Organizational use and adoption of social media through TOE framework: empirical research on Croatian small and medium-sized enterprises

Abstract

The increasing importance of social media as a communication and marketing tool is reshaping how companies engage with their customers. Despite its numerous advantages, the social media adoption rate remains low among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Croatia. Therefore, this study aims to recognize the primary elements that affect the acceptance of social media by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The research observes social media as a technological innovation and investigates its implementation within Croatia, a developing country. Using the TOE model as a guiding theoretical framework, a comprehensive agenda examines social media adoption within the technological, organizational, and environmental contexts in which SMEs operate. The research relies on an empirical analysis conducted on 86 surveyed SMEs. By applying the PLS-SEM method, the results showed that the technological and environmental contexts, as higher-order constructs, positively and significantly influence the adoption of social media in Croatian SMEs. The study is important because it contributes to the body of knowledge on social media adoption in developing countries and guides key personnel in SMEs in adopting social media in their organizations.

Keywords

• managers
• social media adoption
• TOE framework
• small and medium-sized enterprises
• developing countries
• Croatia