Investigating the business owners’ attitudes toward Instagram marketing : validating the technology acceptance model

Abstract

Various businesses have increasingly integrated social media marketing to promote their products and services. Among the social media platforms, Instagram has made a big name for itself, specifically over the last few years. This medium has gained rapid popularity amongst consumers and businesses alike. For this reason, the researcher conducted a quantitative analysis to understand the reasons behind the use of Instagram by local businesses. This study relied on reliable and valid measures that were drawn from Davis et al.'s (1989) Technology Acceptance Model to gain an insight on the business owners’ attitudes and intentions to use social media marketing on Instagram. The researcher disseminated an online questionnaire among business owners that were affiliated with the chamber of commerce, unions, and employer associations. A total of 115 respondents participated in this study. The results suggest that the research participants perceived the usefulness of Instagram for their marketing. Moreover, the findings indicate that this study has validated the technology acceptance model as there were positive and significant relationships between its key constructs, specifically between the perceived usefulness of the application and actual usage. Furthermore, this research reveals that the young business owners are more active on Instagram than their older counterparts. In conclusion, this study implies that there is scope for businesses to adopt Instagram to increase brand awareness and customer engagement. Afterwards, the researcher discusses the limitations of her study and puts forward her recommendations for future research in this promising area of study.