A Survey on Product Promotion via E-commerce Platforms - Case Study in Malaysia

A survey by Malaysian Communication and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has shown that Internet users in Malaysia has increased up to 88.7% in year 2020 compared to 76.9% in year 2016 which is quite high increase in percentage. The pervasive use of smartphones and computers nowadays as well as the availability of high-speed Internet access has brought a new way of promoting products. E-commerce is a buy and sell system that can be accessed globally around the world. This system can provide efficient strategies for promoting products and services. It is widely agreed that even small enhancements in promotion techniques can increase the profitability of any e-commerce system. In this paper, a research has been conducted to study methods to enhance product promotion among Malaysians. The study investigates through a survey the factors affecting users' WTP (willing-to-pay) during performing e-commerce transaction as well as factors what attract/repel them more. To achieve the study aim, a group of 385 respondents throughout Malaysia have been involved in this research through questionnaire study. Detailed analysis has been introduced to clarify the results. The study has identified the top e-commerce platforms that are used by Malaysians to execute product promotion. The results show that promotion through e-commerce platforms could increase profitability and help businesses to expand rapidly. This is due to the fast market penetration of online promoting compared to conventional one.