Investigating the Effect of Social Business Characteristics on Trust and Willingness to Partnership

Objective Social business is a sub-category of electronic business that seeks social, innovative and cooperative approaches within online markets and also uses social media to attract social partnership and cooperation of such network users to support online purchasing and services. Trust is considered as an effective factor leading to successful social business. Because of the growing popularity and application of social business and the significant role it plays in online business, it is important to investigate the key factors of customers’ trust and affecting factors on customers’ intention for social business. Therefore, this study aims to respond to such a question through developing a research model to assess some key structures of social business which can have positive effects on trust among the customers. Evaluation of affective factors on such trust can help us obtain a model regarding customers’ intention for social business.   Methodology The present study is practical in nature and is considered as a descriptive-exploratory correlation study. The data were collected through library (secondary) research approaches and internet-based resources were used as the literature and theoretical foundations. The required data for tests and analysis of the hypotheses were collected through questionnaires. The statistical population of the present study includes TIWALL website users and those who are familiar with such a business model. Randomly, 210 questionnaires were correctly responded and collected through social media and structural equation modeling was used to test the hypotheses and analyze the data.       Findings Based on the results of the study, reliability, the quality of the information, safety, connections, social support, and website quality have a positive effect on forming trust and consequently on willingness to cooperate in social business; while size, economic possibility, and verbal advertisement references have no positive effect on forming trust and willingness to cooperate in social business. Finally, trust has a positive effect on willingness to cooperate in social business.   Conclusion Reliability results in trust and such trust can increase the willingness to participate in social business and ensures the success of a social business. For the users of TIWALL website, the size of social business is not of high importance, so it has no effect on trust for the social business website. The quality of the information available on the website attracts and keeps the audience, draw their trust and creats willingness to purchase and cooperate within such business. Ensuring the users about the safety of the transaction and confidentiality of the information on websites creates trust among users and encourages them toward a risk-free and beneficial partnership. Connections can lead to trust because users will be informed that some of their friends or the people they know are involved in this business, too. Therefore, they are willing to share their ideas and suggestions and take part in social business. Because the prices are reasonable on TIWALL website, this factor cannot play a significant role in creating the emotional and internal issue of trust. TIWALL website is a sales representative providing cultural products suah as theater tickets which concerns only a specific population. Such people consider themselves as stylists, so they are hardly influenced by other people and their ideas. Social support is one of the major aspects in formation of social business and directly affects on trust and encourages people to cooperate in such a business. The quality of the website, whether technically or aesthetically-driven, is of high importance. Website quality including the quality of system and services is the key in formation of a social business. Lack of trust in making decision for online shopping makes the purchasing procedure a challenge because of the risk the customer is about to take buying things which are not touchable and observable. Therefore, online shopping requires a minimum level of trust.