Examining the impacts of e service quality on social shopping intention: A developing country perspective

Abstract

Social shopping is a fast-growing trend due to the development of Web 2.0. Nowadays the integration of e-commerce with social media has become increasingly popular worldwide. The flexibility of social shopping is an evolving phenomenon among consumers, particularly the young generation. Customer perception towards the quality of e-services has a significant influence on the goodwill of a company. Considering service quality, this research sought to understand the influence of perceived usefulness and ease of use on social shopping intention. We used the structural equation model to examine survey data from 304 online social media shoppers. The results depict that different aspects of the e-service quality affect the perceived ease of use, except the relationship between assurance and perceived ease of use. Several aspects of an e-service quality affect the relationship between reliability and perceived usefulness. Furthermore, the findings show that perceived usefulness and ease of use favorably and significantly affect social shopping intention. This research adds to what is already known about social shopping by showing how high-quality e-services affect the likelihood of making a social shopping. Furthermore, findings suggest that the perceived utility and user-friendliness of an electronic service affect the relationship between the service’s quality and the intention to shop from social platforms. The study’s findings and suggestions might provide crucial insights for management and inform future research endeavors.