Determinantes da lealdade ao uso do pix em varejistas de micro e pequenas empresas

Abstract

As mobile payment solutions (such as Pix, digital wallets, and contactless payments) advance technologically and gain greater market penetration, retailers face the challenges of adapting to innovations, supplier and customer acceptance of solutions, security requirements, and risk perceptions. All of this makes the Intention to Use a still distant stage of Loyalty to the technology. This is where the knowledge gap addressed in this dissertation lies: academic literature focuses on initial adoption, often from the perspective of the end consumer, but little is known about the variables that lead from Usage Behavior to Retailer Loyalty. The objective of this dissertation is to investigate the antecedents of Loyalty to the use of Pix technology by Brazilian micro and small enterprise (MSE) retailers. To this end, a Conceptual Model is proposed, which advances from the Theory of Technology Acceptance (TUAUT2), adapted to the business context in focus. This model articulates antecedents of the Intention to Use, this intention, Usage Behavior, Satisfaction, and culminating, Loyalty; it also considers the moderating role of Perceived Risk. The empirical, quantitative, and descriptive research involved a survey of managers and owners of Brazilian retail SMEs, with a valid sample of 111 respondents. Structural Equation Modeling based on Partial Least Squares (PLS-SEM) was applied. The results show the Proposed Conceptual Model (PCM) with explanatory power 37,2% of Loyalty. Regarding the antecedents of the Intention to Use, some classic TUAUT2 factors, such as Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Social Influence, and Facilitating Conditions, are not significant. In contrast, Habit and Price Value are determinants of Intention to Use. The chain Intention to Use → Usage Behavior → Satisfaction proved to be robust, as well as Satisfaction influencing Loyalty. The hypothesis of moderation of the relationship between Usage Behavior and Satisfaction by Perceived Risk was not statistically supported. In managerial implications, management should prioritize, to win and maintain the Loyalty of SME retailers, their experience in the various empirically supported relationships, including the reduction of Perceived Risk. This goes beyond the frequent public education actions to encourage the use of Pix. The advance brought by the dissertation can contribute to researchers, managers, payment technology companies, policymakers and society, serving a more modern, secure and inclusive retail sector.