E-commerce Barriers and Drivers of the Russian Consumers: The Results of an Empirical Study

Abstract

The role of e-commerce in the economic growth is constantly increasing; its development though depends on some limiting and driving factors. This paper investigates limiting and driving factors that influence e-commerce market development in Russia from the consumer perspective. To identify limiting and driving factors of the Russian e-commerce market development from the consumer perspective in Russia, a quantitative survey is applied. A new scale that includes 44 indicators to describe online shopping barriers and drivers has been developed. The total sample of 884 respondents is composed of consumers who are experienced in buying goods or services via internet. Exploratory factor analysis and K-means clustering analysis are applied to analyze the obtained data. The findings reveal the structure of driving and limiting factors, highlighting the core role of the trustworthiness and transparency of e-commerce market players, security risks and privacy concerns, reputation of the online store, consumer trust and online shopping infrastructure. Cluster analysis identifi ed three main clusters: (1) consumers who appreciate benefits of making internet purchases, (2) consumers buying from abroad, and (3) cautious consumers with low level of trust. The findings from this study make several contributions to a growing body of literature on e-commerce. Firstly, the drivers and barriers of the e-commerce market development from the consumer and Russian market perspectives are revealed. Secondly, this is the study to compensate the lack of empirical research describing the barriers and drivers of the e-commerce market in Russia. Thirdly, this research extends our knowledge of the Russian e-commerce market and may serve as a base for future studies in this field.