Examination of Business People’s Attitudes Towards Virtual Trade Fairs

Abstract The digitalization trend in the business world and the mandatory conditions that originated from COVID-19 increased the importance of virtual fairs. Determining the direction of attitudes of the business people, who participated in virtual fairs, will allow for having an idea about the future of these fairs. In addition, it is also essential to determine which company characteristics are associated with these attitudes. However, there are only few studies in the literature about virtual fairs, which have recently gained much importance. In this research, which aims to contribute to the literature, an online survey was conducted on 204 business people that participated in at least one virtual trade fair in 2022. The data collected was analyzed by using Exploratory Factor Analysis, K-means Clustering, and Chi-Square Test. The results showed that the firms generally have positive attitudes. The dimensions of these attitudes are related to the perceived usefulness of the Technology Acceptance Model. However, given the results of the Exploratory Factor Analysis, the items that represented the perceived ease of use are not effective. When the relationships between business characteristics and business people's attitudes towards virtual trade fairs were tested and no statistically significant relationship was found between the business's age or the business's size and attitudes. The only statistically significant relationship is the one between business people’s judgment on the industry's suitability of the business and their attitude towards virtual trade fairs. In this research, which aims to contribute to the literature, an online survey was conducted on 204 business people that participated in at least one virtual trade fair in 2022. The data collected was analyzed by using Exploratory Factor Analysis, K-means Clustering, and Chi-Square Test. The results showed that the firms generally have positive attitudes. The dimensions of these attitudes are related to the perceived usefulness of the Technology Acceptance Model. However, given the results of the Exploratory Factor Analysis, the items that represented the perceived ease of use are not effective. When the relationships between business characteristics and business people's attitudes towards virtual trade fairs were tested and no statistically significant relationship was found between the business's age or the business's size and attitudes. The only statistically significant relationship is the one between business people’s judgment on the industry's suitability of the business and their attitude towards virtual trade fairs.