Intention to buy on social commerce platforms : a study based on Maldivian Facebook users / Riyasha Ali

Abstract

Social Commerce is generally referred to c-commerce activities conducted through social media and social networks with the incorporation of Web 2.0 technologies. The new opportunities that social networking sites (SNSs) like Facebook has opened up for marketing products, building brand loyalty and generating sales has attracted businesses to adopt these social technologies.
Studies have shown that social media plays a significant role in customers' purchasing decisions as social interaction creates a level of trust which positively impacts customers' intention to buy. Today Facebook has become the most popular social platform for socialising and connecting, while at the same time, trading and marketing efforts are also booming on the network. This trend is seen in Maldives as well, with small and large businesses alike setting up Facebook pages and sharing their products and services with the Facebook users who "like" and follow their pages.
This study examined the impact of Facebook likes, shares, comments, reviews and ratings on customers' intention to buy in the context of Maldivian Facebook users. A number of hypotheses were developed based on the underlying concepts of the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA). An online questionnaire was filled by 153 Maldivian Facebook users and the data collected was analysed through hypothesis testing. The results showed that reviews, comments and ratings on Facebook has a strong impact on customers' intention to buy, while no significant effect was seen on purchase intention with regard to Facebook likes and shares. The results of this study prove that Facebook comments, reviews and ratings could be utilized as a tool for influencing Maldivian customers' purchasing decisions.