No abstract

Purpose This study aims to explore internet marketing adoption in emerging industrial markets across several internet-based technologies (i.e. social media platforms, static and transactional websites). Design/methodology/approach This study is mainly based on an exploratory research design and investigated the online presence of 570 industrial organizations in terms of their involvement in social media. This study also examines if websites are used for basic marketing communications (brochureware) or for conducting advanced marketing activities. An online survey is used to explore the relationships between several factors and internet marketing adoption. Findings The study found that half of the investigated organizations are using the internet as a one-way communication vehicle through static websites. The study also revealed that decision-makers in emerging industrial markets are enthusiastic about social media, particularly Facebook. In addition, internet marketing adoption was positively related to perceived relative advantage, compatibility, organizational innovativeness, competitor and customer pressure. Practical implications From practitioners’ perspectives, the findings can help decision-makers identify the current levels of involvement in internet marketing. At the macro level, the high percentage of organizations with minimum involvement in internet marketing calls for conducting awareness initiatives to educate industrial organizations, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises, about the opportunities offered by the internet. Originality/value The findings from this study enrich internet marketing research because it focuses on industrial organizations in emerging markets, which is a rarely examined context despite its importance and potential.

No abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors affecting students’ satisfaction with university portals in developing countries. The factors examined are educational services availability, user ability, system quality and information quality. Design/methodology/approach – A self completion questionnaire was developed and distributed to a sample of 550 students in several universities. Correlation and regression analysis were used to identify relationships and explore which of the factors had the strongest explanatory power. Findings – The results showed that educational services availability, system quality and information quality influence students’ satisfaction, with service availability being the major determinant. The cultural perspective was employed to explain these results. Originality/value – Understanding what students expect from a university portal should increase their satisfaction and consequently have a positive impact on universities’ performance. The results of this study also contribute to the current literature, which is very limited in developing countries. The paper concludes by discussing implications for both research and practitioners.

Purpose There is an increasing interest in the role of business orientations in relation to why organizations vary in e-marketing adoption. Nevertheless, there is still scant evidence on electronic marketing orientation (EMO) within the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SMEs) context. This paper aims to shed light on the key factors that affect the degree of e-marketing adoption among SMEs from an organizational orientation perspective. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a cross-sectional survey of just over 135 European SMEs. The constructs are measured using multi-item indicators to capture the underlying theoretical domains. Findings The results show that EMO in SMEs is a high order construct that consists of three main components, principally: management beliefs, initiation and implementation activities. The degree of EMO is primarily affected by perceived relative advantage and customer pressure. Research limitations/implications The study focuses on for-profit SMEs in developed economies. Future researchers may replicate this study using qualitative methods in different contexts (i.e. developing countries) across several technologies and platforms (i.e. websites, internet of things, mobile applications and social media networks). Originality/value This study further extends the literature on EMO and provides answers to the questions related to the variation in SMEs’ e-marketing adoption. Practitioners can apply the EMO construct to evaluate their orientation towards e-marketing, and most importantly, to take the required remedial action to improve their performance in digital commerce.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract