Managing the digital consumer: insights from Brazil and Spain

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the concepts attributed to the use of technology in the digital environment and its relations with consumer behavior in Brazil and Spain.

This paper discusses the concepts that cover the use of technology in the relations between technological changes in e-commerce and consumer buying behavior in a digital world, using the Technical Availability Index (Techqual), by Parasuraman (2000), applied to Brazilian and Spanish consumers.

Correlations between the concepts attributed to the use of technology by consumers have been identified which, in turn, may allow small- and medium-sized companies to develop strategies to improve engagement with their target audiences.

This study explains how the understanding of these concepts can be continuously improved, proposing a continuous strategic review by the digital companies. The proposed approach to identify and measure assigned concepts can be tested in different performance sectors.

This study is unique in presenting concepts that can allow digital companies new ways of approaching their target audience, relationship with customers and positioning strategies.

This research promotes a different look at how consumer behavior is understood, not only by companies, but also by individuals themselves, which may provide a better understanding of their behavior.

This study presents a comparative study among countries that are references in the digital consumer market, and links theory and practice in studies of consumer behavior.