Benefits and challenges in adopting social media for SMEs: A case from Bangladesh

https://doi.org/10.35912/joste.v2i3.783
Published: Sep 22, 2021

Abstract:

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the challenges, Benefits, and various determinants which play an important role in adopting social media among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Bangladesh, based on the (Technology-Organization-Environment) TOE Model. The TOE framework seeks to understand the significant factors influencing the decision to adopt social media in SMEs in Bangladesh.

Research methodology: In the study, a random sampling method was used to select a representative sample from the existing active SMEs in different regions of Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire was designed to measure constructs such as relative advantage. Preliminary data were collected from 365 small and medium enterprises through field studies. Then the survey data were analyzed using logistic regression (L.R.) of the independent variables included in the TOE framework

Results: The outcomes of the study found that only 5 variables: relative advantage, complexity, consistency, top management's assistance, and innovative management factors significantly influence SMEs' decisions to adopt social media.

Limitations: The busy schedules of the respondents are key limitations for the study along with the study area. If the study could explore more districts besides Dhaka city, then the study outcomes would be more extensive.

Contribution: The results from this study will help SME foundations, research institutes, and government policymakers to formulate strategies for optimal use of social media in SMEs.

Keywords:
1. Benefits
2. Challenges
3. Logistic regression
4. Social media
5. TOE model
Authors:
1 . Most. Tahura Pervin
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Dhaka University of Engineering & Technology, Gazipur, Bangladesh
2 . Bipul Kumar Sarker
Department of BBA Professional, Habibullah Bahar College, Dhaka, Bangladesh
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How to Cite
Pervin, M. T., & Sarker, B. K. . (2021). Benefits and challenges in adopting social media for SMEs: A case from Bangladesh. Journal of Sustainable Tourism and Entrepreneurship, 2(3), 171–185. https://doi.org/10.35912/joste.v2i3.783
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Issue & Section
Vol. 2 No. 3 (2021): March
Articles
References

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    Al Ahad, A., & Khan, M. R. (2020). Exploring the mediating effect of demographic attributes on the relationship between employee engagement and organizational citizenship behavior. International Journal of Management, 9(1), 11-23.

    Al Ahad, A., & Khan, M. R. (2020). Exploring the mediating effect of demographic attributes on the relationship between employee engagement and organizational citizenship behavior. International Journal of Management, 9(1), 11-23.

    Al Ahad, A., Khan, M. R., & Rahman, M. S. (2020). H.R. retention strategies for enhanced job satisfaction in a highly competitive job market: A study with privatebanking sector in Bangladesh. International Journal of Social Sciences Perspectives, 6(1), 53-58.

    Alharbi, F., Atkins, A., & Stanier, C. (2016). Understanding the determinants of Cloud Computing adoption in Saudi healthcare organisations. Complex & Intelligent Systems, 2(3), 155-171.

    Andalib, T. W., Azizan, N. A., & Halim, H. A. (2020). Leading determinants for sustainability of SMEs in Bangladesh: Multiple Case Studies. International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 9(2), 175-181.

    Andriole, S. J. (2010). Business impact of Web 2.0 technologies. Communications of the ACM, 53(12), 67-79.

    Andzulis, J., Panagopoulos, N. G., & Rapp, A. (2012).'A review of social media and implications for the sales process. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 32(3), pp. 305-316.

    Aral, S., Dellarocas, C., & Godes, D. (2013). Introduction to the special issue—social media and business transformation: a framework for research. Information systems research, 24(1), 3-13.

    Bangladesh Economic Review. 2020. Bangladesh Economic Review – 2020. Retrieved from, https://mof.portal.gov.bd/site/page/28ba57f5-59ff-4426-970a-bf014242179e/Bangladesh-Economic-Review.

    Beck, T. & Demirguc-Kunt, A. (2006). Small and medium-size enterprises: Access to finance as a growth constraint. Journal of Banking & Finance, 30(11), 2931-2943.

    Bhattacharya, M., & Wamba, S. F. (2018). A conceptual framework of RFID adoption in retail using TOE framework. In Technology adoption and social issues: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications (pp. 69-102). IGI global.

    Chatterjee, S. & Hadi, A.S. (2015) Regression analysis by example. John Wiley & Sons.

    Dekker, R., van den Brink, P., & Meijer, A. (2020). Social media adoption in the police: Barriers and strategies. Government Information Quarterly, 37(2), 101441.

    Elasrag,H. (2011) Enhancing the competitiveness of the Arab SMEs. Available at SSRN 1586454. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1586454

    Fong, M. W. L. (2011). Chinese SMEs and information technology adoption. Issues in informing science and information technology, 8, 313-322.

    Gibbs, S., Sequeira, J. and White, M.M. (2007). Social networks and technology adoption in small business. International Journal of Globalization and Small Business, 2(1), pp. 66-87.

    Haimson, O. L., Dame-Griff, A., Capello, E., & Richter, Z. (2021). Tumblr was a trans technology: the meaning, importance, history, and future of trans technologies. Feminist Media Studies, 21(3), 345-361.

    He, W., Wang, F. and Zha, S. (2014). Enhancing social media competitiveness of small businesses: insights from small pizzerias. New Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia, 20(3), pp. 225-250.

    Hilbe, J. M. (2009). Logistic regression models. Chapman and hall/CRC.

    Hoque, A. S. M. M., Awang, Z., & Salam, S. (2017, September). The Effects of Relationship Marketing on Firm Performance: Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Bangladesh. In 1st International Conference on Business and Management (ICBM-2017), BRAC Business School (BBS), BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh, September (pp. 21-22).

    Hosmer Jr, D. W., Lemeshow, S., & Sturdivant, R. X. (2013). Applied logistic regression (Vol. 398). John Wiley & Sons.

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    Hossain, S. K., Khan, M. R., & Haque, M. M. (2018). Corporate voluntary disclosure practices and its association with corporate attributes: an empirical investigation of listed and non-listed commercial banks in Bangladesh. International Journal of Managerial and Financial Accounting, 10(4), 331-351.

    Hossain, S., & Khan, M. R. (2016). Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Banking Sector: An Empirical Study on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Limited. IOSR Journal of Business and Management, 18(4), 53-61.

    Khan, M. R. (2020). Ethical business practice and short term earning intensity during the Covid-19 crisis in Bangladesh. International Journal of Financial, Accounting, and Management, 2(2), 79-93.

    Khan, M. R., & Hossain, S. S. (2021). Perception of distance learning in Bangladeshi tertiary education: prospects and obstacles in the Covid-19 era. Journal of Social, Humanity, and Education, 1(3), 197-207.

    Khan, M. R., & Sharma, K. (2020). Purchase preferences and buying influences on religious occasions. FIIB Business Review, 9(3), 216-227.

    Khan, M. R., Hossain, S. K., & Rabbi, M. M. I. (2018b). The Strategic Environment Analysis of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL). IIUM Journal of Case Studies in Management, 9(1), 28-41.

    Khan, M. R., Hossain, S. K., & Sarker, M. A. S. (2015). An empirical investigation of customer's satisfaction of mobile telecommunication industry in Bangladesh. City University Journal, 2(1), 71-80.

    Khan, M. R., Rana, S., & Hosen, M. I. (2021). Impact of trustworthiness on the usage of m-banking apps: A study on Bangladeshi consumers. Business Perspectives and Research, 22785337211001969.

    Khan, M. R., Roy, M. K., & Hossain, S. K. (2018). Bankers' Work-‐ Life Balance and Organizational Commitment: Exploring the Dominant Factors to Move on Job-‐ Family Life Balance. Economic Research, 2(10), 15-27.

    Khan, M. R., Roy, S. K., & Hossain, S. K. (2016). Determinants of users' satisfaction regarding mobile operators in Bangladesh: An exploratory factor analysis approach on university students. European Journal of Business and Management, 8(26), 31-39.

    Khan, M. R., Roy, S. K., & Hossain, S. M. (2019). FACTORS AFFECTING GARMENTS EMPLOYEES'PERCEPTION ON JOB PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM BANGLADESH. International Journal of Management and Sustainability, 8(1), 32-47.

    Lee, S. W., & Xue, K. (2021). An integrated importance-performance analysis and modified analytic hierarchy process approach to sustainable city assessment. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, doi:10.1007/s11356-021-15235-0.

    Lee, S. W., Seow, C. W., & Xue, K. (2021). Residents' Sustainable City Evaluation, Satisfaction and Loyalty: Integrating Importance-Performance Analysis and Structural Equation Modelling. Sustainability, 13(12), 6766.

    McCann, M., & Barlow, A. (2015). Use and measurement of social media for SME. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 22(2), 273-287.

    Meske, C. and Stieglitz, S. (2013). Adoption and use of social media in small and medium-sized enterprises, in Practice-Driven Research on Enterprise Transformation. Springer, pp. 61-75.

    Nah, S. and Saxton, G.D. (2013). Modeling the adoption and use of social media by nonprofit organizations. New Media & Society, 15(2), pp. 294-313.

    Olawale, F. and Garwe, D., 2010. Obstacles to the growth of new SMEs in South Africa: A principal component analysis approach. African Journal of Business Management, 4(5), pp.729-738.

    Oliveira, T. and Martins, M.F. (2010). Understanding e-business adoption across industries in European countries. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 110(9), pp. 1337-1354.

    Pal, S. K. (2008). 21st century information technology revolution. https://doi.org/10.1145/1403922.1399619.

    Qalati, S. A., Yuan, L. W., Khan, M. A. S., & Anwar, F. (2021). A mediated model on the adoption of social media and SMEs' performance in developing countries. Technology in Society, 64, 101513.

    Rahayu, R. and Day, J. (2015) .Determinant Factors of E-commerce Adoption by SMEs in Developing Country: Evidence from Indonesia. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 195, pp. 142-150.

    Siamagka, N. T., Christodoulides, G., Michaelidou, N., & Valvi, A. (2015). Determinants of social media adoption by B2B organizations. Industrial Marketing Management, 51, 89-99.

    Siddharthan, N. S., & Narayanan, K. (2013). Introduction to innovation and global competitiveness: case of India's manufacturing sector. Innovation and Development, 3(2), 145-150.

    Skoko, H., Ceric, A., & Huang, C. Y. J. (2008). ICT Adoption Model of Chinese SMEs. International Journal of Business Research, 8(4), 161-165.

    Stroeken, J.H. (2001). The adoption of I.T. by SMEs: The Dutch case', Journal of Enterprising Culture, 9(01), pp. 129-152.

    Sultan, M. T., & Sharmin, F. (2020, July). An exploratory investigation of facebook live marketing by women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. In International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (pp. 415-430). Springer, Cham.

    Tambunan, T. (2008). SME development, economic growth, and government intervention in a developing country: The Indonesian story. Journal of international entrepreneurship, 6(4), 147-167.

    Tornatzky, L. G., Fleischer, M., & Chakrabarti, A. K. (1990). Processes of technological innovation. Lexington books.

    Verheyden, M. and Goeman, K. (2013). Does (company) size matter? Differences in social media usage for business purposes', Journal of Applied Quantitative Methods, 8(4), pp. 3-16.

    Zolkepli, I. A., & Kamarulzaman, Y. (2015). Social media adoption: The role of media needs and innovation characteristics. Computers in human behavior, 43, 189-209.

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  2. Al Ahad, A., & Khan, M. R. (2020). Exploring the mediating effect of demographic attributes on the relationship between employee engagement and organizational citizenship behavior. International Journal of Management, 9(1), 11-23.
  3. Al Ahad, A., & Khan, M. R. (2020). Exploring the mediating effect of demographic attributes on the relationship between employee engagement and organizational citizenship behavior. International Journal of Management, 9(1), 11-23.
  4. Al Ahad, A., Khan, M. R., & Rahman, M. S. (2020). H.R. retention strategies for enhanced job satisfaction in a highly competitive job market: A study with privatebanking sector in Bangladesh. International Journal of Social Sciences Perspectives, 6(1), 53-58.
  5. Alharbi, F., Atkins, A., & Stanier, C. (2016). Understanding the determinants of Cloud Computing adoption in Saudi healthcare organisations. Complex & Intelligent Systems, 2(3), 155-171.
  6. Andalib, T. W., Azizan, N. A., & Halim, H. A. (2020). Leading determinants for sustainability of SMEs in Bangladesh: Multiple Case Studies. International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 9(2), 175-181.
  7. Andriole, S. J. (2010). Business impact of Web 2.0 technologies. Communications of the ACM, 53(12), 67-79.
  8. Andzulis, J., Panagopoulos, N. G., & Rapp, A. (2012).'A review of social media and implications for the sales process. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 32(3), pp. 305-316.
  9. Aral, S., Dellarocas, C., & Godes, D. (2013). Introduction to the special issue—social media and business transformation: a framework for research. Information systems research, 24(1), 3-13.
  10. Bangladesh Economic Review. 2020. Bangladesh Economic Review – 2020. Retrieved from, https://mof.portal.gov.bd/site/page/28ba57f5-59ff-4426-970a-bf014242179e/Bangladesh-Economic-Review.
  11. Beck, T. & Demirguc-Kunt, A. (2006). Small and medium-size enterprises: Access to finance as a growth constraint. Journal of Banking & Finance, 30(11), 2931-2943.
  12. Bhattacharya, M., & Wamba, S. F. (2018). A conceptual framework of RFID adoption in retail using TOE framework. In Technology adoption and social issues: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications (pp. 69-102). IGI global.
  13. Chatterjee, S. & Hadi, A.S. (2015) Regression analysis by example. John Wiley & Sons.
  14. Dekker, R., van den Brink, P., & Meijer, A. (2020). Social media adoption in the police: Barriers and strategies. Government Information Quarterly, 37(2), 101441.
  15. Elasrag,H. (2011) Enhancing the competitiveness of the Arab SMEs. Available at SSRN 1586454. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1586454
  16. Fong, M. W. L. (2011). Chinese SMEs and information technology adoption. Issues in informing science and information technology, 8, 313-322.
  17. Gibbs, S., Sequeira, J. and White, M.M. (2007). Social networks and technology adoption in small business. International Journal of Globalization and Small Business, 2(1), pp. 66-87.
  18. Haimson, O. L., Dame-Griff, A., Capello, E., & Richter, Z. (2021). Tumblr was a trans technology: the meaning, importance, history, and future of trans technologies. Feminist Media Studies, 21(3), 345-361.
  19. He, W., Wang, F. and Zha, S. (2014). Enhancing social media competitiveness of small businesses: insights from small pizzerias. New Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia, 20(3), pp. 225-250.
  20. Hilbe, J. M. (2009). Logistic regression models. Chapman and hall/CRC.
  21. Hoque, A. S. M. M., Awang, Z., & Salam, S. (2017, September). The Effects of Relationship Marketing on Firm Performance: Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Bangladesh. In 1st International Conference on Business and Management (ICBM-2017), BRAC Business School (BBS), BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh, September (pp. 21-22).
  22. Hosmer Jr, D. W., Lemeshow, S., & Sturdivant, R. X. (2013). Applied logistic regression (Vol. 398). John Wiley & Sons.
  23. Hossain, S. K., & Khan, R. (2019). Women's Voice in Business Policy Shaping Spaces in Bangladesh. Journal Business of School 2 (3), 40-55.
  24. Hossain, S. K., Khan, M. R., & Haque, M. M. (2018). Corporate voluntary disclosure practices and its association with corporate attributes: an empirical investigation of listed and non-listed commercial banks in Bangladesh. International Journal of Managerial and Financial Accounting, 10(4), 331-351.
  25. Hossain, S., & Khan, M. R. (2016). Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Banking Sector: An Empirical Study on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Limited. IOSR Journal of Business and Management, 18(4), 53-61.
  26. Khan, M. R. (2020). Ethical business practice and short term earning intensity during the Covid-19 crisis in Bangladesh. International Journal of Financial, Accounting, and Management, 2(2), 79-93.
  27. Khan, M. R., & Hossain, S. S. (2021). Perception of distance learning in Bangladeshi tertiary education: prospects and obstacles in the Covid-19 era. Journal of Social, Humanity, and Education, 1(3), 197-207.
  28. Khan, M. R., & Sharma, K. (2020). Purchase preferences and buying influences on religious occasions. FIIB Business Review, 9(3), 216-227.
  29. Khan, M. R., Hossain, S. K., & Rabbi, M. M. I. (2018b). The Strategic Environment Analysis of Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL). IIUM Journal of Case Studies in Management, 9(1), 28-41.
  30. Khan, M. R., Hossain, S. K., & Sarker, M. A. S. (2015). An empirical investigation of customer's satisfaction of mobile telecommunication industry in Bangladesh. City University Journal, 2(1), 71-80.
  31. Khan, M. R., Rana, S., & Hosen, M. I. (2021). Impact of trustworthiness on the usage of m-banking apps: A study on Bangladeshi consumers. Business Perspectives and Research, 22785337211001969.
  32. Khan, M. R., Roy, M. K., & Hossain, S. K. (2018). Bankers' Work-? Life Balance and Organizational Commitment: Exploring the Dominant Factors to Move on Job-? Family Life Balance. Economic Research, 2(10), 15-27.
  33. Khan, M. R., Roy, S. K., & Hossain, S. K. (2016). Determinants of users' satisfaction regarding mobile operators in Bangladesh: An exploratory factor analysis approach on university students. European Journal of Business and Management, 8(26), 31-39.
  34. Khan, M. R., Roy, S. K., & Hossain, S. M. (2019). FACTORS AFFECTING GARMENTS EMPLOYEES'PERCEPTION ON JOB PERFORMANCE: EVIDENCE FROM BANGLADESH. International Journal of Management and Sustainability, 8(1), 32-47.
  35. Lee, S. W., & Xue, K. (2021). An integrated importance-performance analysis and modified analytic hierarchy process approach to sustainable city assessment. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, doi:10.1007/s11356-021-15235-0.
  36. Lee, S. W., Seow, C. W., & Xue, K. (2021). Residents' Sustainable City Evaluation, Satisfaction and Loyalty: Integrating Importance-Performance Analysis and Structural Equation Modelling. Sustainability, 13(12), 6766.
  37. McCann, M., & Barlow, A. (2015). Use and measurement of social media for SME. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 22(2), 273-287.
  38. Meske, C. and Stieglitz, S. (2013). Adoption and use of social media in small and medium-sized enterprises, in Practice-Driven Research on Enterprise Transformation. Springer, pp. 61-75.
  39. Nah, S. and Saxton, G.D. (2013). Modeling the adoption and use of social media by nonprofit organizations. New Media & Society, 15(2), pp. 294-313.
  40. Olawale, F. and Garwe, D., 2010. Obstacles to the growth of new SMEs in South Africa: A principal component analysis approach. African Journal of Business Management, 4(5), pp.729-738.
  41. Oliveira, T. and Martins, M.F. (2010). Understanding e-business adoption across industries in European countries. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 110(9), pp. 1337-1354.
  42. Pal, S. K. (2008). 21st century information technology revolution. https://doi.org/10.1145/1403922.1399619.
  43. Qalati, S. A., Yuan, L. W., Khan, M. A. S., & Anwar, F. (2021). A mediated model on the adoption of social media and SMEs' performance in developing countries. Technology in Society, 64, 101513.
  44. Rahayu, R. and Day, J. (2015) .Determinant Factors of E-commerce Adoption by SMEs in Developing Country: Evidence from Indonesia. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 195, pp. 142-150.
  45. Siamagka, N. T., Christodoulides, G., Michaelidou, N., & Valvi, A. (2015). Determinants of social media adoption by B2B organizations. Industrial Marketing Management, 51, 89-99.
  46. Siddharthan, N. S., & Narayanan, K. (2013). Introduction to innovation and global competitiveness: case of India's manufacturing sector. Innovation and Development, 3(2), 145-150.
  47. Skoko, H., Ceric, A., & Huang, C. Y. J. (2008). ICT Adoption Model of Chinese SMEs. International Journal of Business Research, 8(4), 161-165.
  48. Stroeken, J.H. (2001). The adoption of I.T. by SMEs: The Dutch case', Journal of Enterprising Culture, 9(01), pp. 129-152.
  49. Sultan, M. T., & Sharmin, F. (2020, July). An exploratory investigation of facebook live marketing by women entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. In International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (pp. 415-430). Springer, Cham.
  50. Tambunan, T. (2008). SME development, economic growth, and government intervention in a developing country: The Indonesian story. Journal of international entrepreneurship, 6(4), 147-167.
  51. Tornatzky, L. G., Fleischer, M., & Chakrabarti, A. K. (1990). Processes of technological innovation. Lexington books.
  52. Verheyden, M. and Goeman, K. (2013). Does (company) size matter? Differences in social media usage for business purposes', Journal of Applied Quantitative Methods, 8(4), pp. 3-16.
  53. Zolkepli, I. A., & Kamarulzaman, Y. (2015). Social media adoption: The role of media needs and innovation characteristics. Computers in human behavior, 43, 189-209.