Dissertation: Social Media Influence on Consumer Behavior in Morocco

This dissertation investigates the impact of social media on consumer behavior in the decision-making process in Morocco. It examines how social media influences consumer perspectives, the main components of the decision-making process before a purchase, and how social media is used in marketing. The study uses a positivism philosophy, deductive approach, descriptive design, and survey research strategy, with data collected from 100 social media users in Morocco. The findings suggest that social media significantly influences consumer decisions, highlighting its importance in shaping consumer behavior towards products and services in the Moroccan market. The research concludes with recommendations for businesses to effectively leverage social media to influence consumer behavior and improve marketing strategies.

Running head: DISSERTATION
Impacts of Social Media on Consumer Behavior in Decision Making Process in Morocco
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

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Acknowledgement
It provides me utmost contentment to make the final submission of the research that concentrates
on the “Impact of social media of social media on consumer behavior in decision making process
in Morocco”. Since the beginning of the research until the submission, I have been able to gain a
chance of conducting an in-depth research on the impact of factors influencing consumer
behavior in the decision making process.
I want to thank many people who have helped me in producing this project work. Firstly, I would
like to give regards to my supervisor ………………… who helped me a lot to prepare this work.
I also show my gratefulness towards my respondents of the surveys without whose help, I would
not be able to do the work. Special thanks to my children for their tolerance during the last four
years of my MBA studies, all the travels I had to do to attend lectures and sit for exams.
Thanking you all.

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Abstract
The aim of the research is to investigate the impact of social media on consumer behavior in
decision making process in Morocco. Social media is largely influencing as well as changing the
way consumers should behave followed by making decision before purchasing a product or a
service. Considering the huge benefit social media offers to the individuals in terms of
communication regardless of the location and time, it is used drastically by the business
organizations for communicating with the target customers. Compared to the past years, a rise of
the social media use has been encountered in regards to online forums, blogs and social media
platforms. As a result, social media has become the voice of the consumers that has grown in
strength due to the various advantages it provides to both the consumers and the business
organizations.
Issues in terms of the use of social media have been noticed that is having an impact on the
consumer behavior in decision making in Morocco. Morocco is having issues in cascading the
appropriate information to the target users by social media. As a result, the actual information is
not being transferred to the customers and the business organizations are unable influence the
decision making process of the consumers in Morocco. Analyzing the impact of social media in
consumer behavior in decision making in Morocco is important, as this provides an opportunity
to address the impact of the gap of the use of social media on consumer behavior in buying
decision in Morocco.
Positivism philosophy, deductive approach, descriptive design and survey research strategy has
been used. In accordance with the above-mentioned methods, random probability sampling

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technique has been used for selecting the social media users as the population out of which 100
social media users in Morocco has been selected. Primary data collection technique and
quantitative data analysis technique has been used for gathering relevant and updated data and
assessing the relationship between social media use and consumer behavior in decision-making
in Morocco.
Therefore, it can be stated that the alternate hypothesis has been considered in this research, as
the regression analysis value obtained is .000. This shows that the factors of consumer decision
making process on the social media platforms play an important role in purchasing the products
in the market. The acceptance of the alternate hypothesis also suggests that these factors are
important on the part of the decisions that are taken by the customers in purchasing the products.
Social media plays an important role in influencing the decisions of the customers towards a
particular product or service that leads to its accepted or rejection

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Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction....................................................................................................................9
1.0 Overview...........................................................................................................................9
1.1 Problem statement...............................................................................................................10
1.2 Research aim........................................................................................................................10
1.3 Research objectives.............................................................................................................10
1.4 Research questions...............................................................................................................11
1.5 Research hypothesis.............................................................................................................11
1.6 Research rationale................................................................................................................11
1.7 Structure of the dissertation.................................................................................................12
1.8 Summary..............................................................................................................................13
Chapter 2: Literature review..........................................................................................................15
2.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................15
2.1 Conceptual framework.........................................................................................................15
2.2 Social media.........................................................................................................................16
2.3 Use of social media globally................................................................................................17
2.4 Use of social media in Morocco..........................................................................................18
2.5 Factors affecting use of social media for business..............................................................18
2.5.1 Relevance......................................................................................................................18

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2.5.2 Quality..........................................................................................................................19
2.5.3 User-generated content.................................................................................................20
2.5.4 Volume.........................................................................................................................20
2.6 Concept consumer behavior and decision-making..............................................................20
2.7 Factors affecting consumer behavior and decision-making................................................21
2.7.1 Culture..........................................................................................................................21
2.7.2 Perception.....................................................................................................................22
2.7.3 Trend.............................................................................................................................22
2.7.4 Economic level.............................................................................................................23
2.8 Theories of consumer behavior and decision making.........................................................23
2.8.1 Theory of reasoned action................................................................................................23
2.8.2 Hawkins Stern Impulse Buying........................................................................................24
2.9 Model of consumer behavior...............................................................................................25
2.9.1 Engel, Kollat, Blackwell (EKB) model............................................................................25
2.10 Current economic scenario in Morocco.............................................................................26
2.11 Benefits of using social media for business organizations................................................26
2.12 Impact of social media on consumer behavior in decision making process......................27
2.13 Challenges of using social media on consumer behavior in decision making process.....27
2.14 Summary............................................................................................................................28
Chapter 3: Research methodology.................................................................................................29

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3.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................29
3.1 Research outline...................................................................................................................29
3.2 Research philosophy............................................................................................................30
3.2.1 Justification...................................................................................................................30
3.3 Research approach...............................................................................................................30
3.3.1 Justification...................................................................................................................31
3.4 Research design...................................................................................................................31
3.4.1 Justification...................................................................................................................32
3.5 Research strategy.................................................................................................................32
3.5.1 Justification...................................................................................................................33
3.6 Sampling technique and sample size...................................................................................33
3.6.1 Justification...................................................................................................................33
3.7 Data collection process........................................................................................................34
3.7.1 Justification...................................................................................................................34
3.8 Data analysis technique.......................................................................................................35
3.8.1 Justification...................................................................................................................35
3.9 Ethical considerations..........................................................................................................35
3.10 Accessibility issues............................................................................................................36
3.11 Summary............................................................................................................................37
Chapter 4: Findings and Analysis..................................................................................................38

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4.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................38
4.1 Demographic factors............................................................................................................38
4.2 Inferential statistics..............................................................................................................43
4.2.1 Correlation analysis......................................................................................................43
4.2.2 Regression analysis.......................................................................................................52
4.3 Summary..............................................................................................................................55
Chapter 5: Discussion....................................................................................................................56
5.0 Overview..............................................................................................................................56
5.1 Discussion............................................................................................................................56
5.2 Summary..............................................................................................................................59
Chapter 6: Conclusion and recommendation.................................................................................60
6.0 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................60
6.1 Linking with objectives.......................................................................................................61
6.2 Recommendations................................................................................................................62
6.3 Future scope of the study.....................................................................................................62
References......................................................................................................................................64
Appendix 1.....................................................................................................................................73
Survey questionnaire.................................................................................................................73

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List of Figures
Figure 1: Conceptual framework...................................................................................................16
Figure 2: History of Social Media.................................................................................................16
Figure 3: Types of Social Media...................................................................................................17

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Chapter 1: Introduction
1.0 Overview
Social media is largely influencing as well as changing the way consumers should behave
followed by making decision before purchasing a product or a service. Considering the huge
benefit social media offers to the individuals in terms of communication regardless of the
location and time, it is used drastically by the business organizations for communicating with the
target customers. As commented by Treem and Leonardi (2013), the business organizations use
social media as a marketing platform or tool, as this allows reaching far out customers as well as
ensure continuous communication in terms of the products and services and significant
information related to it such as offers and discounts. The field of consumer behavior is
relatively new in the research field, as prior 1960 consumer behavior was related to consumption
that belonged to the economic discipline. The business organizations use social media as a
medium or platform for marketing, as a shift in the scalability of the influence and the way the
customers share, analyze and select information has been noticed (Seidman 2013).
Compared to the past years, a rise of the social media use has been encountered in
regards to online forums, blogs and social media platforms. As a result, social media has become
the voice of the consumers that has grown in strength due to the various advantages it provides to
both the consumers and the business organizations. For this study, the use of social media in
Morocco has been studied followed by determining its impact on the consumer behavior in the
decision-making process. According to Cheston, Flickinger and Chisolm (2013), social media
has gained huge popularity in Morocco in the past few years and is used by the population for
communicating with people and business organizations. The most preferred social media

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platforms in Morocco are Facebook and YouTube. In Morocco, Facebook is not a mere network
for communication but it has become an open and independent platform for sharing information
and communicating. However, problems in terms of consumer buying in the decision making
process is studied in this research.
1.1 Problem statement
Issues in terms of the use of social media have been noticed that is having an impact on
the consumer behavior in decision making in Morocco. Morocco is a blooming country with
wide range of opportunities for the business organizations that needs to be used wisely. Thus, in
order to compete in the tough business environment, the social media is not used appropriately.
Though Facebook is used largely in Morocco, the business organizations are unable to use the
social platforms wisely for communicating with the target customers. The information the
business organizations want to cascade to the customers for influencing their behavior in the
decision making process for purchasing their product and service are at fault (Boulianne 2015).
As the social media platform is having huge active users, Morocco is having issues in
cascading the appropriate information to the target users by social media. As a result, the actual
information is not being transferred to the customers and the business organizations are unable
influence the decision making process of the consumers in Morocco.
1.2 Research aim
The aim of the research is to investigate the impact of social media on consumer behavior
in decision making process in Morocco.
1.3 Research objectives
The objectives of the research are:

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 To investigate on consumer perspectives towards social media and its decision making
 To evaluate the main components in decision making process before an actual purchase is
taken place
 To know how social media is used in marketing processes
 To evaluate the essentials' social media offered to both marketers and consumers.
1.4 Research questions
The research questions are:
 How do consumers attend, process, and obtain the information through social media?
 What are the changes social media has brought to consumers in different stages of their
decision making?
 How do social media influence the purchase intention of Moroccan consumers?
 How currently local corporations are using such powerful for communicating an
influencing the purchase decision of their target segments?
 How important is the social media representation in their marketing plan and campaigns?
1.5 Research hypothesis
The research hypotheses are:
H0: Social media does not influence the pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase stages of the
consumer behavior regarding any product in Morocco
H1: Social media influences the pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase stages of the
consumer behavior regarding any product in Morocco

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1.6 Research rationale
Analyzing the impact of social media in consumer behavior in decision making in
Morocco is important, as this provides an opportunity to address the impact of the gap of the use
of social media on consumer behavior in buying decision in Morocco. The research is
significant, as this will enable the researcher to recognize the potential reasons of the issues in
the use of social media on consumer behavior on decision making. Recognizing the issues using
social media on consumer behavior in the decision making process will provide an opportunity
for the researcher to access the relationship between social media and consumer behavior in
decision making process (Solomon et al. 2014). As a result, it will be easier to compare and
contrast the consumer behavior in decision making process with or without the presence of social
media in Morocco.
This research will also provide an opportunity to shed light on the main factors of
consume behavior in decision making in Morocco. As a result, it will be possible for the
researcher to find the issues in terms of the use of social media and its impact on consumer
behavior on the decision making process (Hutter et al. 2013). After identifying the potential
gaps, this study will help in finding potential methods in using social media for consumer
behavior on decision making in Morocco. Therefore, this study is important, as this will help in
evaluating the impact of social media on consumer behavior in decision making Process in
Morocco.
1.7 Structure of the dissertation
Five chapters comprise to form the overall structure of the dissertation. The five chapters
include introduction, literature review, research methodology, data analysis and findings,
conclusion and recommendation.

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Chapter 1: Introduction
The first chapter lays the foundation of the entire study by setting the research aim and
objectives followed by identifying the research gap and justifying the significance and purpose
of the research.
Chapter 2: Literature review
Followed by the first chapter, this chapter helps in identifying the independent and the
dependent variable. After identifying the variables, this chapter provides information in terms of
concept and factors by referring to relevant theories and models.
Chapter 3: Research methodology
This chapter provides information about the wide range of methodological tools that can
be used while commencing with the research work. Apart from describing the tools, this chapter
justifies the use of specific methodological tools.
Chapter 4: Data analysis
By selecting the methods mentioned in the previous chapter, this chapter analyzes in
detail the data collected followed by making suitable interpretations.
Chapter 5: Conclusion and recommendation
This is the last chapter that discusses the interpretation by referring to the information
provided in the literature review and deducing suitable conclusions.

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1.8 Summary
Thus, in this chapter, it can be summarized that the use of social media has increased
hugely over the past years and is accepted by the world population positively. Apart from the
general use of communication and gathering knowledge, social media is used largely by the
business organization around the world for expanding their business, increasing sales and
revenue. The information provided above highlights the significant role of social media on
consumer behavior in decision making process in Morocco thereby, shedding light the benefits
and challenges for both the customers and the business organization.

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Chapter 2: Literature review
2.0 Overview
This literature review is conducted with the aim of gathering in-depth knowledge and
understanding about the identified independent and dependent variable in accordance with this
study. For this study, the social media is the independent variable and the consumer buying and
decision making is the dependent variable. The extensive and beneficial use of social media for
the business organizations as well as the individuals is known and highly researched. In this
review, the impact of social media on consumer behavior in decision-making for Morocco is
studied by discussing the concepts of the variables, critically analyzing the factors affecting them
and by referring to relevant theories and models followed by discussing the impacts, challenges
and benefits.

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Social media
Consumer behaviour in decision-making
Relevance
Quality
User-generated content
Volume
Culture
Perception
Trend
Economic level
2.1 Conceptual framework
Figure 1: Conceptual framework
(Source: Created by Author)
2.2 Social media
Social media is the computer and internet based technology that promotes sharing of
ideas, information and communication. According to Perrin (2015), social media is defined as
the applications and websites that allow the users to create and share contents. However, as
argued by Duggan and Brenner (2013), the concept of social media highlights convenient long
distance communication. The 2000’s has seen a rise in the use of social media due to the
different benefits t offers for its users.

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Figure 2: History of Social Media
(Source: Van Dijck 2013)
Considering the above figure, it can be said that social media has come a long way since
the late 1900’s and has changed the shape of business and communication.
Figure 3: Types of Social Media
(Source: Korda and Itani 2013)

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The above figure shows the different types of social media with the current number of
existing users.
2.3 Use of social media globally
With the rising trend, social media has become an integral part of the lives of the people
and its application in different fields is highly significant. As commented by Chaffey (2016),
social media is used largely for communication. Both individuals and business organizations use
the social media platforms for communicating with specific persons. However, as argued by
Bolton et al. (2013), other than communication, the social media platform is used for supporting
causes and campaigns. This provides a global platform for the individuals to share their opinions
and feedbacks thereby, communicating their thoughts to the world.
On the other hand, from the business perspectives, social media allow brand recognition
and create brand awareness thereby, reaching out to customers regardless to location and time.
However, it is important for the business organizations to know the effective use of social media
for their respective business (Wamba and Carter 2016). Thus, the use of social media in Morocco
needs to be analyzed and evaluated in order to determine its impact on consumer buying in
decision-making.
2.4 Use of social media in Morocco
Social media has played a key role in changing and shaping the Moroccan environment.
Facebook and YouTube are the most favored social media platforms that are used in Morocco. In
Morocco, Facebook is used primarily for communication, sharing of information and organizing
campaigns whereas YouTube is used as a video-sharing medium that is used by the Moroccan
journalists for sharing views and opinions that they cannot say through the traditional media.

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Morocco has an estimated 3,711,000 active social media users and is ranked third in the Arab
world after Egypt and Saudi Arabia in terms of use of social media (Dekker and Engbersen
2014).
The social media in Morocco is used for generating their individual media contents, for
informing, mobilizing, campaigns and building networks. Cyber activism is highly noticed in
Morocco that facilitates activists to organize campaigns and generate support (Kamal, Chu and
Pedram 2013).
2.5 Factors affecting use of social media for business
After shedding light on the concept and use of social media globally, this section talks us
through the different factors affecting the use of social media. The different factors affecting
social media use are relevance, quality, user-generated content (UGC) and volume.
2.5.1 Relevance
Relevance is one of the key factors that affect the use of social media. As commented by
Ainin et al. (2015), it is necessary for the uses to connect or find relevancy in order to engage
them with the activities over social media. For instance, if the users find an advertisement
appealing, they tend to stick to that post for a while. However, as argued by Ngai, Tao and Moon
(2015), not only relevance, the active users over social media uses the platform for passing time.
This is because the use of social media allows them to keep them updated with the latest
happening around the world. However, in Morocco the business organizations are failing to find
relevancy with the posts over social media that is affecting the consumer behavior in decision-
making process.

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2.5.2 Quality
Having a healthy and adequate amount of content is necessary for facilitating the use of
social media. As mentioned by Sponcil and Gitimu (2013), it is important for the business
organizations to prioritize quality over quantity. This is because the amount of information
retained by hearing is much lesser compared to the amount of information retained by seeing
images. However, as criticized Treem and Leonardi (2013), not only quality, the business
organizations need to present the quality of the products creatively over the social media
platform. This will help in influencing the consumer behavior in decision-making process, as the
business organizations will be able to create a unique image in the eye of the customers and
stand out from the competitors in the global platform.
The business organizations in Morocco is unable to present the quality of their products
and services creatively to the users due to which they are failing to leave an impact in the
consumer behavior in the decision-making process.
2.5.3 User-generated content
User-generated content is the content in the form of videos, images, texts and audios that
are posted online by the users of the social media. As mentioned by Goh, Heng and Lin (2013),
user-generated content is a way of providing social proof. As a result, the users are able to see
the content published on the virtual platform thereby, maximizing the credibility on behalf of the
brands and the business organizations. As a result, the burden of the contents is reduced and
saves both money and time. However, as argued by Ashley and Tuten (2015), the requirement of
continuous monitoring and presence of negative feedback openly affects the use of social media
in consumer behavior in decision making for the brands. The negative feedback posted on the

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social media platform for the Moroccan business organization is affecting the consumer behavior
in decision making negatively.
2.5.4 Volume
The world of social media is becoming equally crowded with business organizations as is
the real world. More and more business organizations are opting for the social media platform
for reaching out for the customers and attracting and retaining them. As commented by
Boulianne (2015), as the active users are able to access the products and services of several
brands according to their convenience in terms of place and time, the use of social media is
affected. However, as argued by Gray et al. (2013), in spite of having the ability to access wide
range of brands, lack of assurance affects the use of social media for the users. This is hampering
the use of social media and consumer behavior in decision making is affected negatively.
2.6 Concept consumer behavior and decision-making
Consumer behavior is the study of individual customers, groups and the business
organizations that choose for buying, using and disposing the ideas. The mid 1900’s saw the
emergence of the concept of consumer behavior. According to Solomon et al. (2014), consumer
behavior is defined as inter- disciplinary social science that helps in understanding the attitude of
the target customers towards a particular service or product. However, as agued by Cantallops
and Salvi (2014), consumer behavior studies the emotions, attitudes and preferences of the
customers that enables them to decide whether to go or not go for a particular product or service.
Thus, the behavior of the consumers helps in the decision-making process for using or not using
a product or service. Positive behavior leads to positive decision-making whereas negative
behavior leads to negative decision-making that is not beneficial for the business organizations.

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2.7 Factors affecting consumer behavior and decision-making
After discussing the concept of consumer behavior and decision-making, below are the
factors that affect the behavior of the consumers in making decisions. The factors affecting the
consumer behavior in decision-making are culture, trend, perception and the economic level. The
impacts of the aforementioned factors are analyzed critically in this section in order to determine
the impact on consumer behavior in making suitable decision.
2.7.1 Culture
Culture is one of the important factor that affects the consumer behavior and the decision
making process. As commented by Stephen (2016), the surrounding an individual grows up
largely influences the behavior in decision-making. For example, the purchasing attitude of
dancer differs largely from that of a techie. However, as criticized by Font-i-Furnols and
Guerrero (2014), as difference in needs is noticed among individuals from different culture, their
behavior in decision-making also differs. It is important for the business organizations to take
into account the basic characteristics of each of the cultural group and develop products and
services accordingly thereby, influencing their behavior in decision making.
2.7.2 Perception
Human beings are sensory individuals and the surrounding receptors help in developing
perceptions. The business organizations are well aware of the significance of perceptions that
influences the consumer behavior in decision making process. As mentioned by Chen and Chang
(2013), the perception of each individual differs largely due to the the distinctive nature and
attitude. The difference in the nature and attitude is present because each individual is different
from another and have separate choices. Thus, while developing products and services, the
business organizations need to remember the distinctive perception of their target group. If the

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products and services by the business organization are similar to the perception, positive
behavior is noticed thereby, resulting in positive decision-making.
2.7.3 Trend
Trend is the only constant thing that the business environment encounters and that
enforces the business organizations to develop strategies for incorporating the market trend. As
mentioned by Goh, Heng and Lin (2013), positive consumer behavior in decision making is
noticed when the customers feel that the product or service they are looking at is on trend.
Trends are defined as the expression of the market that is powerful enough for every business
organization to foresee. For example, the concept of social media marketing is trending and
almost all business organizations, small, medium or large advertises using this platform.
However, as criticized by Halvorsen et al. (2013), incorporating and executing the trends is not
always possible due to lack of resources and expertise. Thus, using the social media platform by
the business organization help them to offer convenient shopping and giving regular updates
thereby, influencing consumer behavior in decision-making.
2.7.4 Economic level
The financial capability of the individuals has a impact of the buying decision of the
customers. As mentioned by Zhao et al. (2014), the willingness or positive behavior for
purchasing a product comes from the financial stability of the individual consumers. After
selecting the target group of customers, the business organizations need to analyze the level of
income before setting the price. If the consumers are comfortable with the price set for the
products and services and does not impose a burden on their economic level, positive behavior in
decision-making is noticed. However, as argued by Vicente-Molina, Fernández-Sáinz and

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Izagirre-Olaizola (2013), instead of having an economic stability, positive consumer behavior in
decision making is not noticed due to other factors such as trends, cultures and perception.
2.8 Theories of consumer behavior and decision making
The use of relevant theories provides a framework and guidance that helps in better
understanding of the concepts. In order to do so, theory of reasoned action and Hawkins Stern
Impulse Buying theories are studied for understanding consumer behavior in decision making
while using or not using specific products and services.
2.8.1 Theory of reasoned action
The theory of reasoned action was formulated in 1960 by Martin Fishbein and Icek Ajzen
with the aim of analyzing the significance of previously existing attitudes in the individuals in
the process of decision-making. According to Montano and Kasprzyk (2015), the concept of
theory of reasoned action highlights that the consumers act according to the behavior that is
based on the individual intention for creating or receiving specific outcomes. As a result,
according to this concept, the consumers are rational actors that opt to enact in their best of
interests. However, as argued by Mishra, Akman and Mishra (2014), being specific is crucial
according this theory. This is because the customers take actions when they expect an equal
result.
While marketing a product or a service, it is necessary for the business organizations to
relate the purchase with a positive as well as specific result. Secondly, the business organizations
need to move the consumers through the sales pipeline. Thus, it is important for the business
organizations to understand the difference between the initial intention and the end results of the

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action by facilitating ample time for communication for having an impact of the consumer
behavior in decision-making (Doane, Pearson and Kelley 2014).
2.8.2 Hawkins Stern Impulse Buying
The name of the theory itself suggests that the concept of the theory is based on the idea
of impulse behavior of the individuals. Hawkins Stern highly relied on the impulse buying
behavior of the customers while the majority of the theories of consumer behavior emphasized
on the rational actions (Amos, Holmes and Keneson 2014). It has been argued in the theory that
sudden buying impulses goes simultaneously with the rational purchasing decision in order to
paint a complete picture of the target consumers. Thus, it can be said external stimuli influences
impulsive buying and has less or no relationship with traditional process of making decision
(Ozer and Gultekin 2015).
The theory of impulse buying is divided into four categories that include completely
impulse buying, reminded impulse buy, impulse purchases and lastly planned impulse buying
decisions. This theory offers a wide range of opportunities for the business organizations, as each
aspect of the product; from packaging to display in the store affect the consumer’s impulse
control. Thus, this theory highlights to the business organizations the way the consumers predict
purchasing decisions and the way the business organizations should capitalize on the predictable
behaviors (Shapiro 2015).
2.9 Model of consumer behavior
One of the most studied models of consumer behavior is Engel, Kollet, Blackwell (EKB)
model that is discussed and highlighted in the section below.

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2.9.1 Engel, Kollat, Blackwell (EKB) model
The EKB model is based and is the expanded version of the theory of reasoned action
that is based on the five step structure used by the consumers while purchasing. As mentioned by
Osei and Abenyin (2016), in the first step of the model, the consumer absorbs the majority of the
marketing decisions from medias such as social platform, television that is followed by
processing of the information in which the consumers compares the absorbed information with
past experiences and expectations. This step is followed by the thought process where the
consumers decide to buy the product based on rational insight. The behavior of the consumers
are influenced by external stimuli and the steps of making decision such as how the consumers
view themselves after making the purchase.
Application of this model requires the business organizations to ensure maximum effect
in the initial information stage and the marketing stage. The initial information stage is
important, as this allows the business organizations to provide maximum information to the
consumers about the product or service thereby, pushing them for considering the product of the
company for buying. Marketing step is important, as this helps in adding value to the brand and
making it different from the competitors (Tidwell 2015).
2.10 Current economic scenario in Morocco
The current economy of Morocco is considered liberal, as the law of supply and demand
governs it. Morocco has capitalized on its proximity to Europe that has resulted in considerably
low labor cost. In addition to, this has led to the establishment of open, diverse and market-
oriented economy. The main sectors that up lifts the economy of Morocco are tourism,
aerospace, agriculture, automobile, textiles, phosphates and apparels. The Moroccan economy is
the fifth largest economy in Africa and the World Economy Forum has declared Morocco as the

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first most competitive economy in Northern Africa. Approximately 40%-50% of the Moroccan
population are involved in agriculture but contributes only 14% towards the economy (Hellegers,
Immerzeel and Droogers 2013).
Thus, considering the Moroccan economy, it can be said that the country is feasible for
conducting business.
2.11 Benefits of using social media for business organizations
Social media is highly preferred by the business organizations for reaching out to the
potential customers. This is because social media offers low commitment and an easy way for
the target customers to express their interest in the products and services for the specific
companies. As commented by Aral, Dellarocas and Godes (2013), one of the benefits of using
social media is it offers reduced marketing cost for the companies. This is because the companies
can save additional costs that are required for printing newspapers, pamphlets and billboards.
Marketing and advertising in the social media platform are free of cost. However, as argued by
Leonardi, Huysman and Steinfield (2013), apart from reduced marketing cost, social media use
greater and efficient opportunities for connecting to wide range of customers regardless of
location and time. The business organizations share latest information about offers related to
their products and services and keep the target customers engaged and updated continuously.
2.12 Impact of social media on consumer behavior in decision making process
Social media helps the business organizations to trap the attention of the business
organizations. As mentioned by Hajli (2014), social media helps in creating awareness among
the target consumers about the product and service they are launching. Social media provides an
opportunity for the business organizations to ensure higher consumer involvement that leads to

28DISSERTATION
positive consumer behavior. However, as argued by Hutter et al. (2013), the consideration
developed among the consumers due to social media use facilitates positive behavior in decision
making towards a particular product or service.
2.13 Challenges of using social media on consumer behavior in decision making process
However, using social media for business can also be challenging at times. As mentioned
by Hollebeek, Glynn and Brodie (2014), having an unclear social media strategy or marketing
goal results in minimized benefits for the business organizations. This is because social media is
a virtual platform and lacks personal communication that helps in better customers’ engagement
and influence. Thus, the marketing strategy over social media needs to be strong and impactful.
However, as argued by Schultz and Peltier (2013), additional resources and daily monitoring is
required for ensuring a successful online presence. This is because the majority of the companies
use the social media platform for marketing and influencing consumer decision. So monitoring
continuously help in considering the competitor’s action and keeping them updated regularly.
2.14 Summary
Thus, in this chapter, it can be summarized that the rise of social media has emerged over
the years and is one of the most preferred medium used by the business organizations for
reaching out the potential customers. In Morocco, both internet and social media is used by 50%
of the business organizations but faults in influencing the consumer behavior in decision making
positively is not noticed. This might be because the business organizations in Morocco are
unable to strategize and execute the factors that affect social media use and consumer behavior in
making decision properly that is having a negative impact.

29DISSERTATION
Chapter 3: Research methodology
3.0 Overview
This chapter helps us by providing an overview of the different steps that can be
undertaken by a researcher for completing a research successfully. In order to develop and make
an authentic and conclusive study, it is important for the researcher to construct a proper
methodological framework that sheds light on appropriate philosophy, approach, design,
strategy, sampling size, data collection and data analysis techniques. In addition, for enhancing
the quality of the research, proper data collection framework has to be developed. This section
also talks us through the accessibility issues and the significant research ethics that has been
followed for completion of the work successfully.
3.1 Research outline
Taking into account the aim and objectives of this research, positivism philosophy,
deductive approach, descriptive design and survey research strategy has been used. In
accordance with the above-mentioned methods, random probability sampling technique has been
used for selecting the social media users as the population out of which 100 social media users in
Morocco has been selected. The social media users here are the consumers whose behavior in
decision making in Morocco is analyzed due to the use of social media in this study. Primary
data collection technique and quantitative data analysis technique has been used for gathering
relevant and updated data and assessing the relationship between social media use and consumer
behavior in decision-making in Morocco.

30DISSERTATION
3.2 Research philosophy
The three existing types of research philosophies are positivism, pragmatism and
interpretivism. As mentioned by Neuman (2013), positivism philosophy allows describing and
observing the phenomenon from the viewpoint of the research aim and objectives that has been
undertaken and facilitates the use of statistical analysis. On the other hand, the combined
characteristics of positivism and interpretivism philosophy form pragmatism philosophy. Use of
pragmatism philosophy is hardly noticed, as this result in research complexity. Interpretivism
philosophy helps in understanding the difference between the existing humans in the society
followed by analysing the difference (Mackey and Gass 2015).
3.2.1 Justification
In accordance with Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault (2015), this research has been conducted
by applying positivism philosophy. This is because the application of positivism philosophy
facilitates the researcher to prove the formulated hypothesis, describe and observe each
phenomenon from the viewpoint of the research aim and objectives undertaken for this research.
In addition, this is the most appropriate philosophy when deductive approach is used for the
research. As a result, the researcher has been able to predict the potential issues that Morocco is
facing while using social media platforms for influencing consumer behaviour in making
decision in their favour. Moreover, the use of positivism philosophy has allowed observing the
human senses and viewpoints of social media users of Morocco in influencing their behaviour
and decision making positively (Lewis 2015).
3.3 Research approach
The two existing types of research approaches that are applied while progressing with the
research work are inductive and deductive approach. According to Vaioleti (2016), inductive

31DISSERTATION
approach is defined as the approach where theories and concepts are formulated based on the
observations that have been made. The application of inductive approach is risky, as incorrect
observations can lead to the development of incorrect theories and concepts as well as shifts the
eye of the researcher from proving aim and objectives to developing theories. On the other hand,
deduction approach highlights deducing observations from theories and concepts that are in
existence. This mitigates the chances of developing incorrect observation, as the researcher has
the option of referring to already existing and proven theories and concepts (Flick 2015).
3.3.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, deductive approach has been
applied for this research. This is because this is the most suited research approach when
positivism philosophy has been used. In addition to, the use of deductive approach allowed the
researcher to make observations of impact of social media on consumer behaviour in decision-
making process in Morocco by referring to concepts of social media use, consumer behaviour
and decision-making process. In addition to, the use of deductive approach enabled the
researcher to use two theories and one model of consumer behaviour in the literature review
section thereby, making suitable observations and proving the research aim and objectives
(Smith 2015).
3.4 Research design
The three existing research designs that are used widely are explanatory, descriptive and
exploratory research designs. Each of the research designs are different due to difference in their
functional characteristics. According to Bauer (2014), the concept of exploratory research design
facilitates exploring the potential and existing issues within the study. Exploring the issues
within the study helps in finding ways for mitigating them. On the other hand, explanatory

32DISSERTATION
designs facilitate explaining the potential reasons of the issues. Explaining the potential issues
helps in going to the depth of the prevailing issues. However, both the characteristics of
exploratory and explanatory research design forms descriptive research design (Ledford and Gast
2018).
3.4.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, descriptive research design
has been applied. The application of descriptive research design is most suited for this study, as
this allowed both exploring the issues of using social media and influencing consumer behaviour
in decision-making process positively and effectively (Roberts 2013). In addition to exploring
the issues, the use of descriptive research design also helped in explaining the reason of the
issues. For instance, in Morocco, the social media is ineffective in influencing consumer
behaviour in decision-making process due to issues in relevance, user-generated content, volume
and quality. As a result, the researcher has been able to reach the core that is facilitating the
issues in Morocco by applying descriptive research design (Gale et al. 2013).
3.5 Research strategy
The four existing research strategies are action research, survey, case study and
interview. The research strategy provides a proper action plan that helps in offering appropriate
direction to the thoughts and efforts thereby, helping the researcher to conduct the study. As
commented by Humphries (2017), in action research, the researcher attempts to provide results
in a valuable manner for whom the research is being conducted. On the other hand, the case
study research facilitates the researcher to understand relationship between realities by referring
to similar scenarios. Survey research strategy facilitates collection of data from a large

33DISSERTATION
population whereas while interviewing data is collected through personal communication (Dang
and Pheng 2015).
3.5.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, survey research strategy has
been applied. The use of survey research strategy allowed the researcher to collect data by
circulating questionnaires to a large population. As a result, the researcher has been able to draw
appropriate inferences in terms of the data by analysing the relationship between social media
and consumer behaviour in decision-making process. In addition to, the use of survey research
strategy allows studying more than one variable at a single time. However, on the contrary, the
idea of each of participants in details in difficult in survey (Novikov and Novikov 2013).
3.6 Sampling technique and sample size
Non-probability and random probability sampling technique are the two most widely
used sampling techniques by the researchers. For random probability sampling technique, equal
chances to all the individuals within the population are provided to be the part of the data
collection process. However, on the other hand, for non-probability sampling technique, the
researcher itself for gathering a deeper understanding of the research topic selects the
participants individually. This enriches the quality of the study, as in-depth data are present in
non-probability sampling technique (McCusker and Gunaydin 2015).
3.6.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, random probability sampling
technique has been implemented. The implementation of survey research strategy enables the
researcher to select all the social media users as the population from where all the individuals

34DISSERTATION
had equal chances of being a part of the survey. Large population of the social media users
helped in gathering valuable insights of the impact on consumer behaviour in decision-making
process. Out of the large population size, 100 social media users of Morocco have been selected
as the sample size whose survey response were selected for analysis (Mukhopadhyay and Gupta
2014).
3.7 Data collection process
Primary and secondary are the only two data collection processes that are applied while
commencing with research work. Primary data collection technique highlights collection of
recent and raw data from the participants selected for the research. Primary data collection
process enables the researcher to communicate and understand the viewpoint of the participants
in respect to the research aim and objectives. On the other hand, secondary data collection
process highlights collection of data from various secondary resources such as books, journals,
articles, official websites and other internet facilities. Finding relevant secondary resources for
secondary data collection is important for proving the research aim and objectives (Alvesson and
Skoldberg 2017).
3.7.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, primary data collection
process has been applied. The application of primary data collection is justified, as this facilitated
the researcher to gather data from the active social media users of Morocco and the way the
virtual platform influences the consumer behaviour in decision-making process. The researcher
has been able to analyse the impact in Morocco by taking into account the benefits social media
offers to the consumers in terms of behaviour, communication, engagement and convenience
while making decisions (Vamsi Krishna Jasti and Kodali 2014).

35DISSERTATION
3.8 Data analysis technique
Qualitative and quantitative data analysis techniques are the two most widely used
techniques for analysing the data. According to Dumay and Cai (2015), quantitative data analysis
technique takes into consideration the quantity, that is, the number of participants agreeing or
disagreeing to a specific point. Thus, considering the numbers allows the researcher to know the
number of supporters and non-supporters and deduce observations accordingly. On the other
hand, the qualitative data analysis technique emphasizes on the maintaining the quality of the
collected data by interpreting the verbatim in detail in supporting it with relevant information
(Sahu 2013).
3.8.1 Justification
According to the information provided in the above-section, quantitative data analysis
technique has been implemented. The use of quantitative data analysis technique is rationalized
for this research, as this allowed the researcher to quantify the participants according to
participants agreeing or disagreeing to the close-ended options provided in the survey
questionnaire. The quantitative data analysis technique is expressed by using regression and co-
relation technique using the SPSS software (Gioia, Corley and Hamilton 2013).
3.9 Ethical considerations
Completion of a research successfully can be achieved if the research ethics are followed
strictly. One of the most important research ethics is data confidentiality. According to the ethics
of data confidentiality, the identity and the information shared by the participants has to be kept
confidential. Disclosure of identity and information is against the research ethics as this might
give to conflicts as well as threaten the participants for the data provided by them (Faden et al.
2013). Apart from this, another significant research ethics highlights willing participation.

36DISSERTATION
Forcing the participants to be a part of the research and data collection is against the research
ethics. Thus, signing the consent form before the participation is an effective way of abiding by
the research ethics (Nind et al. 2013).
Collection of relevant and required information from authentic resources is also a
significant research ethics. This helps in providing quality information thereby, ensuring
reliability and validity of the research that can be used as a valid source of information in the
future. In addition to, manipulation of data for achieving the research aim and objectives is
against the ethical considerations of the research. Moreover, harming anyone during the course
of the research is also prohibited according to the research ethics (Walliman 2017).
3.10 Accessibility issues
In the course of the research work, the researcher encountered some challenges that
resulted in the development of potential accessibility issues. One of the accessibility issue
encountered while commencing with the research work is time. The researcher had a limited
time of few months for completing the research work due to which the researcher had to rush
while conducting literature review and data collection. Another accessibility issue encountered
for this research is budget (Lomborg 2013). The researcher was given limited budget that
restricted the researcher to travel as well as restricted the use of some important websites for
gathering information, as it asked for subscription fees. Moreover, surveying only the social
media users of Morocco restricted the researcher to consider the viewpoints of the business
organization that use social media platform for influencing consumer behaviour in making
decision thereby, resulting in the development of one-sided research (Forrester and Sullivan
2018).

37DISSERTATION
3.11 Summary
Thus, in this chapter, it can be summarized that this chapter has summed up the different
methods that has been taken up by the researcher for completing the research work successfully.
This chapter has also justified the selection of particular methodological tools along with
describing each of the tools briefly. Thus, the selection of the aforementioned research
methodologies has helped in knowing the impact of social media on consumer behaviour in
decision-making in Morocco by using statistical analysis, factual data, investigating previous
concepts and theories and exploring and explaining the issues encountered in Morocco in using
social media effectively for influencing consumer behavior in making decisions.

38DISSERTATION
Chapter 4: Findings and Analysis
4.0 Overview
This chapter allows the researcher in understanding the survey that has been conducted
with the help of charts and graphs. It also helps in interpreting the data that has been collected so
that the findings can help in authenticating the process of research. It also allows the researcher
in understanding the demographics that has been taken up for the research so that the process can
be validated. The demographic factors have been shown using pie charts and the analysis has
been done with the help of correlation and regression. This has allowed in making the research
more authenticate in nature.
4.1 Demographic factors
Gender
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid Male 50 49.5 50.0 50.0
Female 50 49.5 50.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0
Age group (years)
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid 18-29 23 22.8 23.0 23.0
30-39 35 34.7 35.0 58.0
40-49 17 16.8 17.0 75.0
50 and above 25 24.8 25.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0

39DISSERTATION
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0
Education
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid Upto high school 13 12.9 13.0 13.0
Diploma 22 21.8 22.0 35.0
Bachelor Degree 36 35.6 36.0 71.0
Master/Doctorate 29 28.7 29.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0
Years dealing with social media
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid Less than 3 years 33 32.7 33.0 33.0
3-6 years 48 47.5 48.0 81.0
More than 6 years 19 18.8 19.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0
Which of the following social media do you follow?
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid Social Networking sites 47 46.5 47.0 47.0
Microblogging 14 13.9 14.0 61.0
Blogs/Forums 19 18.8 19.0 80.0
Social Bookmarking
Sites/Social News
8 7.9 8.0 88.0
Photo & Video Sharing Sites 12 11.9 12.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0

40DISSERTATION
Time spent on social media sites per week
Frequency Percent Valid Percent
Cumulative
Percent
Valid 0 hour 10 9.9 10.0 10.0
1-3 hours 28 27.7 28.0 38.0
4-6 hours 36 35.6 36.0 74.0
7-9 hours 13 12.9 13.0 87.0
10 hours or more 13 12.9 13.0 100.0
Total 100 99.0 100.0
Missing System 1 1.0
Total 101 100.0

41DISSERTATION

42DISSERTATION

43DISSERTATION
The demographic factors have been taken in to account so that the population and sample
can be understood by the researcher. 100 survey sheets were distributed, out of which all were
completed and returned to the researcher. The completed surveys have been mapped accordingly
so that it can help in understanding the demography that has taken part in the research study. It
can be seen that there has been an equal distribution among gender that is 50 percent of both the
genders have taken part in the survey. The equal distribution among the genders suggests that the
opinions that have been given are free from biasness. 35 percent of the participants belong to the
age group of 30-39 years, which suggests that social media plays an important role in influencing
their decision with respect to a particular product or service. 36 percent of the survey holds a
Bachelor Degree, which suggests that they have an income so that the research can be validated.
Most of the participants have knowledge regarding social media platforms and has been dealing
with it for 3-6 years. Most of the participants use the social networking sites such as Facebook,
which allows them in being connected with the latest trends. Most of the participants have stated
that they use the social media sites for a period of 4-6 hours on a weekly basis.

44DISSERTATION
4.2 Inferential statistics
4.2.1 Correlation analysis
This use of Karl Pearson Correlation coefficient allows in testing the association between
two variables. It also allows in testing the strength and the direction of the relationship between
the variables. The correlation is stated to be positive in nature when the value is within 0 to 1 and
is negative in nature when the value is between -1 to 0. The relationship is higher when the value
is closer to 1. The relationship is stronger when the value is more than 0.7.
Problem recognition
Correlations
Social media
stimulates you
to recognize a
need for
something
before buying
it
Social media
triggers you to
purchase a
product
through its
advertisements
You always
achieve a
desire for
something
new through
social media
Social media
provides
solutions on
what to buy,
where to buy
and why to
buy
Social media stimulates
you to recognize a need
for something before
buying it
Pearson Correlation 1 .693** .650** .585**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media triggers you
to purchase a product
through its
advertisements
Pearson Correlation .693** 1 .678** .539**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
You always achieve a
desire for something new
through social media
Pearson Correlation .650** .678** 1 .417**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media provides
solutions on what to buy,
where to buy and why to
buy
Pearson Correlation .585** .539** .417** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100

45DISSERTATION
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
The above test has been conducted to find out the most important factors for recognizing
the problems within the customers before they are thinking of purchasing the products or
services. It can be seen that the p-value has come to .693, which shows that there is a positive
correlation between the variables. It can be stated that social media stimulates the need among
the customers regarding particular products and services through the advertisements that are
provided on the platform. It also helps them in understanding the utility of the products and the
services that they are willing to purchase from the market.

46DISSERTATION
Information search
Correlations
Information
search about a
product is
easier in social
media
Social media
influences you
to try new
products
based on the
reviews by
friends
Social media is
an effective
tool for
different
opinions about
new and
existing
products
You search for
product’s
information in
social media
before a
purchasing it
Information search about
a product is easier in
social media
Pearson Correlation 1 .553** .747** .511**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media influences
you to try new products
based on the reviews by
friends
Pearson Correlation .553** 1 .592** .473**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media is an
effective tool for different
opinions about new and
existing products
Pearson Correlation .747** .592** 1 .643**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
You search for product’s
information in social
media before a
purchasing it
Pearson Correlation .511** .473** .643** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
This analysis has been conducted to understand whether searching the information
regarding the products and services they want to purchase is feasible or not. It can be seen that
the p-value has come to .747, which is more than 0.7. This shows that the correlation is positive
in nature as well as strong. Therefore it can be stated that the customers look out for information
regarding the products on the social media platforms, as it is an effective tool and easy to use as

47DISSERTATION
well. The social platforms play an important role in providing the necessary information so that
they can purchase the products in an easy manner.
Evaluation of alternatives
Correlations
Social media
has a higher
credibility
than
traditional
media
Social media
is more
reliable if
you have
uncertainties
regarding a
purchase
Social media
allows you to
filter any
information
of a product
based on
chat forums
Social media
changes
your initial
purchase
choice after
attaining
relevant
information
Interactions
with friends
on social
media assist
you in
evaluating a
product
Social media has a
higher credibility than
traditional media
Pearson
Correlation
1 .318** .790** .447** .629**
Sig. (2-tailed) .001 .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100 100
Social media is more
reliable if you have
uncertainties
regarding a purchase
Pearson
Correlation
.318** 1 .369** .589** .470**
Sig. (2-tailed) .001 .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100 100
Social media allows
you to filter any
information of a
product based on chat
forums
Pearson
Correlation
.790** .369** 1 .745** .460**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100 100
Social media changes
your initial purchase
choice after attaining
relevant information
Pearson
Correlation
.447** .589** .745** 1 .236*
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .018
N 100 100 100 100 100
Interactions with
friends on social
media assist you in
evaluating a product
Pearson
Correlation
.629** .470** .460** .236* 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .018
N 100 100 100 100 100
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).

48DISSERTATION
The above analysis has been conducted with respect to the alternatives that the customers
may have towards the products and services. It can be seen that the highest p-value has come
to .790, which is more than 0.7. This shows that there is a positive and strong association
between the variables. It can therefore be stated that social media has a higher rate of credibility
than tradition media, as it allows in filtering out the information regarding the products based on
the chats that are done by the customers. This allows the customers in choosing the right
products and services within their budget.
Consumer attitude
Correlations
Unpleasing
Advertisements on
social media make
you have a bad
attitude towards a
product/brand/service
Ratings by
friends of a
product
contributes
in shaping
your
attitude
towards the
same
Comments from
social media changes
your attitude towards
a
brand/product/service
Social
media tools
make you
have a
+ve/-ve
attitude
towards a
product
based on
information
accessed
about it
Unpleasing
Advertisements on
social media make you
have a bad attitude
towards a
product/brand/service
Pearson
Correlation
1 .471** .437** .628**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Ratings by friends of a
product contributes in
shaping your attitude
towards the same
Pearson
Correlation
.471** 1 .717** .528**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Comments from social
media changes your
Pearson
Correlation
.437** .717** 1 .515**

49DISSERTATION
attitude towards a
brand/product/service
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media tools
make you have a +ve/-
ve attitude towards a
product based on
information accessed
about it
Pearson
Correlation
.628** .528** .515** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
The correlation analysis has been done to find out the attitudes among the consumers
with respect to the products and services that they are willing to purchase from the market. It can
be seen that the highest p-value has come to .717 that is greater than 0.7. This shows that the
strength between the variables is strong and positive as well. It can therefore be stated that the
comments that are posted on the social media platform regarding particular products and services
allows them to change their attitudes. It also allows the customers in reviewing the ratings of the
products and services that are given by their friends and relatives. The comments and ratings that
are posted by the friends and relatives on the social media platform regarding the particular
products and services allow the customers in understanding it in a better manner.

50DISSERTATION
Consumer motivation
Correlations
You get
motivated to buy
products that are
advertised on
social media
Social media
motivates your
direction towards
a product based
on comments
from
friends/family
Social media
tools have
features that
entice you to ask
for
recommendations
of a product
You get motivated to buy
products that are advertised
on social media
Pearson Correlation 1 .593** .551**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
Social media motivates your
direction towards a product
based on comments from
friends/family
Pearson Correlation .593** 1 .634**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
Social media tools have
features that entice you to ask
for recommendations of a
product
Pearson Correlation .551** .634** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
This analysis has been done to find out the motivation that the customers have before
purchasing a particular product or service from the market. It is solely based on the reviews and
opinions that are placed on the social media by others with respect to those products. It can be
seen that the p-value has come to .634, which indicates that the analysis is positive in nature. It
can therefore be stated that the products and services that are advertised on the social media
platforms asks for recommendations from the customers so that they can review it after being
used. This also allows in getting an honest opinion regarding the type of products and its
feasibility in the market. The higher number of positive reviews will allow the product or service
to gain a competitive advantage whereas negative reviews leads to the product being removed by
the company from the market.

51DISSERTATION
Feedback Loop
Correlations
Information
regarding
products have
a higher
credibility on
social media
than on other
media
channels.
Social media
allows you to
communicate
with
companies
that produce
products
directly
You share
comments
about a
product to
friends via
social media
after a
purchase
Feedback on
social media
affects your
purchase and
future
purchase as
well.
Information regarding
products have a higher
credibility on social media
than on other media
channels.
Pearson Correlation 1 .255* .303** .409**
Sig. (2-tailed) .010 .002 .000
N 100 100 100 100
Social media allows you
to communicate with
companies that produce
products directly
Pearson Correlation .255* 1 .802** .438**
Sig. (2-tailed) .010 .000 .000
N 100 100 100 100
You share comments
about a product to friends
via social media after a
purchase
Pearson Correlation .303** .802** 1 .288**
Sig. (2-tailed) .002 .000 .004
N 100 100 100 100
Feedback on social media
affects your purchase and
future purchase as well.
Pearson Correlation .409** .438** .288** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000 .004
N 100 100 100 100
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
The analysis has been done to find out the impact that feedbacks play in assessing the
behaviour of the consumers towards a particular product or service. It can be seen that the
highest p-value has come to be .802, which shows that there is a positive correlation between the
variables. The strength between the variables is also very strong, as the value is more than 0.7.
This shows that the direction of movement for the variables are parallel in nature that is there is a

52DISSERTATION
direct effect. Hence, it can be stated that social media allows the customers in sharing the
comments with respect to products and services in a direct manner.
Satisfaction
Correlations
Social media
tools allow you
to voice your
opinion after a
purchase
Social media
conveys your
satisfaction and
dissatisfaction
directly to
manufacturers
Your repurchase
of a product is
affected by the
satisfaction and
dissatisfaction
reports from
social media
Social media tools allow you
to voice your opinion after a
purchase
Pearson Correlation 1 .562** .750**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
Social media conveys your
satisfaction and
dissatisfaction directly to
manufacturers
Pearson Correlation .562** 1 .683**
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
Your repurchase of a product
is affected by the satisfaction
and dissatisfaction reports
from social media
Pearson Correlation .750** .683** 1
Sig. (2-tailed) .000 .000
N 100 100 100
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
The correlation analysis has been done to find out the level of satisfaction that the
customers receive after they have used the product or service, which has been purchased from
the market. It can be seen that the p-value has come to .750, which indicates that the correlation
analysis is positive in nature. There is a greater amount of strength between the variables as well.
Thus it can be stated that social media platforms act as a tool for the customers in voicing their
opinions regarding the products or services that they are purchasing from the market. Based on

53DISSERTATION
the level of satisfaction and dissatisfaction that they get after using the product, the reviews or
comments are given, which results in positive or negative repurchase.
4.2.2 Regression analysis
This analysis helps in finding out the association between the dependent and the
independent variables that has been taken up in the process of research. It also helps in
understanding whether the null hypothesis has been accepted in to the research or not. If the p-
value is less than 0.05, it shows that the null hypothesis has been rejected and the alternate
hypothesis has been accepted. If the value is greater than 0.05, it shows that the null hypothesis
has been accepted and alternate hypothesis has been rejected. The p-value is determined through
a confidence interval of 95 percent.
Model Summary
Model R R Square
Adjusted R
Square
Std. Error of the
Estimate
1 .891a .794 .783 .53057
a. Predictors: (Constant), ConsumerMotivation,
EvaluationofAlternatives, InformationSearch, ProblemRecognition,
ConsumerAttitude
ANOVAa
Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
1 Regression 101.726 5 20.345 72.274 .000b
Residual 26.461 94 .282
Total 128.188 99
a. Dependent Variable: FeedbackLoop
b. Predictors: (Constant), ConsumerMotivation, EvaluationofAlternatives, InformationSearch,
ProblemRecognition, ConsumerAttitude

54DISSERTATION
Coefficientsa
Model
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
t Sig.
95.0% Confidence
Interval for B
B Std. Error Beta
Lower
Bound
Upper
Bound
1 (Constant) .169 .144 1.172 .244 -.117 .455
ProblemRecognition .156 .104 .164 1.493 .139 -.051 .363
InformationSearch .056 .107 .054 .521 .603 -.156 .267
EvaluationofAlternatives .609 .083 .586 7.372 .000 .445 .773
ConsumerAttitude .251 .130 .238 1.934 .056 -.007 .509
ConsumerMotivation -.098 .096 -.101 -1.021 .310 -.290 .093
a. Dependent Variable: FeedbackLoop
The first analysis has been done taking in to account the feedback loop as the dependent
variable and the factors of consumer behaviour have been considered as independent variables.
From the analysis it can be seen that the value of R2 and adjusted R2 has come to be .794 and .783
respectively. This shows that there is minimum difference between the values and that the
‘goodness of fit’ model has been accepted in this case. The significant value or p-value has come
to .000, which is less than 0.05. This shows that the null hypothesis has been rejected and the
alternative hypothesis has been accepted for the research based on these dependent and
independent variables.
Model Summary
Model R R Square
Adjusted R
Square
Std. Error of the
Estimate
1 .801a .641 .622 .74117
a. Predictors: (Constant), ConsumerMotivation,
EvaluationofAlternatives, InformationSearch, ProblemRecognition,
ConsumerAttitude

55DISSERTATION
ANOVAa
Model Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.
1 Regression 92.202 5 18.440 33.569 .000b
Residual 51.638 94 .549
Total 143.840 99
a. Dependent Variable: Satisfaction
b. Predictors: (Constant), ConsumerMotivation, EvaluationofAlternatives, InformationSearch,
ProblemRecognition, ConsumerAttitude
Coefficientsa
Model
Unstandardized
Coefficients
Standardized
Coefficients
t Sig.
95.0% Confidence
Interval for B
B Std. Error Beta
Lower
Bound
Upper
Bound
1 (Constant) -.119 .201 -.591 .556 -.519 .281
ProblemRecognition -.023 .146 -.023 -.159 .874 -.312 .266
InformationSearch .692 .149 .635 4.644 .000 .396 .987
EvaluationofAlternatives .164 .115 .149 1.423 .158 -.065 .393
ConsumerAttitude .276 .182 .246 1.520 .132 -.084 .637
ConsumerMotivation -.199 .135 -.192 -1.477 .143 -.467 .069
a. Dependent Variable: Satisfaction
This analysis has been done taking satisfaction as the dependent variable and the factors
of consumer behaviour as independent variable. Satisfaction is one of the major factors for the
consumers in repurchasing the product or service, as it allows them in using the product in an
optimum manner. It can be seen from the analysis that the value of R2 and adjusted R2 has come
to .641 and .622 respectively. This shows that the ‘goodness of fit’ model is accepted in this case
as well. From the ANOVA table it can be seen that the significant value has come to .000, which
shows that the null hypothesis has been rejected in this case as well.

56DISSERTATION
4.3 Summary
It can therefore be stated that the alternate hypothesis has been considered in this
research. This shows that the factors of consumer decision making process on the social media
platforms play an important role in purchasing the products in the market. The acceptance of the
alternate hypothesis also suggests that these factors are important on the part of the decisions that
are taken by the customers in purchasing the products. Social media plays an important role in
influencing the decisions of the customers towards a particular product or service that leads to its
accepted or rejection.

57DISSERTATION
Chapter 5: Discussion
5.0 Overview
This section discusses the findings gathered in the data analysis section by referring it to
the information provided in the literature review section. This provides an opportunity to justify
the findings in the data analysis section followed by supporting the findings with past researches
and literatures thereby, enriching the quality, validity and reliability of the work. In this section,
the findings from the data analysis section is also compared and contrasted by different authors
in the data analysis section.
5.1 Discussion
From the literature review and the data analysis, it can seen that the consumer behavior is
divided into three stages namely pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase stage. The different
factors of the aforementioned three stages of are discussed and co-relation analysis is conducted
accordingly. The literature review sections talks about social media factors such as relevance,
quality, volume and user-generated content that influence consumer behavior in decision-making
in Morocco.
Out of the three factors of pre-purchase stage, the results obtained highlighted the
maximum value .693 between social media stimulates the recognizing a need of buying
something new and social media triggers product purchase through advertisements, .747 between
effectiveness of social media and as an effective search tool and .790 between social media as an
effective filter and higher credibility than traditional media. Thus, it can be said that social media
stimulates the need among the customers regarding particular products and services through the
advertisements that are provided on the platform. This is only possible when the social media is

58DISSERTATION
advertising relevant and product in large volumes thereby providing more alternatives to the
consumers for making decision. In the literature review section, Ainin et al. (2015) states that the
social media needs to ensure relevancy as well as volume while advertising products thereby,
allowing the consumers relate to the advertisements and recognize the need for purchase. Sponcil
and Gitimu (2013) also mention it is important to prioritize quality over quantity. Thus, it can be
said that relevance, quality and volume on the social media provide an opportunity for the
consumers to recognize the problems, search information as well as look for alternatives.
The factors affecting purchase stage are consumer attitude and consumer motivation.
Both attitude and motivation of the consumers is influenced by the social media use. The values
of the co-relation result highlights .634 value between social media motivates direction towards a
product and social media is used as a recommendation tool and .717 value between comments on
social media changes consumer attitudes and ratings shape consumer attitudes. The co-relation
value of .634 between social media motivates direction towards a product and social media is
used as a recommendation tool highlights products and services that are advertised on the social
media platforms asks for recommendations from the customers so that they can review it after
being used thereby, deriving an honest opinion. This is supported by Goh, Heng and Lin (2013)
supports that following the latest trend on social media helps in motivating the consumers
thereby, affecting their decision-making process. On the other hand, the co-relation value of .717
between comments on social media changes consumer attitudes and ratings shape consumer
attitudes infers the comments and ratings that are posted by the friends and relatives on the social
media platform regarding the particular products and services allow the customers in
understanding it in a better manner. This is also supported by Chen and Chang (2013) that states

59DISSERTATION
perception of each individual differs largely due to the the distinctive nature and attitude thereby,
affecting the behavior of the consumer in the decision-making process while using social media.
The two factors considered for analyzing the impact of social media on pos-purchase
stage are feedback loop and satisfaction. The values of the co-relation is .802 is obtained by
analyzing the use of social media as a communication tool for the companies and .750 by
analyzing product repurchase is influenced by customer satisfaction and social media acts as a
tool for voicing opinion. The co-relation value of .802 signifies social media allows the
customers in sharing the comments with respect to products and services in a direct manner. This
is supported by Leonardi, Huysman and Steinfield (2013) that states social media use greater and
efficient opportunities for connecting to wide range of customers regardless of location and time.
On the other hand, the co-relation value of .750 signifies social media platforms act as a tool for
the customers in voicing their opinions regarding the products or services that they are
purchasing from the market. Based on the level of satisfaction and dissatisfaction that they get
after using the product, the reviews or comments are given, which results in positive or negative
repurchase. This is supported by Hajli (2014) that signifies social media helps in creating
awareness among the target consumers about the product and service they are launching. Social
media provides an opportunity for the business organizations to ensure higher consumer
involvement that leads to positive consumer behavior.
In Morocco, internet and social media is highly facilitated that has allowed added advantage for
the business organization to use the virtual platform for making better decisions. This can be
proved from the results obtained from the regression analysis that has rejected the null
hypothesis thereby, saying that social media influences the pre-purchase, purchase and post-

60DISSERTATION
purchase stages of the consumer behavior regarding any product in Morocco, as the value
highlights significant value .000.
5.2 Summary
Thus, in this section, it can be summarized that the use of social media has increased over
the years largely and has a huge impact on the consumers. The social media platform is used by
different business organizations for influencing, retaining as well as attracting new customers.
The use of social media platform provides increased opportunity for the business organizations
for affecting the behavior of the consumers thereby, affecting their process of making decision.
Thus, it can be inferred that social media has an impact on the consumer behavior in decision-
making process in Morocco.

61DISSERTATION
Chapter 6: Conclusion and recommendation
6.0 Conclusion
From the above chapter, it can be concluded that social media has an impact on the
consumer behaviour in the decision making process in Morocco. The data provided confirms that
the use of social media by the business organizations have increased largely over years due to
various benefits it offers to both the parties in terms of communication, interaction and
convenience shopping. Internet and social media has been used extensively in Morocco and the
business organizations in the country are using the social media platform for influencing the
consumer behaviour in the decision-making process. The potential gap identified in this study is
the inappropriate use of social media platform Facebook by the business organization. In spite of
having a growing and blooming business environment, ineffective use of social media platform
Facebook is affecting the consumer behaviour negatively. The business organizations are facing
issues in cascading required information to the target consumers that is having a negative impact
on the consumer behaviour. As a result, the pre-purchasing, purchasing and post-purchasing
stages of consumer behaviours are affected negatively. `
The results from the data analysis reject the null hypothesis and accept the alternative
hypothesis, as the regression analysis value is .000 that is highly significant. Thus, it can be
inferred that social media influences the pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase stages of the
consumer behaviour regarding any product in Morocco. As a result, the majority of the business
organizations use social media platform such as Facebook for fulfilling the pre-purchase,
purchase and post-purchase requirements of the consumers thereby, influencing their behaviour n
decision-making process.

62DISSERTATION
6.1 Linking with objectives
Objective 1: To investigate on consumer perspectives towards social media and its decision
making
Objective 1 is linked with 2.5 in the literature review section, as the section talks about
the use of social media by the business organizations and the perspectives of the consumers of
using it while making decisions. On the other hand, section B analyzes the impact of social
media during the pre-purchase stage thereby, investigating the perspectives of the consumers
towards social media and its role in decision-making.
Objective 2: To evaluate the main components in decision making process before an actual
purchase is taken place
Objective 2 is linked with section 2.6 and 2.12 that talks about the main components of
decision-making before the consumer decides to purchase. On the other hand, section C helps in
evaluating the main components in decision making process of social media before an actual
purchase is taking place.
Objective 3: To know how social media is used in marketing processes
Objective 3 is linked with 2.11 section of the literature review that sheds light on the
effective use of social media in marketing processes by the business organizations. On the other
hand, section B, C and D helps us to know the various ways the business organizations use social
media in the marketing process.
Objective 4: To evaluate the essentials' social media offered to both marketers and
consumers

63DISSERTATION
Objective 4 is linked with 2.12 and 2.13 in the literature review that talks about the
essentials’ it offers to both the marketers and consumers both positively and negatively. On the
other hand, section B, C and D helps in finding both positives and negatives it offers to the
business organizations and consumers.
6.2 Recommendations
Based on the identified problems, the suitable recommendations for improving social
media use for influencing consumer behaviour in decision making process are:
Making the content easily available over social media
The business organizations in Morocco will have to make their contents available easily
for the population, as this will provide better exposure of the contents. As a result, the consumers
will be able to access the information provided by the business organizations easily that will
affect their pre-purchase, purchase and post-purchase decision making stages.
Using social media more effectively
The social media can be used more effectively by the business organizations in Morocco
by embracing the visual, making headlines of the matters, customizing the platforms, sharing at
the right time and multiple times for grabbing the attention, sharing it in the right platform and
asking questions without being afraid.
6.3 Future scope of the study
From the analysis, it can be seen that the study emphasizes on the both male and female
participants belonging to age group 30-39 years holding a bachelor degree and has been using
social media for 3-6 years for an average 4-6 hours on a weekly basis. The mostly used social

64DISSERTATION
media is Facebook that facilitates connecting with business organization thereby, influencing
consumer behaviour in decision-making process. Thus, in the future, research can be conducted
by considering consumers of different age group holding a different qualification, using social
media more than 3-6 years and using social media more than 4-6 hours on a weekly basis. This
will help in understanding the impact of social media on consumer behaviour in decision making
for another set of consumers and determining the impact.

65DISSERTATION
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Appendix 1
Survey questionnaire
Impacts of Social Media on Consumer Behavior in Decision Making Process in Morocco
This questionnaire is designed to study the major factors which Impacts of Social Media on
Consumer Behavior in Decision Making Process in Morocco. Your participation is much
appreciated and your answers will be treated confidentially and will be used for academic
purpose only.
Section 1 General Information (Please choose the most convenient answer)
G0
1
Gender ☐ Male ☐ Female
G0
2
Age group (years) ☐ 18 -29 ☐30-39 ☐40-49 ☐50+
G0
3
Education
a. Up to High School
b. Diploma
c. Bachelor Degree
d. Master/Doctorate
G0
4
Years dealing with Social Media ☐<3 years ☐3-6 years ☐7+ years
G0 Which of the following social media do you follow?

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5
a. Social Networking Sites (e.g. Facebook)
b. Microblogging (e.g.Twitter)
c. Blogs/ Forums
d. Social Bookmarking Sites/ Social News (e.g. Reddit, Digg)
e. Photo & Video Sharing Sites (e.g. Flickr, Youtube)
G0
6
Time spent on Social Media sites per week
a. 0 hour
b. 1-3 hours
c. 4-6 hours
d. 7-9 hours
e. 10 hours or more
SECTION B: Social Media Influences on the Pre-purchase Stage
Problem Recognition
PR1
Social media stimulates you to recognize a need for something
before buying it SD D N A SA
PR2
Social media triggers you to purchase a product through its
advertisements SD D N A SA
PR3
You always achieve a desire for something new through social
media SD D N A SA
PR4
Social media provides solutions on what to buy, where to buy
and why to buy SD D N A SA

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Information Search
IS1 Information search about a product is easier in social media S
D
D N A
S
A
IS2
Social media influences you to try new products based on the
reviews by friends
S
D
D N A
S
A
IS3
Social media is an effective tool for different opinions about
new and existing products
S
D
D N A
S
A
IS4
You search for product’s information in social media before a
purchasing it
S
D
D N A
S
A

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SECTION C: Social Media Influences on the Purchase Stage
Evaluation of Alternatives
EA1 Social media has a higher credibility than traditional media SD D N A SA
EA2
Social media is more reliable if you have uncertainties regarding
a purchase SD D N A SA
EA3
Social media allows you to filter any information of a product
based on chat forums SD D N A SA
EA4
Social media changes your initial purchase choice after attaining
relevant information SD D N A SA
EA5
Interactions with friends on social media assist you in evaluating
a product. SD D N A SA

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Consumer Attitude
CA1
Unpleasing Advertisements on social media make you have a
bad attitude towards a product/brand/service
S
D
D N A
S
A
CA2
Ratings by friends of a product contributes in shaping your
attitude towards the same
S
D
D N A
S
A
CA3
Comments from social media changes your attitude towards a
brand/product/service
S
D
D N A
S
A
CA4
Social media tools make you have a +ve/-ve attitude towards a
product based on information accessed about it
S
D
D N A
S
A
Consumer Motivation
CM1
You get motivated to buy products that are advertised on social
media
S
D
D N A
S
A
CM2
Social media motivates your direction towards a product based
on comments from friends/family
S
D
D N A
S
A
CM3
Social media tools have features that entice you to ask for
recommendations of a product
S
D
D N A
S
A

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SECTION D: Social Media Influences on the Post-Purchase Stage
Feedback Loop
FL1
Information regarding products have a higher credibility on
social media than on other media channels.
S
D
D N A
S
A
FL2
Social media allows you to communicate with companies that
produce products directly.
S
D
D N A
S
A
FL3
You share comments about a product to friends via social media
after a purchase
S
D
D N A
S
A
FL4
Feedbacks on social media affects your purchase and future
purchase as well.
S
D
D N A
S
A

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Satisfaction
SAT1
Social media tools allow you to voice your opinion after a
purchase
S
D
D N A
S
A
SAT2
Social media conveys your satisfaction and dissatisfaction
directly to manufacturers
S
D
D N A
S
A
SAT3
You repurchase of a product is affected by the satisfaction and
dissatisfaction reports from social media
S
D
D N A
S
A