Abstract

The presented paper discusses the complex processes and challenges of the modern world, which are directly related to the development of sharing economy business models in digital platforms. It also explains the main features of the concept and describes the peer-to-peer effects globally and in the context of local cases in Georgia. Georgia is a developing country where the digital trust-forming process has started within the last few years. The COVID-19 pandemic has influenced digital business by increasing transactions over the Internet, which creates enormous opportunities for platforms from the sharing economy. The paper focuses on two areas: the problems of involvement in the sharing economy and the obstacles that directly or indirectly hinder the entities participating in the sharing economy. The research concentrates on consumer experiences and the prospects for developing the current model of the economy even more in future. The combination of consumer values is a dilemma that needs exploration to ensure the successful functioning of sharing economy services. Therefore, research outcomes fill the literature gap related to consumer behaviour on the local sharing economy digital platforms. In order to better understand consumer behavioural characteristics, this study examines motivational factors (technical, customer, trust-based) that individually influence satisfaction and the intention to use a platform in a peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodation again. Based on relevant literature and an online survey of 259 questionnaire respondents, who actively use sharing services locally in Georgia, this study confirms that technical prepositions, consumer values attributes and platform trust-based characteristics are positively associated with customer satisfaction and loyalty. Furthermore, the analysis revealed that satisfaction positively correlates with future intentions mediated simultaneously by the above-mentioned factors. The research findings can be developed in future academic research to study the digital trust-building process and analyse the complex nature of the sharing economy markets.

Keywords: digital economy; digital trust; digital platforms; sharing economy; trust distribution

JEL Classification: D80, O30, O17.

Cite as: Zhghenti, T., & Gedenidze, G. (2022). Sharing Economy Platforms in Georgia: Digital Trust, Loyalty and Satisfaction. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 2, 209-219. https://doi.org/10.21272/mmi.2022.2-19

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

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