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The majority (84 per cent) of online shoppers trust only a handful of e-commerce websites when buying goods, according to research from Avail Intelligence.

The e-commerce expert's Trust Index has revealed that almost half (48 per cent) of internet shoppers browse between ten and 20 websites before making a purchase. However, more than three quarters of shoppers only purchase regularly from five or fewer trusted websites. About half (52 per cent) of respondents only browse up to five online shopping sites regularly, while 36 per cent browse five to ten sites, 12 per cent browse ten to 20 sites, and no respondents browse 20 or more.

These results are even more pronounced when the respondents were asked how many sites they regularly purchased from: 84 per cent said they buy regularly from zero to five sites, 16 per cent buy regularly from five to 120 sites, but nobody makes regular purchases at more than ten online retailers.

More than half (52 per cent) of those questioned rated Amazon.com as the most trusted site, followed by ASOS (20 per cent).

Building consumer trust remains a critical element for e-commerce success. E-tailers must ensure their customer strategy centres around improving the online shopping experience through relevant product searches, therefore increasing the 'trust' a consumer builds up with a site.

"The e-commerce market is extremely crowded. However, our research shows that there are a golden few sites that people will return to again and again to make their purchases," said Dr Rolf Elmer, chief executive, Avail Intelligence. "Today's e-commerce customers expect more from sites than cheap prices and home delivery - tailored searches, related purchases, personalised recommendations and trusted reviews of products are essential to the buying decision. If the products they are presented with don't match their preferences, shoppers will quickly move on.

"The critical goal for any e-tailer is to get into a shopper's site shortlist, and stay there," Elmer continued. "Get it wrong and sites will remain out in the cold for a very long time."