AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF THE ADOPTION OF E-COMMERCE BY NIGERIAN RETAILERS: CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

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AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF THE ADOPTION OF E-COMMERCE BY NIGERIAN RETAILERS: CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND IMPLICATIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

Abstract

Electronic commerce (e-commerce) offers potential benefits for businesses to tap from. The technology has presented vast opportunities for business organizations to infuse efficiencies in their operations and processes in order to serve their customers more efficiently, and thus rationalize their business processes. Despite these potentials, there is still an evidence of slow uptake of ecommerce in developing countries like Nigeria. Failure to attain an adoption threshold level continues to prevent users, firms and organizations from reaping the full benefits inherent in the use of the technology. Therefore, this study seeks to identify some of the e-commerce tools and assess the level of e-commerce adoption in Nigeria. Structured questionnaires were used to elicit information from respondents regarding the use of e-commerce tools in Nigeria from which Two Hundred (200) respondents were selected from four LGAs in Ogun State, Nigeria. The results showed that majority of e-commerce adopters were single female students aged between 21 and 30 years of age with university education. Majority of them were discovered to be more used to Jumia, Konga and Jiji than any other identified e-commerce websites used among the respondents. The results further showed that about 85% of the respondents suggested that all the identified ecommerce tools were available and in use while at least 60% of the respondents suggested that the most frequently used e-commerce tools were smart-phones, PCs/laptops, ATM cards and e-mails while the most commonly performed task was academic.

Introduction

E-Commerce dates back to 1970’s and, to this day, continues to grow with new technologies, innovations, and thousands of businesses continue to enter the online market each year (Fang et al., 2014). The convenience, safety, and user experience of e-commerce have improved exponentially since its inception for about forty-seven (47) years ago. E-commerce can be simply referred to as the process of conducting business online, spanning from Business-toBusiness (B2B), Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Customer-to-Customer (C2C) markets to reach global players, gaining market share for competitive advantage by utilizing telecommunication networks (Esiefarienrhe & Bishams, 2014). E-commerce is defined as the process of buying and selling of products and exchange of funds via computer networks and electronic technologies (Rainer & Cegielski, 2013).The advent of the Internet has truly revolutionized many aspects of our daily lives (Faisal & Humayun, 2009). The Internet has been able to link countries throughout the world and businesses are no longer confined to their own immediate cities or states.

Developments in telecommunications in Nigeria since 2001, the global diffusion and growth of the Internet, and emergence of e-commerce have helped in the creation of an environment that fosters the globalization of markets throughout the world. The World Wide Web has made our lives a lot more convenient. We use the Internet to communicate verbally and visually with our friends and family in far off regions, book flights, watch movies, complete long distance online education programmes and seek out potential future spouses. Thus, there are many other aspects of our daily lives where we would use the Internet like in the area of the e-commerce (Faisal & Humayun, 2009).

The emergence of e-commerce and the impact of this new technological innovation have changed the approach to business transaction and processes (Tan et al., 2010).The growth of technology and the Internet in Nigeria since 2001 has led to a significant increase and experiment of e-business models with a view to choosing appropriate type to replace the normal traditional (bricks-and-mortar or face-to-face) platform of conducting business (Ikemelu, 2012). Also ecommerce has improved business efficiency through automation of transactions (Christopher, 2011).

The coming of GSM in Nigeria since 2001 ushered in mobile technology for conducting both banking and non-banking transactions (Esiefarienrhe & Bishams, 2014). As at December 2015, estimated mobile users in Nigeria stood at about one hundred and fifty-one million

(151,017,244) and the number has drastically increased to about one hundred and fifty five million (154,529,780) in December 2016 (with a tremendous increase of about four million (3,512,536)) with some users having more than one cell phone (NCC, 2015 and 2016 subscriber data reports).

This has made the mobile cellular facilities and the Internet available in most part of the country having countless privately-owned cybercafés that provide users’ access to Internet. Other than using personal computers for business transactions, participants in e-commerce employ various other devices and ICT applications that are mobile, thus having an all-encompassing mobile commerce (Ngai & Wat, 2002). It is widely accepted that e-commerce enhances the advancement and development of businesses which is motivated by the perceived benefits of IT reducing the costs of business processes (Ghobakhloo et al., 2011).

The term “e-commerce adoption” according to Ochola (2013) is the degree to which an innovation is perceived into organizational activities. The adoption of E-commerce Technology (EcT) offers many benefits across a range of intra-firm and inter-firm business processes and transactions in Nigeria (Ongori & Migiro, 2010). E-commerce Technology (EcT) is also expected to provide businesses with competitive advantage along with integration among supply chain trading partners. Therefore, with the increasing diffusion of ICTs, more specifically the Internet, the global business community is rapidly moving towards Business-to-Business (B2B) e-commerce (Abdul, 2016). The buyers gain a clear advantage when the Internet gives them access to the global market by which they can compare prices across regions, find out whether prices vary by order fragmentation and get awareness about substitute products (Abdul, 2016).

Other benefits of e-commerce according to Oluwatayo (2010) and Singh (2011)are enumerated as: open for 24 hours, extended reach (number of people); targeted reach (intended customers); reduced transaction costs; information symmetry; quick response to customers’ needs; richness of information (latest information); decrease transaction costs; channel flexibility (how to reach); simplified communication with trading partners; easy and cheap way of advertising and marketing; and reduction of inefficiencies.

E-commerce has established itself in the developed countries; but yet to make roots in most of the developing countries, like Nigeria. There is a big gap in Internet and E-commerce adoption between the developed and developing countries (Licker & Motts, 2000); thus creating a digital divide (Aghaunor & Fotoh, 2006; Chiemeke & Evwiekpaefe, 2011). Also, a lot of researches have been conducted in the developed countries to examine the factors affecting E-commerce adoption. However, their findings could not be generalized due to the differences (such as available infrastructure, social, political and cultural issues) between developed and developing countries (Kapurubandara & Lawson, 2006; Taylor & Owusu, 2012). Nigeria is not left out of this innovation as business sectors in the state are beginning to adopt the technology because of its reach values and potentials. The country is completely not left out as most of the businesses and transactions are now operating beyond the traditional bricks-and-mortar, hence real-time i.e. online based. Though most of the businesses and transactions are online-based, many are still operating in the traditional method often referred to as bricks-and-mortar.

So, this research work identifies the e-commerce tools used in Nigeria and assesses the level of the adoption of e-commerce technology. The outcome of this study will serve as a blueprint for policy-makers and stakeholders to chart the right course of action on the development of ecommerce activity and technological infrastructures within the economy of Nigeria at large. The aim of this study therefore is to assess the level of e-commerce adoption in Nigeria. And the objectives would be to: identify the e-commerce tools used by e-commerce adopters in Nigeria; assess the level of adoption of e-commerce technology in Nigeria; explore the critical factors that impede the full adoption of e-commerce strategy in Nigeria; and then proffer solution to the cause of low level of adoption of e-commerce.

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