THE INFLUENCING FACTORS OF BUYING BEHAVIOR IN ROMANIAN ONLINE LIBRARY

MARKET

Abstract: This work aims the identification of the factors who influence the
purchasing decision of online books. For this, many studies on online buying
motivation were taken to consideration, studies on online shopping in Romania and
online book shopping. As a methodology, a questionnaire was conducted on a
sample of 30 students.
Key words: books, e-commerce, online market, consumer behavior, ease of acces.
Libraries were among the first areas that have benefited from the emergence of
electronic commerce and managed to impose itself among buyers on the Internet.
The main advantage of a virtual library is that it allows you to search and to order
the book in record time and without the need to move away from the computer. Of
course looking through books in a bookstore can not be replaced by a virtual
bookstore.
In Romania at present, there is a market for books online, and there are a number of
websites that try to win this market. There are several categories of websites that
provides the ability to purchase books online:
Online bookshops: shops dedicated to trading only books
(example: www.librariaeminescu.ro);
- publishing houses: increasingly more publishing houses have built sites for selling
books online to readers (the site publishing by Humanitas, Teora, etc. ) ;
- 'Universal' shops which have sectors dedicated to books and magazines (the site
Diverta shop, www.DOL.ro, shall contain, in addition to the other categories of
products - a category of books).

The most important virtual libraries in Romania are: Librrie.net (http://www.librarie.net/);

Humanitas.ro

(http://www.humanitas.ro/);

Teora.ro(http://www.teora.ro/);
(http://www.litera.ro/ ).
Knowledge Stage

Editura

Sigma

Raft.ro

(http://www.raft.ro/);

(http://www.editurasigma.ro);

Litera.ro

In accordance with Xinyu CAO and Patricia L. Mokhtarian (2005), which prospect a
series of analyzes carried out on the behavior of the online buying, we can
individualise the following theories which analyse the factors leading to de final
buying decision:
The theory of the justified purchase which describes the psihological process
behind aware behavior of purchase;
- theory of planned behavior completing the previous theory including controlled
behavior of purchase;
- The model of acceptance of technology is an adaptation of the theory of justified
action which is based on consumer behavior adapting to new technologies;
- transaction costs theory according to which in a market information are
symmetrical is used especially for identifying problems of the organizations;
- Dissemination of innovation theory analyzes the progression behavior of purchase
in accordance with the progress of innovation of the channel in question;
- Other theories.
All of the variables met by these studies have that common point two dimensions
which compose the purchasing behavior: the intention and actual behavior of the
purchase.
Keeney (1999) supplies first theoretical model which compares the online channel
and conventional channels from the point of view of the online customer.
The relative attraction of a purchase environment depends on how much value is
provided to customers in comparison with other alternatives. The key is to establish
'value'. As a company puts more benefits in a commercial environment, the more
the value is higher.

So the 25 benefits that a company should provide are:

1. minimize fraud;
2. ensure the safety of the system;
3. maximize access to information;
4. maximize product info;
5. minimize incorrect use of credit cards;
6. Minimize incorrect use of personal information;

7.ensure the safe delivery;

8. limiting purchases based on impulse;
9. maximize transaction accuracy;
10. increasing comparative shopping;
11. better buying choices;
12. maximize assortment;
13. Maximize the availability of product;
14. minimize customer travel;
15. maximize ease of use;
16. offering personal interaction;
17. maximize the quality of the product;
18. minimize cost;
19. minimizing delivery time;
20. * Maximize comfort;
21. * minimizing lost time;
22. * maximize confidentiality;
23. * maximize the enjoyment of shopping;
24. * maximize safety,
25. * minimising the impact to the environment.

Online buying behavior in Romania

Altough the use of online commerce increased, nearly half of Internet users remain
reticent about shopping in virtual environment. These are some of the most recent
study conclusions on e-commerce produced by Gemius in partnership with Orange
(GemiusReport, 2006). Romania, where penetration rate of the internet in 2008 has
reached 36 %, is a country of excited buyers . More than two-thirds of the Romanian
Internet users have a pozitive attitude about the shopping (in general), while only
6% of them have declared that "they don't like" or "they hate" shopping.

As the results of the study proves , 50% of the respondents declare that they have
bought something online. The increase of the number of online buyers in the last 3
years is spectacular - an increase of 22 % of the total users of the Internet.
Altough the celebrity of the online trade has increased, the internet users in
Romania consider shopping online risky . We should expect for a reduce fears of
transactions online, when the Internet users will benefits more from the online
trade . However, they are still perceived as risky by nearly half of Internet users.

The results of the study on perception of the online shopping in Romania are shown
below:
Figure 1. "Based on your personal experience or on other people's opinions, you
consider that online shopping is.......:"

risky
takes less time than traditional
shopping
its cheaper than
traditional shopping

its complicated

none of the above

o
%

10%

20
%

30
%

40
%

50
%

60
%

Gemius Report, 2006.Accesed on 23 aprilie 2010 at the following address:

http://www.underclick.ro/articol-2613-cumparaturile online in romania.html

Online buying behavior from bookstore market

The purpose of this study is to find factors affecting channel choice online, and to
determine relative importance of these factors that affect the choice of the
consumer. Since there are various products and services, trade books has been
chosen as a context in which the consumer is faced with the choice channel.
For this study they chosed books because it represents "the only and the most
popular point, followed by computers, music and video products", as told by the
American Marketing Corporation in 1998.
In Romania in 2006 among the first 5 online stores there was this site librarie.net
which owns 4% in consumer preferences online (Gemius Report, March 2007).
Establishing a top based on the Internet as preferred seating for search, within the
same study, revealed that 28% of the respondents search for books, CD/DVDs or
movies on net (Gemius Report, March 2007).
But in our days the purchases consumers may have not the same frequency as in
the cultural sector such they were 2-3 years ago. In other words the romanian
buyer no longer invests as as much in books. According to a survey made by the
Center for Research and Consulting on the field of culture in the year 2009 has been
registered a downward trend of increased non-consumption on the books. So if in
2008, 45% of the respondents say that they have not bought books, in 2009 the
percentage increased to 51 %, mostly caused by the economical crises (The sytudy
'barometer of Cultural consumption', 2009).
However the importance of a study specific to analyze factors that determine final
decision for the purchase of books in online environment is obvious, in particular
under the conditions in which these factors may directly influence the positive
market trend stores online.

METHODOLOGY
There were completed 30 questionnaries, in which the respondesnta were selected in a
systematic way.
Taking into consideration the nature of the study, only the ones who used the web were
selected to participate at the study.
53% of the respondents said they spend between 10-19 hours on the internet weekly.
Chart 1. The average time of Internet use per week

How many time do you spend weekly on the internet?

More than 19 h

Between 10-19 h

Series 1

Under 10 h

Total
0

10

15

20

25

30

18 respondents said they bought things online at least once. Of these, at the question
Have you ever bought a book on a website? 8 responded positively.
For the 10 respondents who have never bought books online, the next question was
related to why this approach is not considered appropriate. 7 of them said they prefer personal
view and browse the book before they buy it, while only 3 said they prefer traditional libraries
because the books are cheaper.
Because we want to establish the main factors influencing the positive decision of buying
online books were considered for the rest of the 8 survey respondents who said they bought
books online at least once.
Considering the above Keeney's objectives and a research model provided by Alan CB Tse
Yim and Frederick (2001), they were asked to set their perceived level of importance factors on
the list when it considers it necessary to buy a book. Once you have established the importance
of the objectives, respondents were asked to evaluate the online channel capacity to meet those
objectives. Both import and capacity are measured using a 5-point scale, from 1 to 5, one being
"absolutely unimportant, very incapable" and 5 "very important, very capable." Factors included
on the list of most goals Keeney follows:

Minimizing fraud
Maximizing security transaction
Limiting impulse buying
Maximizing accuracy transaction
Minimize loading errors
Maximize the variety of products for comparison
Maximize the information about the products
Minimize the wrong usage of a credit card
Minimize the wrong usage of the personal information
Ensuring an accurate and reliable supply
Making better shopping choices
Maximize the variety of products
Minimize the personal travels
Maximize the ease of use
Providing interaction with staff

For the whole sample, the most important factor influencing the choice of buying through
online channel is the minimize misuse of the credit card. Minimizing fraud and make better
buying choices appear as the next two most important factors affecting their choice. The least
important factor is to maximize the access to information.
3 of the 8 respondents declared they used the internet over 20 hours weekly. In them case,
Minimize loading errors, is the most important factor that make them use the online channel.
Maximize the variety of products for comparison is a second significant factor and minimize
fraud is a third one influencing the choice of channels by buyers. The most unimportant factor is
Limiting impulse buying.
It had been observed the fact that the factors tend to distinguish according to the frequency
with which the Internet is used by the respondent.
CONLCUSIONS
In this study we find out that the most important 4 factors influencing the choice of online
channel in case of purchase books are:

Minimize the usage of a credit card

Minimaze fraud
Making better shopping choices

Maximize information acces

The only factor that determines the buyers to buy from the traditional librarys is the
ability to see the product.
In order to increase the likelihood of customers to buy online channel, are formulated
recommendations: better security system, building trust, maximize access to information and
improve product visibility to attract those consumers who consider that it is the decisive factor in
determining purchase from traditional bookstores.
Limitations of the research and future research proposals.
The main limitation of the research is representativeness of the sample. I believe that a
number of 30 respondents is not enough to accurately reproduce the factors influencing the
purchase of books online.
In a proposed future research on a larger sample analysis and implementation of a larger
questionnaire containing questions and psychological aspects when buying the book and seen the
potential solutions for improving the consumer distribution channel for books.

REFERENCES

1. Cao, X.Y., Mokhtarian, P.L., (2005). The Intended and Actual Adoption of Online
Purchasing: A Brief Review of Recent Literature. Institute of Transportation Studies
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UC Davis, 3-9.
Centre for Research and Consultancy Culture (2009). The study 'Cultural
Consumption Barometer'. Accessed April 23, 2010, at: http://culturadata.ro/PDF-

uri/Barometru2009.pdf
3. Channel Advisor, (2009). How consumers shop online, 4-5. Accessed May 2, 2010,
at : http://claudiu.gamulescu.ro/documente/pdf/consumers_shop.pdf
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7-9.

Accessed

April

23,

2010,

at

http://files.gemius.pl/Case_Studies/gemiusAdHoc/ecommerce_in_CEE_Romania_Sh
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