The Credibility Web discovered that trust in e-commerce is
also influenced by idiosyncratic factors. Certain domain names
(org) are more trusted than others (com). Too many ads, broken
links, typos, outdated or old content - all diminish trust. In
the absence of proven markers and behavioral guidelines,
people seem to resort to extrapolation ("if they can't
maintain their own Web site ...") and stereotypes (e.g., NGO's
are more trustworthy than corporations).
As Web sites proliferate (Google indexes well over 3 billion
now) and Web authoring becomes a routine task - the noise to
signal ratio of garbage to useful information is bound to
deteriorate. Search engines already incorporate crude measures
of credibility in their rankings (e.g., the number of links
from external Web sites). But, to remain useful, search
engines (and Web directories) would do well to rate Web
content more comprehensively and thoroughly. They should rank
Web sites by authoritativeness, reliability, and objectivity,
for instance.
Research shows that 75% of all respondents resort to the
Internet as a primary information provider.
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