Benefits, barriers, and facilitators of developing B2B mobile applications

• Published in: The Journal of business & industrial marketing Vol. 39; no. 3; pp. 537 - 552
• Main Authors: Asamoah, Daniel Adomako, Dinsmore, John Bowman, Swani, Kunal
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Santa Barbara Emerald Publishing Limited 09.04.2024; Emerald Group Publishing Limited
• Subjects: Artificial intelligence; Automation; Business to business commerce; Customer services; Innovations; Purchasing; Technological change; Technology; Technology Acceptance Model; Technology adoption; Technology deployment; Diffusion of innovation; Text analysis; Technology-organization-environment framework; Mobile applications
• ISSN: 0885-8624; 2052-1189; 0885-8624
• DOI: 10.1108/JBIM-10-2022-0457

Purpose While few studies have examined business-to-business (B2B) mobile application (app) usage, none have examined the challenges in developing these technological assets. This study aims to examine B2B marketing executives’ perceptions regarding benefits, barriers and facilitators in app development. Design/methodology/approach A survey of 311 B2B marketing executives at selling firms in the USA was conducted to identify key themes related to the benefits, barriers and facilitators in developing B2B apps. The research featured “open-ended” questions exclusively, and advanced textual and thematic analysis of executives’ responses produced several key themes. Findings Results show that the perceived benefit of lowering customer servicing and costs drives development more so than trying to realize new revenue opportunities (e.g. “saving” vs. “making” money). Achieving internal buy-in/participation was perceived as a larger barrier than the commitment of financial resources. Additionally, training and education were viewed as the strongest facilitators of an app’s success over its design and functionality. Implications for B2B firms are discussed. Research limitations/implications The open-ended format of this research captures a greater breadth of perspectives at the expense of more granular analysis of any particular issue. Originality/value The themes generated from the responses offer novel insights into the benefits sought in developing an app, as well as the technological, organizational and environmental factors that act as barriers and facilitators. The open-ended format of this research captures a greater breadth of perspectives at the expense of a more granular analysis of any particular issue.