Young Consumers’ Perception of Problems and Usefulness of Mobile Shopping Applications

Abstract

Objective: The objective of this paper is to explain how young consumers from Croatia perceive problems and usefulness of mobile shopping applications.

Research Design & Methods: The paper is based on descriptive statistics of data collected in a wide-range survey on mobile commerce attitudes within young population in Croatia. The questionnaire was designed upon recent literature in the fields of electronic and mobile commerce. The quantitative data analysis regarding mobile application problems and usefulness was conducted on 276 validated questionnaires.

Findings: The majority of young population in Croatia is experienced in smartphone usage and can be referred to as “handset generation”. They express a high level of satisfaction regarding mobile purchasing and have positive attitudes towards the usefulness of mobile shopping applications. They are aware of mobile purchasing obstacles and risks and perceive some of them as very important.

Implications & Recommendations: The results of this study can be useful for researchers and practitioners in the retail industry. The findings can be used as a basis for adjusting policies towards mobile commerce within business strategies, not only in the retailing industry, but in other industries as well.

Contribution & Value Added: The paper is a valuable contribution to research fields of retail marketing, retail management, electronic commerce and, especially, mobile commerce because it deals with primary data collected in a specific geographical market. As the authors developed their own set of questions, the presented findings can be used as a basis for future research in various markets and groups of consumers.

Keywords

m-commerce, mobile applications, mobile browsers, risk perception, usability, students

Author Biography

Blaženka Knežević

Izv. prof. dr. sc. Blaženka Knežević is the Associate Professor at The Department of Trade (Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, Croatia). She holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration. She did her PhD dissertation on „Importance of knowledge in value creation in trade“ and a Master degree on electronic office procedures in retail companies. She teaches several graduate and post-graduate courses: Retail information systems; Economics of electronic commerce; Trade and trade policy; Procurement management; Supplier Relationship Management and Business Excellence. She is a researcher on several scientific research projects funded by Ministry of Science of Croatia and a team member of several professional research projects. She is a member of the editorial board of the Business Excellence Journal. She is author and editor of several scientific books. She has published numerous papers at conference proceedings, books and academic journals.

Mia Delić

Mia Delić is a PhD Candidate and the Research Assistant at The Department of Trade (Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, Croatia). She has published numerous papers at conference proceedings, books and academic journals.

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