Effective e-Marketplace Selection: Critic Methodology in Turkiye

Abstract

The rapid development of digital technologies and societies' adaptation to digitalization has increased the importance of e-commerce in economic structures. With this transformation, e-marketplaces have become an effective and accessible sales channel, especially for SMEs, offering sellers the opportunity to trade without the need for a physical store. SMEs, which play an important role in terms of employment and production in Turkiye but generally operate in limited regions. Thanks to digital transformation, they now have the chance to compete in national and international markets, gaining strategic advantages such as reaching large customer bases with low operational costs, saving on physical store costs and benefiting from digital marketing, brand awareness and customer relationship management. In this context, the research aims to analyze the factors affecting the e-marketplace preferences of SMEs in Turkiye, to determine the criteria that play a role in these preferences and to provide strategic guidance to both SMEs and e-marketplace platforms. Within the scope of the research, ChatGPT was asked to score 7 multi-category e-marketplaces mentioned in the Competition Authority report according to the selection criteria using a 5-point Likert scale, and the responses received were analyzed using the CRITIC method. According to the results, the most important criterion in SMEs’ e-marketplace selection was Logistics with 26.77 percent, Design Features came in second with 24.93 percent, Costs came in third with 15.14 percent, and Financial Features, Knowledge Transfer, Commercial Process and E-Marketplace Ecosystem shared the fourth and final place with 8.29 percent.