Permission‐based mobile marketing and sources of trust in selected European markets

The purpose of this paper is to provide a three‐country comparison of personal and institutionally based trust as factors affecting consumers' willingness to participate in permission‐based mobile marketing.

A conceptual model of different dimensions of personal and institutionally based trust and their effect on the consumer's willingness to provide personal information and the permission to use it is tested with data from surveys of young consumers in Finland, Germany and the UK. The data were analysed by structural equation modelling (LISREL8.7).

The main factor affecting the consumers' decision to participate in mobile marketing is the company's media presence, which is a significant factor in all three countries.

While the results of this study establish the sources of trust that play a role in permission‐based mobile marketing, the study of trust in the context of mobile marketing would greatly benefit from research that addresses the process of how trust emerges and develops over time. As a company's presence in the media weighs more than the customer's own experiences or control, mobile marketers should focus on building a strong and positive media presence and image in order to gain consumers' permission for mobile marketing.

As a company's reputation conveyed by the media weighs more than the customer's own experiences, mobile marketers should focus on building a strong and positive media presence and image, and thereby gain consumers' trust.

The paper is the first international empirical investigation of the different antecedents of trust in the context of mobile marketing.