Character and readiness to adopt digital marketing technology: A case study of small retailers in Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia

The primary goal of digital marketing consists of attracting buyers and letting them connect with the seller through digital media. Marketers use electronic media to promote items or services in the market through digital marketing. Prior study on digital marketing has mostly focused on technological advancements in its implementation in businesses. Meanwhile, how SMEs are prepared to utilize digital marketing technologies has remained unexplored. To fill this need, this study investigates the readiness of small retailers based on their character configuration. The technology readiness index 2.0 method was employed, and 204 small retailers were chosen as participants. According to the study's findings, more than half of small retailers are ready to adopt digital marketing technologies, with 43.63% at a medium-ready level and 9.80% at a highly-ready level. Nonetheless, a large proportion of small retailers require targeted interventions and approaches to increase their readiness level.