Web 2.0, focusing on user involvement and cooperation, is vital for online marketing. To succeed in such a cutthroat industry, every online business must place a premium on earning and retaining clients' trust and loyalty in the digital realm. The study's objective is to ascertain whether or not electronic consumer loyalty and online trust are enhanced by social media marketing. The results of the poll, which included 596 individuals, showed that social media marketing tools had a significant effect on consumers' faith in and commitment to businesses through digital channels. The results of this study will hopefully add to what has been applied to social media marketing for online businesses.

The influence of social media marketing activities on customer loyalty: A study of e-commerce industry

The crisis triggered by the COVID-19 emergency is changing the competitive landscape by pushing companies to adapt to sudden change. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that want to survive must innovate their business. Antifragility represents the capability of a system to absorb shocks and get better, allowing it to overcome a crisis and improve its performance. The use of digital technologies by enterprises is expected to play an important role in building antifragility. The aim of this paper is to study how digital technologies can contribute to the development of antifragility in SMEs. This study analyzed the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis of six small and medium-sized enterprises located in Calabria, South of Italy. All the six enterprises have turned the crisis into a business opportunity developing new products, investing in marketing and communication, or starting new collaborations. The research identifies the factors leveraged by the investigated organizations that enabled this anti fragile behavior. They include slack financial resources, strategic agility, and relations with research institutions. The study highlights the positive impact of digital technologies in developing antifragility. Results were summarized into research propositions to be tested in future confirmatory studies. The findings of the study are useful for researchers interested in antifragility and digital technologies in SMEs. The results are also important for entrepreneurs and managers of SMEs, since they can support their decisions in terms of survival and transformation of their companies. 

/pdf/thrive-during-a-crisis-the-role-of-digital-technologies-in-rmxv5b1k.pdf

Thrive during a crisis: the role of digital technologies in fostering antifragility in small and medium-sized enterprises

This paper explores digital transformation's impact on the work of owners in entrepreneurial firms. The interplay between working practices and technology is analyzed, taking into account the organizations' specific contexts.,A multiple case study design was applied. Eight cases of entrepreneurial firms, defined as companies that bring new products and services to the market by creating and seizing opportunities, were selected, with the goal to maximize the diversity of cases. The sample includes both small- and medium-sized firms, as well as high- tech and low- tech companies in equal number. Interviews have been used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data, which was analyzed in a structured way.,The digital transformation of entrepreneurial work, that is the daily work of entrepreneurs, is an evolutionary, practice-based phenomenon, rather than the result of rational design. The use of different digital tools is interrelated and depends on the characteristics, and dynamics of the surrounding environment.,The findings of this study are relevant to entrepreneurs interested in understanding the dynamics of their working practice, to software development firms interested in entrepreneurs as customers and to institutions interested in the education of entrepreneurs.,To the best of the authors' knowledge this is the first study which considers the interplay between digital technology and the daily activities of entrepreneurs, considered as a whole. It provides insights on how these interconnected dimensions evolve, thus contributing to understanding the work of entrepreneurs, and as a consequence the dynamics of entrepreneurial firms in the context of digital transformation of organizations.

The digital transformation of entrepreneurial work

This paper explores technostress and its dimensions, assessing the relationship with possible negative effects in the individual, social and professional sphere. The study uses a self-reported approach of undergraduate students in Spain (n = 337), forced to follow their academic life by using technology comprehensively because of social distancing, as a public health action necessary to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The analysis, based on the exploration of a system of archetypes of the use of social networks, presents insights into contemporary technostress management as a new approach that can suppose opportunities for the optimization of prevention plans. Pearson's correlation coefficients and structural equation modeling based on partial least squares (SEM-PLS) were the methods used for achieving the goals. The results reveal valid and reliable measures where technostress has a high impact on the individual sphere of students and there is a significant relationship between the type of user and techno-anxiety. The conclusions point to the imperative for developing a deeper understanding of technostress by archetypes, in both a higher education context (as antecedent) and the world of work, in an irreversible move towards a digital economy.

https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/8/4216/pdf

Overwhelmed by Technostress? Sensitive Archetypes and Effects in Times of Forced Digitalization.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected almost every area of our lives. It meant a break from our lifestyles, transforming everything from face-to-face to online. Among the places where this situation has become more evident are primary schools, secondary schools, and universities, which have had to adopt online teaching in its entirety. Faced with this situation, the work of the educational counsellors was essential to coordinate the centre with the families and to enable students to follow the classes in the best way possible. The objective of this study is to analyse the scientific literature about online educational guidance, with a focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve this, a scoping review inspired by the PRISMA model was done. A total of 42 articles were studied. The main results show that many counsellors were at a disadvantage and in a very stressful situation, as they did not have the necessary digital training. On the other hand, this situation has been the first contact for many counsellors with the use of ICT within their profession and in an unexpected situation, without time for training or enough preparation.

/pdf/review-about-online-educational-guidance-during-the-covid-19-4olkow3kc7.pdf

Review about Online Educational Guidance during the COVID-19 Pandemic

In these times of global tragedy due to the pandemic that caused COVID-19, distance learning relies on the resources of the digital field, as well as on the management of ICT and the development of digital skills. Therefore, this research has been aimed at corroborating the existing links between the integration of ICT and digital skills pandemic times. A study with a quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, correlational approach was developed. The sample consisted of 168 students from a public university in Lima, Peru. Two tools were adapted: 1) integration of ICT, 18 items and 2) digital skills, 30 items, with reliability coefficients by Cronbach's Alpha of 0.976 and 0.889, respectively. The questionnaires were developed and taken through Google forms. The results showed that the level of integration of ICT was high (89.9%) as well as digital skills (86.9%). Spearman's Rho correlation analysis concluded that there was a positive and high relationship between integration of ICT and digital skills (0.761, p < 0.05). Finally, discussions were raised about the development of aspects related to ICT during the current pandemic.

/pdf/integration-of-icts-and-digital-skills-in-times-of-the-33przhdrsm.pdf

Sandy Dorian Isla Alcoser

Papers

Integration of icts and digital skills in times of the pandemic COVID-19