Investigation in the role of product description towards actual purchase behavior in cross-border e-commerce of Vietnamese customers of generation Y and Z: applying the hierarchy of effects model

Abstract

Cross-border e-commerce has grown rapidly in recent years, creating many economic benefits for sellers and consumers. To keep up with this scenario, sellers need to improve product awareness to improve consumer interest and behavior. There are very few studies that focus on the influence of product descriptions on actual purchasing behavior in E-Commerce. Therefore, the exploitation and research on this topic is necessary. This study uses Hierarchy of Effects (HOE) Theory as well as Commitment – Involvement Theory to evaluate the role of product descriptions in the actual purchasing behavior of Vietnamese consumers of generations Y and Z The study used qualitative research methods combined with quantitative research, based on the scales referred from previous studies to build preliminary scales. The author team synthesized 300 valid survey responses from the official questionnaire built on the adjusted scale. Based on the built-in theory, the research model was originally proposed with 7 components. After the steps of extracting the factor, verifying the composite reliability, factor loadings and the average variance extracted of the component scales, the official model has 5 components compared to the original. The results of SEM analyzed via SmartPLS 3.0 show that there is an intervariable relationship between: Product description, Enduring Involvement, Perceived Trust, Purchase Intention and Actual Purchase.