An investigation to measure the performance of commercial printing firms for conducting business-to-customer activities on the Web

This research was conducted to investigate the current status of commercial printing firms regarding the success of their performance using Web technology for conducting business-to-customer (B2C) activities. It was primarily based on Rogers\u27 innovation theory and Auger\u27s empirical study. The impact of the Web technology on the organizational performance was studied. The organizational performance was divided into three levels: financial performance (FP), non-financial performance (NFP), and overall performance (OP). The financial performance was measured by four financial indicators; whereas, the non-financial performance was measured by three non-financial indicators. The overall performance was then measured by adding the four financial performance and three non-financial performance indicators. The variables used in this study were: (a) financial performance, (b) non-financial performance, (c) overall performance, (d) size of company, (e) length of Web site operation, (f) number of business-to-customer activities, and (g) frequency of Web site modification. The associations between these variables were then measured using the Spearman correlation method. A total of 103 commercial printing firms in the midwest region of the United States were selected to participate in this study. Thirty-eight (36.89%) firms responded to questionnaires. It was found that conducting business-to-customer activities on the Web significantly and positively affected the non-financial performance. It did not, however, affect the financial and overall performances of commercial printing firms. Offering more services to customers on the Web played an important role in improving the organizational performance. A significant positive association was found between the number of B2C activities and the non-financial performance based on the Spearman correlation and Chi-Square results. In like manner, the frequency of Web site modification significantly and positively affected the non-financial performance, but did not affect the financial and overall performances of commercial printing firms. Results also indicated that the size of a company and the length of Web site operation have no significant effect on the organizational performance. It was suggested that commercial printing firms should conduct more B2C activities on the Web, and should modify the Web sites at least once a month in order to take the advantage of the Web technology