Understanding How Social-Behavioural Science Theory Can Explain the Design of Software Websites

Websites and application (app) stores are the primary gateway for users to encounter, interact, utilize, and purchase new technologies. Over forty years of diffusion and technology acceptance research from the social-behavioural sciences has provided theoretical guidelines in regards to what users evaluate while deciding to purchase a new technology. While many of these ideas are well diffused in the social science literature, however the question of whether this accumulated knowledge is actually implemented in the business world remains unanswered. The current research analyses over 200 consumer and business software app websites and evaluates the extent to which the design of software websites reflects diffusion and user acceptance theories. It appears that business software websites tend to provide comparatively more image and trialabilty information, dedicate a proportionally greater percentage of their website space to providing ease of use and social influence information, while consumer software websites focus more on the software's compatibility and provide more usefulness information.