between E-SQ and CL. Data collected from 242 respondents who entertain
him/her self-shopping over the internet. The results exhibited that all three
constructs have strong association along with the mediating effect of E-S, but
we did not find the moderating role of PSC. Implication, limitation and future
study have explained in this investigation.

Copyright © 20XX Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

2 Deepika et al.

Keywords: perceived switching costs; PSCs; e-service quality; E-SQ;

mediation and moderation e-satisfaction; customer loyalty.

Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Deepika, Singh, S.V.P.,

Singh, S. and Rajak, B.K. (xxxx) ‘Study of e-services quality and customer
loyalty: a moderated mediation model of perceived switching cost and
e-satisfaction’, Int. J. Business Information Systems, Vol. X, No. Y,
pp.xxx–xxx.

Biographical notes: Deepika is a PhD Scholar in the Department of

Commerce, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. She has obtained
her MPhil from the Department of Commerce, Delhi School of Economics,
University of Delhi. Currently, she is working as Assistant Professor at the
Department of Commerce, PGDAV College, University of Delhi. She
published many research article in international peer-reviewed journals, and her
area of specialisation is marketing, consumer behaviour.

Shashank Vikram Pratap Singh is a PhD Scholar in the Department of

Commerce, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He is currently
working as an Assistant Professor (Guest Faculty) in the Department of
Commerce, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He has authored
many research article peer-reviewed national and international journals and his
area of expertise in marketing and finance.

Sumanjeet Singh is presently with the Department of Commerce at Ramjas

College, University of Delhi, India. He has authored more than 110 research
papers for various national and international journals of repute and presented
papers in many national and international conference. He has reviewed paper
from leading publication including Elsevier, Springer, Inderscience, IGI and
IEEE. He has completed 2 Innovation research projects funded by Cluster
Innovation Centre, University of Delhi and one funded by ICSSR. One major
research project has been awarded to him (2019) under the scheme IMPRESS
by ICSSR.

Binod Kumar Rajak is a Doctoral Scholar at the School of Management

Studies, University of Hyderabad, India. He holds dual graduation in Personnel
Management and Industrial Relation from the Patna University and Master of
Commerce from te Indira Gandhi National Open University. He has more than
five years of experience in teaching for UGC NET for Management, Commerce
and HRM with various capacities in various institutions. He has published
many research article in international peer-reviewed journals and continue the
research in the area of organisational psychology, social media marketing,
academic performance, education and smartphone usage.

1 Introduction

In the era of fierce competition, the notion of loyalty has achieved a significant amount of
attention both from academicians and from business firms. The loyalty and satisfaction
concept becomes critical when it comes to the virtual world. Customer loyalty (CL) in the
virtual environment can be explained as an encouraging attitude towards the seller and
will make repeat purchases from the same service provider. Numerous studies have
explained the importance of CL in the virtual environment (Kim et al., 2009; Kassim and
 Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty 3

Abdullah, 2010). Also pointed by Reichheld and Sasser (1990), a business firm can
accelerate more than 75% profits by an improvement in customer retention just by 5%
[cited by Aydin and Özer, 2005; Chan et al., (2001), p.5]. The loyal customer also does
not change service providers very frequently; instead, they are the ones who are keen to
pay even premiums price; loyal customers are the cheapest source of promotion as they
are likely to endorse the service provider to future potential customers (Ganesh et al.,
2000). Achieving CL in the virtual world is difficult to achieve as compared to traditional
brick and mortar but once the relationship has formed the profit will grow at a much
faster rate (Reichheld and Schefter, 2000).
The internet has given birth to the new industry called online retailing, which
involves buying and selling of goods via internet. It is hot and fastest-growing industries
and can grab the attention of retailers as well as customers. Despite this tremendous
attention, the success rate did not meet the expectations. Many online retailers tried their
luck over the internet, but only a few got success. The reason for their failure is that they
are not able to carry out the expectations of customers and hence, are not able to achieve
the loyalty of the customers; getting loyal customers in the online environment is a
difficult task due to lack of personal interaction. So, in getting loyal customers, online
retailers are faced with the question of what are those factors that are considered
necessary by online customers. Alternatively, in other words, what are the possible
antecedents of CL in online retailing. In finding out the antecedents of CL, the first thing
that clicks everyone’s mind is the quality of the service provider. Service quality (SQ)
has quite a high relevance in dealing with customers. Successful online retailers
understand the fact that mere presence on the online platform is not the key to get success
rather they have to continuously focus on improving SQ so that they will be valued
highly by the customers. SQ in the online environment also measured by several
dimensions as is the case with traditional brick and mortar. Online retailing websites have
become popular among Indian consumers as a result of the advent of the internet, and the
consumer relies heavily on such websites. Due to its popularity, it grabs the attention of
various service providers to invest in the Indian market but retaining the customers is a
crucial task for online retailers. It is imperative for an online seller to understand Indian
consumers and tries to find out which factors are contributing to getting and retaining
them.
SQ is a significant factor which is highly valued by both customers and marketers,
and it is different from the offline market. The measurement of SQ also differs and
depending upon the type of environment. The previous study pointed out that perceived
switching cost (PSC) may stimulus the consumer’s decision to buy the service or not
[Dick and Basu, (1994), p.106]. The prior investigation suggested that PSC play a critical
role in the strategic planning of the organisation to deal with today’s competitive
environment (Barroso and Picón, 2012). Recent exploration claimed that relationship
between SQ and CL has remained ambiguous due to contradictory empirical results
(Sachro and Pudjiastuti, 2013; Wong and Sohal, 2003; Solimun and Fernandes, 2018)
and how the relationship between these two variables get affected when moderated
mediation by PSC and e-satisfaction (E-S) also comes into the picture. Based on the
above discussion, the present research objective to explore the relationship between
e-service quality (E-SQ) and CL and moderated mediation model of PSC and E-S,
especially in the Indian market.
4 Deepika et al.

2 Background and hypotheses development

2.1 E-SQ
With the growth in the online retailing, the SQ has also gained immense importance in
determining the success of online retailers. There are online retailers which lose the
opportunity of earning loyal customers because of providing poor SQ. Poor SQ results in
customer frustration and hence, force them to exit. Online retailers have to retain their
customers. E-SQ helps in measuring the quality of Internet services. Like the traditional
business environment, the SQ measurement in a faceless environment determined
through various dimensions (Kim et al., 2006). Therefore, SQ is relevant in an online
environment which contributes to the success of the online retailer.
E-SQ has defined as “the extent to which a Web site facilitates efficient and effective
shopping, purchasing, and delivery of products and services” [Zeithaml et al., (2002),
p.363]. E-SQ is the arbitrated by the customers to find out the quality of service.
Shopping in the virtual marketplace is a very complicated process and includes a variety
of steps such as searching, transactions via the internet. It is unlikely that the customer
will evaluate each step and quality of the overall execution of service in the online
marketplace. It is easier for the customers to get detailed information about the product;
the importance of E-SQ has gained momentum. The customers do not want to sacrifice
the quality of the product by choosing the online marketplace for shopping over the
traditional ‘brick and mortar’ (Lee and Lin, 2005). With the rise in Internet technology,
Web is increasingly becoming a platform through with the companies make services
delivered to the customers (Casati and Shan, 2001). There is a direct interaction between
customer and website in online retailing, which has replaced the traditional interaction
between customer and service personnel (Lohse and Spiller, 2000). Customers interact
with the online store via the interface and not through any staff or personnel. Therefore,
website design acts as an interface and is an essential variable in determining the overall
service quality of the online retailer. Active website design influences the consumer’s
purchase intention also. It is how the content systematically presented to online shoppers.
The website plays a significant role in helping customers to collect the desired
information. Poor website designing may negatively influence the customer’s
satisfaction; it helps in mitigating the effect of product uncertainty (Luo et al., 2012).
Website design has defined as “an extent to which the consumer perceives
user-friendliness while shopping at an online retailer. Website usability, reliability,
access, convenience, and ease of use comprised website design” [Lin, (2007), p.367].

2.2 E-satisfaction
“Everyone knows what satisfaction is, until asked to give a definition. Then, it
seems, nobody knows.” (Oliver, 2010)
In a faceless environment, it is hard to satisfy the customers. Providing excellent services
is one way to satisfy customers. Satisfaction is a prime factor considered by the online
customer and captured the central position in marketing (Rahi et al., 2020). Satisfaction
can be the feelings about the product and service either pleasure or disappointment. In
short, customer satisfaction is the pleasure derived from the consumption of the product
or service (Churchill and Surprenant, 1982; Wong et al., 2020). Satisfaction is explained
by giving reference to the fulfilment. So, the judgment of the fulfilment requires some
 Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty 5

standards which provide the base for the comparison. Thus, satisfaction includes outcome
and comparison factors. The comparison with the outcome will identify the satisfaction
level that a customer received from the offerings. The authors defined E-S as “the
contentment of the customer concerning his or her prior purchasing experience with a
given electronic commerce firm” (Oliver, 2010). The prior investigation pointed out that
SQ considered being an essential antecedent in determining customer satisfaction (Bolton
and Drew, 1991; Aydin and Özer, 2005). A recent study has pointed out that SQ has a
significant association with customer satisfaction (Solimun and Fernandes, 2018). A
recent study has explained that E-SQ has a significant association with customer
satisfaction (Agrawal et al., 2019). This implies that quality of the services directly
associated with the customer satisfaction, so the two factors are deemed to have a
positive relationship (Chang et al., 2009). Therefore, the framed hypothesis is:
H1 E-SQ has a positive impact on E-S.

2.3 CL
Attaining CL is essential for both customers and firms. Relevant for customers as it
decreases the time in searching for new alternatives or getting some loyalty points from
the retailers. Loyal customers are advantageous for firms. There are numerous benefits to
achieving CL. Loyal customer repeat purchases with positive attitudes to repurchase the
brand (Khan, 2013). The question now arises how to make a loyal customer or what are
the possible antecedents of CL. Satisfaction deliberated as the primary antecedent in
achieving loyalty of customers, but once loyalty achieved customer satisfaction becomes
less critical. Prior investigation has explained that E-S considered being an essential
antecedent of CL (Anderson and Srinivasan, 2003). Recent research examines and
suggested that E-SQ have a positive association with CL in telecom setting (Zhou et al.,
2019). However, the previous exploration suggested that providing high-quality services
will lead to higher CL (Wong and Sohal, 2003). A recent study pointed that satisfaction
leads to CL (Ramesh et al., 2020). Recent investigation explained that loyalty is a
behavioural intention and has an association with E-S (Wibowo, 2019; Walvekar and
Kamble, 2019). Satisfaction always stays the central point for the consumer, either it is
traditional consumer or consumer over the internet. A recent study has proven the
mediating role of satisfaction in the relationship service orientation and CL (Solimun and
Fernandes, 2018). Previous exploration has examined the mediation impact of E-S
between the E-SQ and E-loyalty (Wibowo, 2019). That is reason researcher frame the
below hypotheses.
H2 E-SQ has a positive impact on CL.
H3 E-S positively impacts CL.
H4 E-S mediates the relationship between E-SQ and CL.

2.4 PSC
Switching behaviour can explain as the termination of the relationship by the consumer
with the service provider. Switching costs is “onetime costs that consumers associate
with the process of switching from one provider to another” [Burnham et al., (2003),
p.110]. Switching costs comprise the loss of the benefits because of terminating a
6 Deepika et al.

relationship and switching over another vendor. The previous study pointed out that
switching coast is one of the reasons for customer stays with the current vendor/seller
(Pick and Eisend, 2014). The costs are the difference in amount and time from one
vendor to another are termed as switching costs (Shaik et al., 2020). PSC can act as a
barrier to changing from one vendor to another (Deng et al., 2010). Switching costs do
not need to be always monetary; rather it could be non-monetary; for example, search
costs or learning costs (Lam et al., 2004; Shaik et al., 2020). The past research has
established a negative moderation effect of PSC on the association of satisfaction and
loyalty (Yang and Peterson, 2004). Prior study has also pointed out that PSC not
moderated between the commitment and WOM (Han and Ryu, 2012). A recent study
revealed that PSC moderated the association between the CS and switching intention
(Mannan et al., 2017). With above extensive discussion, we can see the ambiguity
concerning the moderating effect of PSC in the different investigation and PSC is one of
the imperative element to study the CL that’s the reason we have considered as a
moderator in our study.
H5 The relationship between E-SQ and CL gets stronger when PSCs comes into the
picture.
H6 PSC moderate the relationship between E-S and CL.

Figure 1 Proposed model

2.5 Proposed model

The proposed model discusses various variables that contribute to gaining CL. The
related hypotheses for each of the conceptualised construct have established. The
discussion first starts from E-SQ, E-sat, CL and PSC. The model consists of mediating
role of E-sat between E-SQ and CL and regulating impact of PSC between E-sat, E-SQ
and CL.
 Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty 7

3 Methodology

3.1 Data and measurements scale

The present study aims to establish relations among the variables by examining the
framed research hypothesis. Data collected from Indian consumers who use online
retailing websites. Data has collected through a comprehensive questionnaire via online
survey method. The adopted and modified accordingly to suit the needs of the present
study. Three item scale of PSC from Liu (2006); the four-item scale of E-S from Chou
et al. (2015); seven-item scale for measuring the E-SQ and five item scale for Loyalty
from which is on five-point Likert scale (Parasuraman et al., 2005).
Rigorous pre-testing of the questionnaire has done to establish validity. A short
questionnaire included with the initial invitation of 27 online shopaholics and suggested
changes made. After doing pre-testing, a final questionnaire circulated among 660
consumers via Google link. The respondents guided to give responses based on their
experience of using the online retailing website. Out of 660 consumers, 272 consumers
replied (41% response rate) to the questionnaire. After further analysis of the data, 30
respondents rejected due to various reasons such as missing data or have not used any
retailing website, and the final usable data is 242 consumers to conduct the present study
which is adequate data for further analysis (Hair et al., 2009).

3.2 Methods
The collected data and analysed by applying SEM in AMOS. SEM consists of two steps:
at the first stage, CFA did which used to establish the reliability and validity of the data
(although internal reliability established by using Cronbach alpha) and the second stage
deals with regression analysis.

4 Data analysis

4.1 Descriptive analysis

The demographic details (see Table 1) of the respondents; male respondents were 114,
and female respondents were 128. The majority response rate is 20–25 years, with a
response rate of 25.6% (62 out of 242) followed by the age group of 25–30 where the
response rate is 23.1%. Coming to the educational qualification, the respondents with
postgraduate degree outnumbered others with the response rate of 49.2% (119). The
collected data reveals that 28.5% (69) of the respondents have the income level between
3L–6L (INR) per annum closely followed by the income level of 6L–9L (INR) where the
response rate is 28.1%. The table also reveals the working status of the respondents.
41.3% (100) of the respondents are students, and 35.1% (85) of the respondents are
serving as an employee.
8 Deepika et al.

Table 1 Demographic profile

Variable Category Frequency Percentage

Gender Male 114 47.1
Female 128 52.9
Age 15–20 46 19.0
20–25 62 26.0
25–30 56 23.0
30–35 31 13.0
Above 35 47 19.0
Educational qualifications High school 25 10.3
Graduate 63 26.0
Post graduate 119 49.2
Others 35 14.5
Annual household income Less than 300,000 (INR) 49 20.2
300,000–600,000 (INR) 69 28.5
600,000–900,000 (INR) 68 28.1
More than 900,000 (INR) 56 23.1
Working status Students 100 41.3
Employee 85 35.1
Self-employed 11 4.5
Professionals 38 15.7
Others 8 3.3

4.2 Measurement model

Cronbach alpha considered being the best measure to check the internal reliability of the
constructs. Hair et al. (2009) suggested that the reliability of the constructs should not
less than 0.7. All the constructs are coming out to be higher than 0.7, i.e., E-SQ – 0.89,
E-S – 0.82, CL – 0.86 and PSC – 0.77. But the value is not very far from 0.7, it takes into
consideration for further investigation. CFA conducted to examine the composite
reliability and AVE are analysed for the reliability and convergent validity. AVE checked
to establish convergent validity. Square root AVE must be higher than other constructs
correlation (Fornell and Larcker, 1981).
At the first step, dimensions under E-SQ were estimated and further tested the model
reliability and validity. Cronbach alpha for all the dimensions is coming out to greater
than 0.7, which established the internal reliability. Second, reliability was further
analysed from CR, which should be greater than 0.7 and validity by looking at values of
AVE which should be greater than 0.5. The model established convergent validity.
However, there are specific issues in establishing discriminant validity. In the words of
Nunkoo et al. (2017, p.2986) “in a second-order factor model, one cannot demonstrate
discriminant and convergent validity at the same time because of the highly correlated
factors.”
 Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty 9

The results established the overall fit of the model. The chi-square value is 437.109,
and DF is 181. Value of CMIN/DF is 2.415, RMR is 0.041, CFI is 0.930 and RMSEA is
0.077. All the values are closer to the threshold limits, and hence, it suggests the good
overall fit of the model. After getting the results from the E-SQ model, the overall fit
model has tested. Some items have deleted to improve the overall fit of the model, and
desirable results have obtained. The hypothesise model’s reliability and validity have
checked, and the values of CR and AVE is above the recommended level. Discriminant
validity has also been checked here along with convergent validity, and there are no
issues regarding reliability and validity. The results show in Table 2. Fit indices
calculated by CFA to assess the model fitness, the overall model chi-square value is
964.496 and 449 DOF having statically significant p-value. However, the normed
chi-square, i.e., DOF value, should not exceed 3, our DOF value is 2.148. Other indices
such as RMSEA, RMR and CFI have also used to assess the model fitness (Table 3). The
values of RMSEA are less than 0.10; the value is acceptable. The values of RMR and CFI
are also nearer to the threshold limit. Hence, the overall fit of the measurement model
shows the good model fit as a result of which we can move further towards working on
the structural model.
Table 2 Construct reliability and validity

CR AVE MSV MaxR (H) PSC E-SQ E-S CL

PSC 0.811 0.594 0.072 0.855 0.771
E-SQ 0.933 0.738 0.503 0.950 0.156 0.859
E-S 0.867 0.686 0.669 0.868 0.269 0.709 0.828
CL 0.934 0.739 0.669 0.937 0.215 0.698 0.818 0.860

Table 3 Model fit indices

Category Index Observed value Acceptable value References

Chi square Chi square 964.496 Lower the better Hu and Bentler (1999)
Degrees of 449 - -
freedom
CMIN/DOF 2.148 <3 Hu and Bentler (1999)
Absolute fit RMSEA 0.069 <0.05 good; Hu and Bentler (1999)
indices 0.05–0.10
moderate;
>0.10 bad
<0.08 Awang (2012)
RMR 0.070 0.08 Hu and Bentler (1999)
Incremental CFI 0.911 >0.09 good Hu and Bentler (1999)
fit indices and Awang (2012)

4.3 Hypotheses testing

The structural model provides a basis for hypotheses testing. In order to avoid
complexity, data imputation has used to conduct further analysis. All the values of
unobserved variables calculated in data imputation, and these calculated values will use,
which gives similar results as the regular model. All the constructs are correlated with
10 Deepika et al.

each other, whereas some of the constructs not correlated in the structural model.
Therefore, it is appropriate to check the overall model fit. Fit indices indicate that the
overall model is fit. The present study examined the association of E-SQ and CL
mediated by E-S and the moderating impact of PSC
a E-SQ
b E-S and CL.
The empirical results showed that E-SQ positively affects E-S (β = 0.876, p < 0.05) and,
CL (β = 0.939, p < 0.05), supporting H1 and H2. H3 relates to the link between E-S and
CL, and the empirical results support the link (β = 0.968 and p < 0.05). When testing the
mediation effect of E-S between E-SQ and CL, the study found a positive result. The
impact of E-SQ on the CL is much less when both, i.e., E-S and E-SQ took as the
independent variable, and the value of R has significantly improved. Although, we cannot
claim perfect mediation as the beta value for E-SQ is still significant (p < 0.05), but the
beta value has declined considerably (from 0.939 to 0.222), thereby, confirming the
partial mediation. Hence, we can say that E-SQ acts upon CL via E-S and supporting H4.
The study further checks the moderation effect of PSCs using process tool (Hayes, 2018).
The results show that PSC does not moderate on the relationship between E-S and CL,
since the interaction effect is coming out to be insignificant (p > 0.05). Similar results had
obtained when moderation checked between E-SQ and CL. The interaction is coming out
to be insignificant (p > 0.05), thereby, not supporting H5 and H6.
Table 4 Hypothesis results

Hypotheses Results
H1 E-service quality has a positive impact on e-satisfaction Supported
H2 E-service quality has a positive impact on customer loyalty Supported
H3 E-satisfaction positively impacts customer loyalty Supported
H4 E-satisfaction mediates the relationship between e-service quality Partially supported
and customer loyalty
H5 The relationship between service quality and customer loyalty gets Not supported
stronger when customers have low perceived switching costs
H6 The relationship between e-satisfaction and customer loyalty gets Not supported
stronger when customers have low perceived switching costs

5 Discussion and implication

The study developed a frame to analyse the impact of E-SQ on E-S and CL and also tried
to answer the question of whether E-SQ acts via E-S on CL or not. First, the effect of
E-SQ has been checked on E-S and found to be significant which goes in line with the
literature (Lee and Lin, 2005; Chang et al., 2009). Therefore, E-SQ is one of the primary
antecedents of E-S, as evidenced by empirical literature. Next, the impact of E-SQ on CL
is also significant, which proves that E-SQ is also one of the factors determining CL. The
study points toward the positive relationship shared between E-SQ and CL. The results
throw some light on the relationship between the two variables as the past literature is
quite ambiguous in their relationship. The study contributes to finding out the mediating
 Study of e-services quality and customer loyalty 11

effect of E-S between E-SQ and CL. The empirical evidence shows a positive result
which implies that E-SQ acts via E-S on CL (Solimun and Fernandes, 2018). Although
perfect mediation not established, the study claims the partial mediation of E-S. It
empirically proved that by improving the quality of the services provided, the retailers
would be able to please the customers and make them stickier towards them. Therefore,
E-SQ is an essential tool to satisfy the customers and get closer to them so that the
customers do not switch over to the competitors. Investing in SQ is essential in the world
of stiff competition to make the overall experience as a satisfying one. Once the
customers are satisfied, it will be smoother for the retailers to gain loyalty.
Furthermore, the study checked the moderation impact of PSCs and did not find any
support for the same. Previous literature is ambiguous over the results since some studies
support the moderation role (De Ruyter et al., 1998) and some studies exist which do not
support the moderation role (Yang and Peterson, 2004). Since the level of PSC is too low
in online retailing, it might be one of the reasons for no moderation impact otherwise in
case of services industry where PSCs are too high; it serves as a crucial variable.

5.1 Managerial implications

The study is relevant for all the online retailers who have business wings in India. First,
the study suggests certain factors which will be useful for retailers to gain CL. The results
show that it will be necessary to continuously work on several dimensions of E-SQ to
enhance CL; discussed in the present paper and simultaneously improving the overall SQ
of the services provided. To survive in the stiff competition, E-SQ serves as an essential
tool to provide the overall satisfying experience and then making the customers stickier,
i.e., attaining CL.

5.2 Limitations and future scope

Furthermore, this work is also limited by its data which collected online consumers of
Delhi-NCR, hence, lacks generalisability. Second, the present research did not bifurcate
between the male and female responses. Therefore, it is still unclear whether the gender
of the respondents will make any difference on the results obtained. This provides a
scope for the future research to analyse the model by taking male respondents and female
respondents respectively. Finally, the study did not take any specific online retailer. A
further research can be done on some specific online retailer having business in India and
also a comparative analysis can be done between two online retailers.

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