Tailored Avatar Presence Increases Satisfaction for Lonely E-commerce Shoppers

Abstract

One key factor that enhances the customer experience in retail settings is the presence of sales staff. However, in e-commerce environments where human sales staff are absent, it is unclear how an avatar-like assistant might impact customer satisfaction with the shopping experience. Prior research demonstrates how anthropomorphic avatars can enhance consumers’ purchasing intentions and attitudes toward products in online environments such as online shopping sites. However, it is unclear how the presence of avatars affects customer experience satisfaction throughout the purchasing process through which consumers visit e-commerce sites. Some studies have revealed that consumers feel a sense of interference when interference manifests in their online shopping experiences. Therefore, depending on the context and personal characteristics of consumers, the presence of avatars may be beneficial. This study conducted two experiments on a simulated online shopping site to examine customer experiences. The results suggest that the evaluation of an avatar’s presence varies depending on the stage of the purchasing process. Furthermore, it was found that for consumers with a high level of loneliness, higher frequencies of avatar appearances enhance customer satisfaction, whereas for consumers with a low level of loneliness, lower frequencies of avatar appearances lead to greater satisfaction. These findings may be beneficial for designing customer journeys to enhance satisfaction in e-commerce shopping experiences.