E-commerce drivers and barriers and their impact on e-customer loyalty in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES)
Abstract
The aim of this paper is threefold: first to explore the factors that significantly and positively affect the adoption of e-commerce in SMEs; second, to determine the factors that hinder the adoption of e-commerce in these enterprises; and, finally, to investigate the impact of e-commerce-related factors on e-customer loyalty. Two samples were used for the purpose of the current study, the first of which comprised 163 managers of SMEs while the second consisted of 213 customers. Data were collected via electronic questionnaires sent to the study participants. The results identified 10 drivers of e-commerce, which are customer preferences, e-commerce perceived value, partner readiness, e-commerce cost, technical expertise, customer trust, employee knowledge and experience, top management support, perceived ease of use, and organizational culture, and 7 barriers to e-commerce adoption, which are employee technology knowledge, telecommunications, connectivity cost, technical expertise, technology cost, internet security, and legal barriers. Furthermore, the results highlighted that e-commerce ethics, information quality, customer trust, user interface quality, and customer satisfaction, respectively, are the main predictors of e-customer loyalty. Basically, organizations are called to adopt e-commerce to increase their customer loyalty. However, organizations should consider the drivers of and barriers to e-commerce adoption found in the current study.
Keyword : drivers of e-commerce adoption, barriers to e-commerce adoption, factors affecting e-customer loyalty, SMEs
How to Cite
Al-Tit, A. A. (2020). E-commerce drivers and barriers and their impact on e-customer loyalty in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES). Business: Theory and Practice, 21(1), 146-157. https://doi.org/10.3846/btp.2020.11612
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
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Eid, M. I. (2011). Determinants of e-commerce customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 12(1), 78–93.
Ekanem, I., & Abiade, G. E. (2018). Factors influencing the use of e-commerce by small enterprises in Nigeria. International Journal of ICT Research in Africa and the Middle East (IJICTRAME), 7(1), 37–53. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJICTRAME.2018010103
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Gefen, D. (2000). E-commerce: The role of familiarity and trust. Omega, 28(6), 725–737. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-0483(00)00021-9
Ghobakhloo, M., Arias-Aranda, D., & Benitez-Amado, J. (2011). Adoption of e-commerce applications in SMEs. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 111(8), 1238–1269. https://doi.org/10.1108/02635571111170785
Gibbs, J., Kraemer, K. L., & Dedrick, J. (2003). Environment and policy factors shaping global e-commerce diffusion: A cross-country comparison. The Information Society, 19(1), 5–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/01972240309472
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Hallikainen, H., & Laukkanen, T. (2018). National culture and consumer trust in e-commerce. International Journal of Information Management, 38(1), 97–106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2017.07.002
Hua, N., Hight, S., Wei, W., Ozturk, A. B., Zhao, X., Nusair, K., & DeFranco, A. (2019). The power of e-commerce: Does e-commerce enhance the impact of loyalty programs on hotel operating performance? International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 31(4), 1906–1923. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-02-2018-0168
Hussein, L. A., Baharudin, A. S., Jayaraman, K., & Kiumarsi, S. (2019). B2B e-commerce technology factors with mediating effect perceived usefulness in Jordanian manufacturing SMES. Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 14(1), 411–429.
Kabanda, S. K., & Brown, I. (2015). E‐commerce enablers and barriers in Tanzanian small and medium enterprises. The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, 67(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1681-4835.2015.tb00485.x
Kahraman, N., Tunga, M. A., Ayvaz, S., & Salman, Y. B. (2019). Understanding the purchase behaviour of Turkish consumers in B2C e-commerce. International Journal of Intelligent Systems and Applications in Engineering, 7(1), 52–59. https://doi.org/10.18201/ijisae.2019151255
Kassim, N., & Abdullah, N. A. (2010). The effect of perceived service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in e-commerce settings A cross cultural analysis. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 22(3), 351–371. https://doi.org/10.1108/13555851011062269
Lawrence, J. E., & Tar, U. A. (2010). Barriers to e-commerce in developing countries. Information, Society and Justice Journal, 3(1), 23–35.
Maydeu-Olivares, A., Kramp, U., García-Forero, C., Gallardo-Pujol, D., & Coffman, D. (2009). The effect of varying the number of response alternatives in rating scales: Experimental evidence from intra-individual effects. Behavior Research Methods, 41(2), 295–308. https://doi.org/10.3758/BRM.41.2.295
McNeish, D. (2018). Thanks coefficient alpha, we’ll take it from here. Psychological Methods, 23(3), 412–433. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000144
Mueller, R. A. (2001). E-commerce and entrepreneurship in agricultural markets. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 83(5), 1243–1249. https://doi.org/10.1111/0002-9092.00274
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Osman, A., Wong, J. L., Bagge, C. L., Freedenthal, S., Gutierrez, P. M., & Lozano, G. (2012). The depression anxiety stress Scales-21 (DASS‐21): further examination of dimensions, scale reliability, and correlates. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 68(12), 1322–1338. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21908
Rahayu, R. & Day, J. (2015). Determinant factors of e-commerce adoption by SMEs in developing country: evidence from Indonesia. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 195, 142–150. https://doi.org/10.15240/tul/001/2019-1-014
Scupola, A. (2009). SMEs’ e-commerce adoption: perspectives from Denmark and Australia. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 22(1/2),152–166. https://doi.org/10.1108/17410390910932803
Sebora, T. C., Lee, S. M., & Sukasame, N. (2009). Critical success factors for e-commerce entrepreneurship: an empirical study of Thailand. Small Business Economics, 32(3), 303–316. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-007-9091-9
Senn, J. A. (2000). Business-to-business e-commerce. Information Systems Management, 17(2), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1201/1078/43191.17.2.20000301/31224.3
Srinivasan, S. S., Anderson, R., & Ponnavolu, K. (2002). Customer loyalty in e-commerce: an exploration of its antecedents and consequences. Journal of Retailing, 78(1), 41–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4359(01)00065-3
Teo, T., & Fan, X. (2013). Coefficient alpha and beyond: Issues and alternatives for educational research. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 22(2), 209–213. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-013-0075-z
Tornatzky, L. G., & Fleischer, M. (1990). The processes of technological innovation. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Van Huy, L., Rowe, F., Truex, D., & Huynh, M. Q. (2012). An empirical study of determinants of e-commerce adoption in SMEs in Vietnam: An economy in transition. Journal of Global Information Management (JGIM), 20(3), 23–54. https://doi.org/10.4018/jgim.2012070102
Wong, P. K. (2003). Global and national factors affecting e-commerce diffusion in Singapore. The Information Society, 19(1), 19–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/01972240309471
Wymer, S. A., & Regan, E. A. (2005). Factors influencing e-commerce adoption and use by small and medium businesses. Electronic Markets, 15(4), 438–453. https://doi.org/10.1080/10196780500303151
Zaied, A. N. H. (2012). Barriers to e-commerce adoption in Egyptian SMEs. International Journal of Information Engineering and Electronic Business, 4(3), 9–18. https://doi.org/10.5815/ijieeb.2012.03.02
Almousa, M. (2013). Barriers to e-commerce adoption: consumers’ perspectives from a developing country. iBusiness, 5(2), 65–71. https://doi.org/10.4236/ib.2013.52008
Alsaad, A., Mohamad, R., & Ismail, N. A. (2018). The contingent role of dependency in predicting the intention to adopt B2B E-commerce. Information Technology for Development, 25(4), 686–714. https://doi.org/10.1080/02681102.2018.1476830
Al-Tit, A. A., & Nakhleh, H. (2014). The role of e-marketing in the development of internet user attitudes toward tourist sites in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Administrative and Economic Sciences, 7(2), 25–44. https://doi.org/10.12816/0009659
Al-Tit, A. A. (2016). The impact of lean supply chain on productivity of saudi manufacturing firms in Al-Qassim Region. Polish Journal of Management Studies, 14(1), 18–27. https://doi.org/10.17512/pjms.2016.14.1.02
Al-Tit, A., Omri, A., & Bel Hadj, T. (2020). The driving factors of the social commerce intention of Saudi Arabia’s online communities. International Journal of Engineering Business Management, 12, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/1847979019899746
Al-Tit, A., Qmri, A., & Euchi, J. (2019). Critical success factors of small and medium-sized enterprises in Saudi Arabia: insights from sustainability perspective. Administrative Sciences, 9(2), 32. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci9020032
Arshad, Y., Chin, W. P., Yahaya, S. N., Nizam, N. Z., Masrom, N. R., & Ibrahim, S. N. S. (2018). Small and medium enterprises’ adoption for e-commerce in Malaysia tourism state. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(10), 1457–1557. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v8-i10/5311
Awa, H. O., Ojiabo, O. U., & Emecheta, B. C. (2015a). Integrating TAM, TPB and TOE frameworks and expanding their characteristic constructs for e-commerce adoption by SMEs. Journal of Science & Technology Policy Management, 6(1), 76–94. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTPM-04-2014-0012
Awa, H., Awara, N., & Lebari, E. (2015b). Critical factors inhibiting Electronic Commerce (EC) adoption in Nigeria: A study of operators of SMEs. Journal of Science and Technology Policy Management, 6(2), 143–164. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTPM-07-2014-0033
Bharadwaj, P. N., & Soni, R. G. (2007). E‐commerce usage and perception of e‐commerce issues among small firms: results and implications from an empirical study. Journal of Small Business Management, 45(4), 501–521. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-627X.2007.00225.x
Chuang, T. T., Nakatani, K., Chen, J. C., & Huang, I. L. (2007). Examining the impact of organisational and owner’s characteristics on the extent of e-commerce adoption in SMEs. International Journal of Business and Systems Research, 1(1), 61–80. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBSR.2007.014770
Corbitt, B. J., Thanasankit, T., & Yi, H. (2003). Trust and e-commerce: a study of consumer perceptions. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 2(3), 203–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1567-4223(03)00024-3
Daniel, E., Wilson, H., & Myers, A. (2002). Adoption of e-commerce by SMEs in the UK: towards a stage model. International Small Business Journal, 20(3), 253–270. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242602203002
Davidavičienė, V., Davidavičius, S., & Kaušinis, J. (2019). Consumer dissatisfaction structure – e-logistic perspective: Lithuania case. International Journal of Learning and Change, 11(3), 237–251. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJLC.2019.103328
Dunn, T. J., Baguley, T., & Brunsden, V. (2014). From alpha to omega: A practical solution to the pervasive problem of internal consistency estimation. British Journal of Psychology, 105(3), 399–412. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12046
Dwivedi, Y., Lal, B., & Williams, M. (2009). Managing consumer adoption of broadband: examining drivers and barriers. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 109(3), 357–369. https://doi.org/10.1108/02635570910939380
Eid, M. I. (2011). Determinants of e-commerce customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, 12(1), 78–93.
Ekanem, I., & Abiade, G. E. (2018). Factors influencing the use of e-commerce by small enterprises in Nigeria. International Journal of ICT Research in Africa and the Middle East (IJICTRAME), 7(1), 37–53. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJICTRAME.2018010103
Feindt, S., Jeffcoate, J., & Chappell, C. (2002). Identifying success factors for rapid growth in SME e-commerce. Small Business Economics, 19(1), 51–62. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1016165825476
Gefen, D. (2000). E-commerce: The role of familiarity and trust. Omega, 28(6), 725–737. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-0483(00)00021-9
Ghobakhloo, M., Arias-Aranda, D., & Benitez-Amado, J. (2011). Adoption of e-commerce applications in SMEs. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 111(8), 1238–1269. https://doi.org/10.1108/02635571111170785
Gibbs, J., Kraemer, K. L., & Dedrick, J. (2003). Environment and policy factors shaping global e-commerce diffusion: A cross-country comparison. The Information Society, 19(1), 5–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/01972240309472
Green, S. B., & Yang, Y. (2015). Evaluation of dimensionality in the assessment of internal consistency reliability: Coefficient alpha and omega coefficients. Educational Measurement: Issues and Practice, 34(4), 14–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/emip.12100
Hallikainen, H., & Laukkanen, T. (2018). National culture and consumer trust in e-commerce. International Journal of Information Management, 38(1), 97–106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2017.07.002
Hua, N., Hight, S., Wei, W., Ozturk, A. B., Zhao, X., Nusair, K., & DeFranco, A. (2019). The power of e-commerce: Does e-commerce enhance the impact of loyalty programs on hotel operating performance? International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 31(4), 1906–1923. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-02-2018-0168
Hussein, L. A., Baharudin, A. S., Jayaraman, K., & Kiumarsi, S. (2019). B2B e-commerce technology factors with mediating effect perceived usefulness in Jordanian manufacturing SMES. Journal of Engineering Science and Technology, 14(1), 411–429.
Kabanda, S. K., & Brown, I. (2015). E‐commerce enablers and barriers in Tanzanian small and medium enterprises. The Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, 67(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1681-4835.2015.tb00485.x
Kahraman, N., Tunga, M. A., Ayvaz, S., & Salman, Y. B. (2019). Understanding the purchase behaviour of Turkish consumers in B2C e-commerce. International Journal of Intelligent Systems and Applications in Engineering, 7(1), 52–59. https://doi.org/10.18201/ijisae.2019151255
Kassim, N., & Abdullah, N. A. (2010). The effect of perceived service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty in e-commerce settings A cross cultural analysis. Asia Pacific Journal of Marketing and Logistics, 22(3), 351–371. https://doi.org/10.1108/13555851011062269
Lawrence, J. E., & Tar, U. A. (2010). Barriers to e-commerce in developing countries. Information, Society and Justice Journal, 3(1), 23–35.
Maydeu-Olivares, A., Kramp, U., García-Forero, C., Gallardo-Pujol, D., & Coffman, D. (2009). The effect of varying the number of response alternatives in rating scales: Experimental evidence from intra-individual effects. Behavior Research Methods, 41(2), 295–308. https://doi.org/10.3758/BRM.41.2.295
McNeish, D. (2018). Thanks coefficient alpha, we’ll take it from here. Psychological Methods, 23(3), 412–433. https://doi.org/10.1037/met0000144
Mueller, R. A. (2001). E-commerce and entrepreneurship in agricultural markets. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 83(5), 1243–1249. https://doi.org/10.1111/0002-9092.00274
Mullane, J. V., Peters, M. H., & Bullington, K. E. (2001). Entrepreneurial firms as suppliers in business-to-business e-commerce. Management Decision, 39(5), 388–393. https://doi.org/10.1108/00251740110395679
Osman, A., Wong, J. L., Bagge, C. L., Freedenthal, S., Gutierrez, P. M., & Lozano, G. (2012). The depression anxiety stress Scales-21 (DASS‐21): further examination of dimensions, scale reliability, and correlates. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 68(12), 1322–1338. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21908
Rahayu, R. & Day, J. (2015). Determinant factors of e-commerce adoption by SMEs in developing country: evidence from Indonesia. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 195, 142–150. https://doi.org/10.15240/tul/001/2019-1-014
Scupola, A. (2009). SMEs’ e-commerce adoption: perspectives from Denmark and Australia. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 22(1/2),152–166. https://doi.org/10.1108/17410390910932803
Sebora, T. C., Lee, S. M., & Sukasame, N. (2009). Critical success factors for e-commerce entrepreneurship: an empirical study of Thailand. Small Business Economics, 32(3), 303–316. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-007-9091-9
Senn, J. A. (2000). Business-to-business e-commerce. Information Systems Management, 17(2), 23–32. https://doi.org/10.1201/1078/43191.17.2.20000301/31224.3
Srinivasan, S. S., Anderson, R., & Ponnavolu, K. (2002). Customer loyalty in e-commerce: an exploration of its antecedents and consequences. Journal of Retailing, 78(1), 41–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4359(01)00065-3
Teo, T., & Fan, X. (2013). Coefficient alpha and beyond: Issues and alternatives for educational research. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 22(2), 209–213. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-013-0075-z
Tornatzky, L. G., & Fleischer, M. (1990). The processes of technological innovation. Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
Van Huy, L., Rowe, F., Truex, D., & Huynh, M. Q. (2012). An empirical study of determinants of e-commerce adoption in SMEs in Vietnam: An economy in transition. Journal of Global Information Management (JGIM), 20(3), 23–54. https://doi.org/10.4018/jgim.2012070102
Wong, P. K. (2003). Global and national factors affecting e-commerce diffusion in Singapore. The Information Society, 19(1), 19–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/01972240309471
Wymer, S. A., & Regan, E. A. (2005). Factors influencing e-commerce adoption and use by small and medium businesses. Electronic Markets, 15(4), 438–453. https://doi.org/10.1080/10196780500303151
Zaied, A. N. H. (2012). Barriers to e-commerce adoption in Egyptian SMEs. International Journal of Information Engineering and Electronic Business, 4(3), 9–18. https://doi.org/10.5815/ijieeb.2012.03.02