Abstract:
Commercial activities done through the medium of
Internet took a paradigm shift with the introduction of web 2.0. Ecommerce was the first of its generation and followed by social
commerce which used social networking platforms as the base for
commercial activities. Identifying the factors influencing social
commerce usage enable organizations to earn more revenue by
investing more on improving those factors. Hence, the purpose of
this study was to identify the factors affecting social commerce
website usage in the context of Sri Lanka. A conceptual model was
developed based on an extensive review of literature. The conceptual
model was tested using one hundred and sixty usable responses from
postgraduate students. Partial Least Square (PLS) method was used
to test the model. Measurement model analysis was used to test the
reliability and validity of the measurement instrument. Structural
model analysis was used to test the model fit and to test the
hypotheses. The results of structural model analysis supported six
hypotheses. Perceived usefulness and trust toward members were
identified as the most significant factors for social commerce website
usage. The findings of this study provided important implications
for researchers and practitioners interested in social commerce.
