Online consumer behaviour during crises: Insights from Finnish SMEs' key website metrics amid covid-19

Thumbnail Image

URL

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

School of Business | Master's thesis

Authors

Date

2024

Department

Tieto- ja palvelujohtamisen laitos

Major/Subject

Mcode

Degree programme

Information and Service Management (ISM)

Language

en

Pages

87

Series

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted daily life, leading to notable shifts in consumer behaviour, particularly online. This study investigates the impact of the pandemic on online consumer behaviour among Finnish SMEs by analysing key website metrics - traffic, engagements, and conversions - during this unprecedented period. Utilising descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, paired t-tests, and percentage change analysis, it examines a sample of 183 companies, comparing data from the three months preceding COVID-19 with two three month post-pandemic periods. The findings reveal that while on aver-age online traffic, engagements and conversions increased significantly during the pandemic, this increase was not uniform across all SMEs, and the median growth during the pandemic was much more modest. Notably, conversions failed to grow proportionately, indicating a disconnect between increased site visits and tangible business outcomes. This research contributes to the understanding of how crises influence online consumer behaviour, providing insights that can guide SMEs in optimising their digital strategies in future crises.

Description

Thesis advisor

Penttinen, Esko

Keywords

online consumer behaviour, consumer behaviour in crisis, pandemics and human behaviour, covid-19

Other note

Citation

Permanent link to this item

https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202411177135

Collections

[gradu] Kauppakorkeakoulu / BIZ