Digital Marketing and Consumer Purchase Behaviour of Selected Online Retail Stores in Lagos State, Nigeria

Online retailing in Nigeria has expanded rapidly, yet a large proportion of consumers in Lagos State still prefer conventional market transactions to digital ones, which raises the question of whether the volume of digital marketing directed at them is producing the outcomes that retailers envisage. This study examined the effect of digital marketing on consumer purchase behaviour of selected online retail stores in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study examined three dimensions of digital marketing, namely social media marketing, e-mail marketing and content marketing, and their respective effects on purchase intention, customer loyalty and customer patronage. A descriptive survey research design was adopted, and a structured questionnaire designed on a 6 point Likert scale was administered to 300 customers of Jiji, Jumia and Konga drawn from a population of 1,200 by simple random and purposive sampling. Of the questionnaires distributed, 268 were completed and returned, giving a response rate of 89.3%. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and simple linear regression in the Statistical Package for Social Sciences. The findings reveal strong positive relationships throughout. Digital marketing explained 70.0% of the variation in consumer purchase behaviour, social media marketing explained 78.3% of the variation in purchase intention, e-mail marketing explained 79.0% of the variation in customer loyalty, and content marketing explained 82.0% of the variation in customer patronage, with every relationship significant at the 0.05 level. The study concludes that digital marketing significantly influences consumer purchase behaviour and that the tools currently deployed by online retail stores remain underutilised. It recommends that online retail stores leverage the creative capabilities of their workforce for continual digital marketing development, improve the accessibility of their social media platforms, sustain awareness of the value of e-mail marketing, and prioritise the quality and relevance of content over its quantity. This research contributes to the literature on digital marketing in emerging economies and offers practical guidance to retailers seeking to convert digital engagement into measurable purchase behaviour.