Dependency Reasons of Micro-Businesses in Social Media Adoption

: The purpose of the study was to find the dependency reasons on the use of social media by micro-businesses. It aimed to pinpoint the important differences in the respondents' evaluations. There was a descriptive survey methodology employed. Owners of small businesses made up the study's respondents. The researcher employed a self-administered questionnaire using quota sampling. Because the samples are rare and not well accounted for in terms of population, they were selected using non-probability sampling. This study used the Social Media Engagement Theory as the underlying framework. In the conceptual framework, the variables tested in this study are compatibility, relative advantage, ease of use, and perceived usefulness. The findings showed that small businesses rely heavily on compatibility and perceived usefulness when implementing social media into their daily operations. Micro establishments' embrace of social media can be explained by their relative advantage, effective methods of managing their goods and services, and assistance with rapid data collection and analysis. Microbusinesses use social media and rely heavily on it because it's so user-friendly. Owners describe social media as being extremely important to them because it helps them do tasks faster and supports important areas of their work, such as handling emergencies.


Introduction
When the global epidemic struck, everything started to fall apart.People's jobs are beginning to go, their health is deteriorating, and there is less food on the table.The pandemic's consequences have been felt widely, particularly in the Philippines, a third-world nation.In an attempt to make more money to support themselves and their loved ones' basic needs, people began to break medical and safety regulations.Due to the economic downturn, employers were forced to fire a large number of workers, which increased the number of Filipinos without jobs.Thankfully, technological advancements have continued over time.During this situation, technology plays a big part, especially when communication with others is restricted.It makes progress possible in areas like contactless food delivery, internet commerce, and continuing education courses.Filipino small company owners have discovered inventive and imaginative ways to monetize technology.People with a business mindset began using their social media profiles to sell anything they could think of.The nation started to see a growth in online sales.Social media is a digital communication platform that can be utilized for online marketing.It was designed specifically to offer a simpler substitute for traditional snail mail in order to facilitate effective and efficient • Email: editor@ijfmr.com

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Volume 5, Issue 6, November-December 2023 2 communication between individuals.Social media networks evolve over time.People can now communicate in real-time with friends and family in the comfort of their own homes thanks to these sophisticated capabilities, which enable the exchange of photos, videos, and the like.Social media has developed into an advertising tool because individuals continuously discuss their preferences, which range from food to clothes.Due to the widespread use of social media, companies of all sizes are now utilizing a variety of platforms to reach and retain their clientele.Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok are among the social media platforms that many Filipinos are most accustomed to using.As can be observed, most businesses use several application platforms in their daily operations.Therefore, the researcher set out to determine the reasons for small businesses' dependency on social media adoption, especially in the food service sector.

1.1.Problem Statement of the Study
This study attempted to find out the dependency reasons of micro-businesses in adopting social media platforms in their commercial operations.Here are the subproblems that the researcher tried to answer for this research:

1.2.Significance of the Study
The main purpose of the study was to discover the dependency reasons of micro-businesses in the food service industry on the adoption of social media platforms in their business operations.Hence, the results of this study would be beneficial to the following groups of people:

Food Service Industry
The results of this study may help the food service sector market and reach specific customers with their food products, thanks to social media networks.Every platform has a unique advertising campaign and delivery method that can be used to connect with its intended clients.For food service firms looking to gain more clients and increase conversion rates leading to more profit, this is a tremendous alternative.In this sector, social media moderation promotes orders and sales, builds leads, raises brand exposure, and fosters deeper interactions with both present and future clients.

Micro-business Owners
The findings of this research could benefit micro-business owners.Social networking can be a valuable tool for small business owners looking to boost sales, improve customer service, and establish their brands.Small businesses can increase website traffic by utilizing social media networks.Posting content on their feed that gives users a preview of what the company offers will pique their interest and make them want to learn more.This study can help small business owners define their target market and use aggregate data by utilizing social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.Small businesses that already use social media are probably aware of this, but those who believe they can ignore it could be losing out on potential customers and leads who could be interested in their goods and services.

Social Media Platform Providers
The advantages and drawbacks of using social media by small businesses can be disclosed in this study.
The social media platform providers can make improvements to their usefulness to businesses in areas of brand awareness and visibility, cost-effectiveness in advertising and promotional activities, as well as increased online conversions such as sales and leads, and improved loyalty and advocacy.Similarly, providers may get some helpful information in making their platforms more accessible and beneficial in providing assistance to small business proprietors.

Food Service Customers
The study's findings may reassure customers that they can rely on the owners of the food service companies they frequently buy from, and that the quality of the food will always be the same.Transparency can be effectively established through social media accounts.It is always a good idea to encourage customers to share photos and reviews of their experiences on social media.Social media content is a fantastic way for users to get interesting and timely information that keeps them informed.Having access to up-to-date information enables customers to make wise purchasing decisions.

Future Researchers
In the case of future researchers, they can understand the key gains and drawbacks small businesses experience from the use of social media.They can try to discover the impact of social media on customer connections, sales, stakeholder engagement, customer happiness, and customer acquisition.It could be interesting also for them to research social media's impact, social media adoption difficulties and antecedents, social media strategy, social media usage, and social media effectiveness measurement.

1.3.Theoretical and Conceptual Framework
This research applied the Social Media Engagement Theory.The idea that people connect and actively participate in social media platforms to engage with content is known as social media engagement theory.This can include sharing, liking, commenting, and other interaction mechanisms that let people communicate their thoughts and feelings about the content they come across.Additionally, there are a variety of factors that can affect how active a person is on social media.The platform itself, the kind of content being shared, and the user's individual traits and incentives can all be examples of these.Social media is beneficial to businesses since it not only meets user requirements and interests but also fosters an engaged audience for marketing and advertising purposes [1].The technical features are the subject of this study which has been assumed to be the reasons for micro businesses' dependency on social media.

Fig. 1 Conceptual Paradigm of Dependency Reasons on Social Media Adoption
The variables tested in this study are compatibility, relative advantage, ease of use, and perceived usefulness.It has been noted that social media is used by small firms as a strategic marketing strategy to increase performance.Micro-businesses can enhance their business sustainability by using social media tools to strengthen customer interactions, brand image, and information sharing.These days, the majority of small business owners use social media for efficient communication, despite having little technical know-how and resources.

1.4.Scope and Limitations
The study's primary goal was to ascertain the reasons that lead micro businesses in the food service sector to depend on social media platforms for their business operations.The researcher limited the scope of the investigation to micro-business proprietors of the food service industry operating in metropolitan areas.Eighty (80) business owners were used as respondents.For the primary data, the spread of selfadministered survey instruments was the extent of the data collection.The study employed secondary data sourced from books, journals, periodicals, and online resources.In July 2022, the researcher had a one-month interval to gather her data.The study's descriptive research strategy made use of quantitative methodology.Quota sampling was the technique used to select business owners for the sample.Quota sampling is a non-probability sampling technique where a researcher selects convenience sampling of people who are representative of the population.The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 20 was utilized by the researcher to analyze the raw data.

1.5.Review of Related Literature
Social media, such as Facebook, Messenger, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, have grown significantly in the last ten years and are now seen as a critical strategic component of an organization's ability to compete and survive [2].The adoption of social media by businesses transforms their client interactions [3].Interactivity and user-generated material are hallmarks of social media, which allow businesses to engage with customers and monitor shifts in the market.Social media may help businesses learn how their consumers' requirements change and how to innovate and react quickly to market shifts [4,5].It can also help businesses share information and knowledge with customers [4].Through the improvement of product awareness and the dissemination of information through word-of-mouth, social media can directly raise demand [6].The business models and value creation processes of traditional sectors, including branding, innovation, and customer relationship management, have undergone significant changes due to the rise of social media [5,7].Building sincere relationships with customers humanizes brands and forges a trusting connection.Over time, this link has the potential to sustain client loyalty and boost revenue.Social media also assists businesses in tracking and receiving feedback so they may make the required operational improvements [8].Social media has evolved into a platform for customers to communicate information on the value that businesses provide them with as clientele.Among the greatest inventions of the new millennium is social media.Even though it was an idea twenty years ago, it has made its way onto almost everyone's radar in a short period of time.Given how social media is altering life, it should come as no surprise that various business industries have also had a significant impact on the economy.Some of the industries that benefit most from social media are those in fashion, technology, music, and food-related ones.Research needs to be updated in order to support small-and medium-sized businesses in efficiently adapting to the rapidly changing nature of business and the environment in which they operate [9].Using social media to maintain a high level of productivity and enhance performance is one of the biggest problems.Social media has developed into a strategic and inventive instrument for information sharing and establishing profitable, long-lasting relationships with customers [10,11].Large businesses have embraced social networking apps because of their efficacy in improving corporate performance and gaining a competitive edge [12].Social media has been used by large companies for networking with possible partners, market penetration, and promotions [13].Just recently it was revealed that only thirty percent of SMEs have embraced and utilized these cuttingedge technologies in order to achieve sustainability.Furthermore, research indicates that SMEs in developing economies have a poor adoption rate of social media [14].Conversely, in the Philippine setting, small enterprises are faced with constraints that hinder their potential to develop and grow in the competitive business environment.Although confronted with barriers such as heavy electrical bills, overly restrictive government regulations, high taxation, and never-ending corruption, the use of social media paves the way for a lot of business opportunities [15].Notwithstanding the fruitful potential of social media for organizations, there is a lack of understanding of the reasons why organizations use social media, particularly micro-businesses.Compatibility is referred to as "the degree to which an innovation is perceived as consistent with the existing values, past experiences, and needs of potential adopters" [16].New technology innovations that don't align with the social and cultural norms of businesses may find it difficult to adopt and use [17].
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs)can now use new technical innovations as creative tools.It was concluded that SMEs' adoption of new technology is significantly influenced by compatibility.Furthermore, earlier research has demonstrated that compatibility has a significant impact on the adoption of technological innovation [18].On the other hand, a relative advantage is the extent to which a prospective adopter believes innovation to be superior to the alternatives.The authors further mentioned that perceived relative advantage is a determining factor that may affect new technology adoption decisions [19].It is stated in one study that SMEs will adopt new technology innovation if they feel it will be helpful to the firm in terms of performance and sustainability [20].Ease of use and perceived usefulness of technology are conceptualized by the Technology Adoption Model (TAM) as predictive of new technology's acceptance and attention [20].Perceived usefulness is defined as "the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would enhance his or her job performance" [21].It was argued that perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use are the most significant predictors of technology adoption [22].Even though social media presents a wealth of options, a growing number of occurrences indicate that social media does, in fact, have a "dark side."Former Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya has expressed remorse that some of the tools he helped develop "are ripping apart the social fabric of how society works" [23].

Methodology
The research design of the study was a descriptive survey with quantitative research.Serrano (2016) recommended conducting a descriptive survey to collect information regarding the situation as of right now.Using a descriptive survey approach, it was possible to learn about the dependency reasons of microbusinesses in their adoption of social media in their firm's operations.Respondents to the study were owners of small businesses in the metro.Using a self-administered survey questionnaire, the researcher used three hundred nine (399) business owners who were selected randomly.Three (3) components made up the instrumentation used in this investigation.The nature of operations, number of years in business, number of employees, type of food being sold, and social media frequently used are in the first section of the study instrument used to profile the respondents' demographics.Using 16 items the second section attempted to identify the reasons for small businesses on their dependency on social media under the variables of compatibility, relative advantage, ease of use, and perceived usefulness.The compatibility and relative advantage items for the survey instrument were adopted from a previous study [19].While the items for ease of use and perceived usefulness were taken from research undertaken some time ago [20].
Each  (10) respondents who are microbusiness owners were utilized to validate the survey instrument and test the variables that the researcher used in this study.A typical interpretation of alpha for questions utilizing dichotomous alternatives or a Likert scale is presented here.The results of the Cronbach Alpha analysis for dependency reasons on social media of small business owners were as follows:  1, every component contributing to the dependency reasons was larger than the alpha value of 0.70.This suggests that the subjects covered by the test items were similar, as evidenced by the test's highly correlated and consistent components.As a result, it stands to reason that every survey item might be seen as a gauge of small business owners' dependence on social media.The frequency and percentage were used for the first statistical analysis sub-problems 1.1.1 and 1.1.4.In subproblem 1..1.2,the mean was used by the researcher.In order to determine the significant differences in small business owners' dependence on social media when categorized based on their business type, number of years in operation, number of employees, type of food sold, and frequency of use of social media, the research employed Kruskal-Wallis test for sub-problem 1.1.3.Version 28 of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to test the study's data collection.

Results
The investigation's findings are displayed in tables with analyses and interpretations supported by pertinent research.Table 2 displays the frequency and percentage of the respondent's demographic profile.Eighty (80) micro-business owners or 80% of the sample, answered.Thirty-four (34) respondents (or 42.5%) are owners engaged in online delivery of food.Based on the number of years in business, it was found that most are newbies with less than a year of operation, 38 out of 80, or 47.5 %.Out of the total responders, sixty-five (65), or 81.3% have only one (1) to three (3) employees working with them.Most of the food items they sell are sandwiches and other snacks with thirty (30) owners or 22% of the total sample.While sixty-five (65) or 81.3% of small business owners are making frequent use of Facebook as their social media tool for their operations.

Moderately dependent
Table 3 shows the level of dependency for each reason on the reliance of owners of micro-businesses in the adoption of social media for their operations.Four variables represent the reasons for the dependency of small businesses in the use of social media were tested namely compatibility, relative advantage, ease of use, and perceived usefulness.The compatibility variable revealed that it is one of the rationales behind social media usage by businesses particularly small enterprises.All items have "highly dependent" scores ranging from 3.20 to 3.49.For relative advantage, owners are highly dependent on social media in the aspect of relative advantage because it "offers an efficient way of managing products (mean score of 3.30) and services" and "helps quick data capture and analysis" (mean score of 3.33).Micro-businesses utilize social media and are highly dependent on them due to their ease of use.With mean scores ranging from 3.45 to 3.57.In the case of perceived usefulness proprietors are highly dependent on social media due to "allow me to get things done more quickly."(mean score of 3.20) and "support critical aspects of my work, such as crisis" (mean score of 3.41).
Based on the results of this study, owners of micro-businesses adopt social media in their operations because of those tested reasons.It may be challenging for organizations to accept and use new technological breakthroughs if they conflict with their social and cultural norms [17].New technological advances can now be used as creative tools by small and medium-sized organizations (SMEs).It was determined that compatibility has a major impact on SMEs' adoption of new technologies.Moreover, past studies have shown compatibility to be a major factor in the adoption of technological innovation [18].The current study discovered similar outcomes.Conversely, some authors also noted that decisions about the adoption of new technologies may be influenced by perceived relative advantage [19].According to one study, SMEs will embrace new technological innovations if they believe they will improve the performance and sustainability of the company [20].The same result was proven in this study conducted.The Technology Adoption Model (TAM) conceptualizes perceived usefulness and ease of use as predicting factors of new technology's attention and uptake [20].Perceived usefulness and ease of use have been proposed as the most important indicators of technology adoption [22].The owners of small businesses who are the respondents of this current study confirmed this result.In Table 4 the differences in the dependency reasons for the use of social media were tested against the profile of the company respondents.Interestingly, the outcomes disclosed that there were "No significant differences" among the samples when it comes to the nature of operations, number of years in business, number of employees, types of food being sold, and social media frequently used.All the p-values are greater than 0.05 which led to the overall conclusion.

Drawbacks
Frequency Percentage  5 shows that the biggest disadvantage of using social media in micro business operations is "bogus buyers," as reported by 30% of the owners.Providing customers with "dummy/fake accounts" is an additional drawback of social media use for small business owners with 15%.Thirdly, 13.75 of owners complain of having a "poor internet signal" as one of the drawbacks of using social media for small enterprises.The final issue that microbusinesses face when implementing social media is "difficulties in tracking orders and miscommunications" with 12.5%.The goal of research and practice has mostly been to comprehend and assist in utilizing the numerous opportunities provided by social media, or the "bright side" of the platform.But it's becoming more and more evident that social media poses serious threats to people, businesses, communities, and even society at large.The "dark side" of social media includes things like trolling, cyberbullying, online witch hunts, addiction, bogus news, and invasions of privacy [23].The present study unveiled the various drawbacks of the adoption of social media in small businesses particularly in the Philippines.

Discussion
Without question, small firms, like those in the Philippines, are the engine of the majority of growing economies worldwide.In order to remain profitable and competitive in the face of the current global economic downturn, microbusinesses are continuously enhancing their business procedures.This tendency has evolved into a competitive arena.This has also encouraged the development and application of a variety of innovations to help businesses scale up their competitive strategy.For example, social media's origins have been improbable, especially in the current administration when the platform is being actively utilized to close the gap between companies and their clients [24].

4.1.Summary of Findings
The purpose of this research is to investigate the dependency reasons of micro-businesses in their social media adoption.Here are the findings of this study.4.1.1.Eighty (80) microbusiness owners responded, making up 80% of the sample.Nearly half of the sample consists of food delivery business owners that are new to the industry, having been in operation for less than a year, and the majority only employ one (1) to three (3) people.These small company owners frequently use Facebook as a social media tool for their operations, and the majority of the food products they offer are sandwiches and other snacks.
4.1.2.According to the compatibility variable, this is one of the reasons small business owners are "highly dependent" on social media for their operations.Since social media "offers an efficient way of managing products and services" and "helps quick data capture and analysis," owners are "highly dependent" on it for relative advantage.Microbusinesses use social media and are "highly dependent" on it because of its user-friendliness.Owners are "highly dependent" on social media because, in their words, it "allows me to get things done more quickly" and "supports critical aspects of my work, such as crisis.".4.1.3.The profile of the firm responders was compared to the variations in the dependent justifications for social media use.It's interesting to note that the results showed "No significant differences" between the samples in terms of the types of food sold, the number of years in business, the number of employees, and the frequency of usage of social media.Since every p-value was higher than 0.05, a general conclusion could be drawn.4.1.4.The "bogus buyers," as claimed by 30% of the owners, are the largest drawback of using social media in microbusiness operations.Another disadvantage of using social media for small business owners is giving them "dummy/fake accounts" to customers.Having a "poor internet signal" is the third disadvantage of social media for small businesses.One last problem micro-business encounter with social media implementation is "difficulties in tracking orders and miscommunications."

4.2.Conclusion
The study aimed to investigate the dependency reasons on social media adoption of micro-businesses.The level of dependency on social media adoption was tried using Kruskal Wallis, a non-parametric tool using the parameters of compatibility, relative advantage, ease of use, and perceived usefulness.The results revealed that compatibility and perceived usefulness are the important dependency reasons of small enterprises in their adoption of social media in their operations.For relative advantage, the efficient way of managing products and services as well as the help in quick data capture and analysis, are explanations for social media adoption of micro establishments.Because social media is so easy to use, microbusinesses use it and are highly dependent on it.Owners describe themselves as highly dependent on social media because it allows them to get things done more quickly and supports critical aspects of their work, such as crises.It tested also the significant differences in the dependency reasons of the participants when it comes to business type, number of years in operation, number of employees, type of food sold, and frequency of use of social media.The test showed no significant differences in all demographic profiling used.

4.3.Recommendations
Only a small number of respondents from small businesses are included in this study.In the future, the research can be conducted by gathering information from many businesses to get accurate and comprehensive data that will allow the results to be generalized.Future studies should conduct comparative studies among various industries to validate the current findings and investigate more dependency reasons of small businesses in their adoption of social media in their operations.The medium as well as big companies could also be considered as respondents in this topic of dependency reasons for social media adoption.Finally, as the current study only employed the quantitative methodology, future research can also take the mixed method approach into consideration.

4.4.Management Implications
This study has several management-related consequences for owners of micro-businesses and startup companies.The current study made clear that owners of small enterprises in emerging economies need to understand the dependency reasons for the adoption of social media.It is predicted that owners will focus on these dependency reasons as a means of staying competitive with their industry peers.Finally, the results provide more useful guidance on the adoption and use of social media as a 21st-century technology for small establishments, adding to the body of knowledge already available on the subject of social media adoption and the sustainability of small businesses in developing countries.

1 . 1 . 1 1 . 1 . 4
What is the profile of the respondent companies as to: 1.1.1.1Nature of operations 1.1.1.2Number of years in business 1.1.1.3Number of employees 1.1.1.4Type of food being sold 1.1.1.5Social media frequently used?1.1.2What is the level of dependency of micro-businesses in the food service industry on social media: adoption as to: 1.1.2.1 Manageability 1.1.2.2 Relative advantage 1.1.2.3 Ease of use 1.1.2.4 Perceived usefulness 1.1.3How significant are the differences in the level of dependency of micro-businesses in the food service industry based on reasons of manageability, practicability, compatibility, and consistency in the adoption of social media when grouped based on company profile?What are the drawbacks of the adoption of social media platforms among micro-businesses in the food service industry?