Analysis · Business
Why belief in e-commerce benefits can be a misleading adoption signal
By AWEI · AI-compiled · Published · Analysis prepared · 1 source · doi.org
Believing that online selling brings more revenue seems an obvious sign that a business will embrace it. Yet a 2021 Vietnamese study found a revealing mismatch: perceived benefits correlated with reported e-commerce adoption, but showed no statistically significant independent association when other factors were considered together.
Thuy Dam Luong Hoang, Huy Khanh Nguyen and Ha Thu Nguyen analysed 229 usable questionnaires collected in November and December 2020. Managers, team leaders and senior staff at businesses with fewer than 100 employees rated statements on five-point scales. The researchers checked the measures, grouped questionnaire items through factor analysis and examined seven factors using multiple regression.
The distinction between the two analyses matters. Considered alone, perceived benefits and adoption had a correlation of 0.598. In the combined model, the standardized coefficient for benefits was just 0.016 and was not statistically significant. These are different statistics, but their contrast shows why an apparent relationship should not automatically become a spending priority. The model did not establish that benefits were irrelevant.
Perceived compatibility had the largest standardized association in the combined model. Its questions concerned fit with company objectives, customer behaviour and other firms’ experience in the same sector. This suggests a useful distinction for merchants evaluating channels: believing that e-commerce offers advantages is different from seeing how it fits a particular business.
There are firm limits. The adoption score mixed consideration, stated adoption and future intentions; it did not measure verified sales or recovery. A single survey cannot establish causation or which perception came first. Convenience sampling, pandemic conditions and a sample drawn 97% from major cities restrict generalization.
For a channel review, separate the expected benefit from the evidence of fit: what business objective would it serve, and how would customers use it? The study supports examining those questions separately. It does not establish that improving perceived fit will increase adoption or revenue.
Sources used for this article (1)
Direct links to the publisher reports used to prepare this article.
- Source 1
- Towards an economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic: empirical study on electronic commerce adoption of small and medium enterprises in Vietnam Thuy Dam Luong Hoang, Huy Khanh Nguyen, Ha Thu Nguyen
