The adoption of social media tools for enhancing small and medium enterprises' performance: A synthesis of innovation of diffusion and technology-organisation-environment frameworks

Abstract

This study examines the utilisation of social media as a means to enhance business performance within the Harare Metropolitan Province of Zimbabwe. The study employs a cross-sectional research methodology to collect data, using an online survey, from 938 business owners or senior managers of small-and-medium-sized multi-industry enterprises. The researchers implemented strategies to mitigate biases and safeguard the confidentiality and anonymity of participants. SmartPLS 4.0 software enabled data analysis and the application of the partial least squares approach to identify relationships among measurement components. The utilisation of structural equation modelling was employed to conduct hypothesis testing. The study's theoretical basis was grounded in the joint technology-organisation-environment framework and innovation diffusion theory. This study investigates the technological aspects of relative benefit, presence qualities, visibility, linkages, and interactivity. Senior management support is crucial in determining a company's stance on social media, especially in smaller corporate units with interdependent decision-making roles for operations and innovation. The impact of social media adoption, antecedents, and technological and organisational factors on business performance was insignificant. Our empirical study demonstrates that external pressure and environmental uncertainty significantly influence small and medium enterprises' adoption of social media in the multi-industrial urban centre district of Harare, Zimbabwe. The study concludes that there is no significant impact on the business performance of small and medium enterprises in Zimbabwe due to adopting social media. The presence of a well-established information technology communication infrastructure in this district may contribute to the adoption of social media, primarily due to its easy accessibility rather than actual usage. This study contributed to the validation of a nomological framework through the utilisation of latent constructs. Future research should consider conducting longitudinal studies.