The impact of technological and non-technological features of online grocery shopping applications on purchase intention

The development of internet technologies and the widespread use of smart devices have enabled the rapid growth of online commerce, leading businesses across various sectors to offer their products and services through digital platforms. This technological transformation has significantly increased consumers' tendencies to purchase goods and services via online platforms. Businesses operating in the supermarket sector have also begun to utilize digital solutions to meet increasing demand and gain a competitive advantage. In this context, accurately analyzing consumer expectations is of critical importance for businesses offering online grocery shopping services. This study aims to examine the effects of both the technological and non- technological features of online grocery shopping applications on consumers' attitudes toward the application and their purchase intentions. In the research, the technological features of online grocery shopping applications are considered as transaction security, transaction convenience, navigation, aesthetics, and traceability, while the non- technological features are service quality, reliability, product variety, and price. The data required for the analysis were collected via an online questionnaire administered to 393 participants residing in the province of Osmaniye who use online grocery shopping applications. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify the factors to be used in subsequent analyses. The hypotheses developed in line with the research objectives were tested using regression and moderation analyses. As a result of the regression analysis, it was found that service quality, reliability, product variety, transaction security, transaction convenience and navigation, aesthetics, and traceability significantly influenced the attitude toward the application. Furthermore, the attitude toward the application was found to have a significant effect on purchase intention. According to the research findings, the most influential factor on the attitude toward the application was the aesthetic dimension. This was followed by transaction convenience and navigation, service quality, reliability, product variety, transaction security, and traceability, respectively. On the other hand, the effect of the price dimension on the attitude toward the application was found to be statistically insignificant. Accordingly, both non-technological and technological features of online grocery shopping applications were found to have a significant impact on users' attitudes toward the application. As a result of the mediation analyses, it was found that both the non-technological features (i.e., service quality, reliability, and product variety) and the technological features (i.e., transaction security, transaction convenience and navigation, aesthetics, and traceability) of online grocery shopping applications had a statistically significant and positive effect on purchase intention through the attitude toward the application. Among these factors, service quality was identified as the most influential dimension affecting purchase intention via attitude toward the application. This was followed by aesthetics, traceability, transaction convenience and navigation, reliability, product variety, and transaction security, respectively. These findings indicate that both the non-technological and technological characteristics of online grocery shopping applications influence purchase intention through their impact on users' attitudes toward the application. Keywords: Online shopping, online grocery shopping applications, service quality, exploratory factor analysis, regression analysis, mediation analysis