Innovations in the Management of E-Commerce Entities Operating on the Slovak Market – Analysis of Customer Interactions during the COVID-19 Pandemic

¹ Institute of Technology and Business, Faculty of Corporate Strategy, Okružní 517/10, 37001 České Budějovice, Czech Republic
² Acuity Engineering & Consulting Service Ltd, 10327 122 St NW, T5N1M1 Edmonton AB, Canada
³ University of Economics in Bratislava, Faculty of Business Management, Department of Business Finance, Dolnozemská cesta 1/b, 852 35 Bratislava, Slovakia

^* Corresponding author: frantisek.pollak@mail.vstecb.cz

Abstract

This paper deals with the issue of innovation in e-commerce, specifically with the application of innovative methods of evaluating customer interactions in the environment of the virtual social network Facebook. The first part presents the results of desk research on the issue of the utilization of virtual social media Facebook in e-commerce in order to approach the knowledge base of the analysed issues. The aim of the second part of the study presented in the paper was to describe and evaluate the activities of customer groups of the five largest e-commerce entities operating in the Slovak virtual market. The data needed for the analysis were collected during the state of emergency declared in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic. From the point of view of findings, the initial trends in the customers interactions were declining online activity over the weekend and an increase in online activity at the beginning of the working week. In general, it can be stated that data were analysed in a highly non-standard market situation. With respect to the social media e-communication of selected e-commerce entities, it was possible to outline specific patterns of consumer behaviour. As a result, it was possible to create a qualitative knowledge base for further research into the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on national and international economies, for both economics and management sciences.