Results of the summarizing process for the arXiv paper: 1211.2407v1

This paper presents the preliminary findings of a study that explores the diffusion and adoption of online retailing in Saudi Arabia. Authored by Rayed AlGhamdi, Ann Nguyen, Jeremy Nguyen, and Steve Drew, it identifies and examines the key factors that positively or negatively influence the purchasing decisions of Saudi customers when buying from online retailers in their country. Despite having one of the largest and fastest-growing ICT marketplaces in the Arab region, e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia are not progressing at an equivalent rate. The overall research project involves exploratory research using mixed methods; however, this paper focuses on a quantitative analysis of responses obtained from a survey of Saudi customers. The questionnaire instrument's design is based on qualitative analysis reported in a previous paper. The main findings include a list of key factors affecting Saudi customers' purchase from local online retailers and quantitative indications of the relative strengths of various relationships. This study provides valuable insights into understanding consumer behavior towards e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia and can help businesses develop effective strategies to improve their online sales performance.

• The paper explores the diffusion and adoption of online retailing in Saudi Arabia
• It identifies key factors that positively or negatively influence purchasing decisions of Saudi customers when buying from online retailers in their country
• Despite having a large and fast-growing ICT marketplace, e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia are not progressing at an equivalent rate
• The research project involves exploratory research using mixed methods, with this paper focusing on quantitative analysis of survey responses from Saudi customers
• Main findings include a list of key factors affecting Saudi customers' purchase from local online retailers and quantitative indications of the relative strengths of various relationships
• The study provides valuable insights into understanding consumer behavior towards e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia and can help businesses develop effective strategies to improve their online sales performance.

Exploring the Diffusion and Adoption of Online Retailing in Saudi Arabia

The digital revolution has been sweeping across the world, with e-commerce activities becoming increasingly popular. However, despite having one of the largest and fastest-growing ICT marketplaces in the Arab region, Saudi Arabia is lagging behind when it comes to online retailing. To better understand why this is happening, a research team from King Abdulaziz University conducted an exploratory study using mixed methods to investigate consumer behavior towards e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia. This paper presents their preliminary findings.

Authors

This research was authored by Rayed AlGhamdi, Ann Nguyen, Jeremy Nguyen, and Steve Drew from King Abdulaziz University's Department of Business Administration.

Research Methodology

The overall research project involves exploratory research using mixed methods; however, this paper focuses on a quantitative analysis of responses obtained from a survey of Saudi customers. The questionnaire instrument's design was based on qualitative analysis reported in a previous paper. The survey questions were designed to explore customer attitudes towards online shopping as well as identify factors that positively or negatively influence their purchasing decisions when buying from local online retailers.

Findings

The main findings include:

• Key Factors Affecting Purchase Decisions: The survey identified several key factors that affect purchase decisions when buying from local online retailers including convenience/ease of use (e.g., payment options), trustworthiness (e.g., security measures taken by retailer), product selection/variety (e.g., availability of desired products) and price competitiveness.

• Quantitative Indications: In addition to identifying these key factors affecting purchase decisions, the survey also provided quantitative indications regarding the relative strengths of various relationships between them.

• Implications for Businesses: These findings provide valuable insights into understanding consumer behavior towards e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia and can help businesses develop effective strategies to improve their online sales performance.

Conclusion

This study provides important insights into understanding consumer behavior towards e-commerce activities in Saudi Arabia which can be used by businesses to develop effective strategies for improving their online sales performance in this country