University of Twente Student Theses
What a great website! : Website design and the perception of sustainability perception towards a product range of a German company
Flaschka, Mareike (2020) What a great website! : Website design and the perception of sustainability perception towards a product range of a German company.
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| Abstract: | Aim: This study aims at exploring which element on a corporate website can influence sustainability perception, purchase intention and trust level towards a product range of a company. Thus, to contribute to the field of website design, marketing, and sustainability perceptions of companies. Method: Experimental research including a questionnaire was conducted with 101 participants in a 2x2 between-subject design. Participants were exposed to one of four website conditions, entailing either a header and footer in green or blue without any eco-claim or a green or blue header and footer with a present eco-claim on the website. Thus, to study the effects of colour and claim on three dependent variables. The variables colour and claim were picked as independent variables because previous research suggested that colour, as well as an eco-claim, have beneficial effects on sustainability perception, purchase intention and trust level. The results were analysed by employing a multivariate analysis (MANOVA). Findings: The research findings show that using blue on a corporate website, especially on a landing page of a product range, has a significant effect on sustainability perception and purchase intention of consumers and influences the variables the most. No significant effect of a certain colour or an eco-claim can be detected on trust level. Therewith, using blue on a corporate website has significant effects on making a website and the products appear sustainable. Practical implications: As the study was made in cooperation with the German company EMSA GmbH, blue colour can be used by the company to adapt the corporate website and to enhance sustainability perception and purchase intention. Blue can, for example, be used in the header of a website. For trust level, further research is needed to provide more insights. Conclusion: This study and its findings provide new insights into the field of sustainability and designing corporate websites and are beneficial for marketers in the professional field. Furthermore, contradicting previous research that suggests that blue and not green shall be used on a website to increase sustainability perception. Further, the study disagrees with blue being perceived as trustful which was found out in previous research. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 05 communication studies |
| Programme: | Communication Studies BSc (56615) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/81597 |
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