Year: 2026
Type: editorial
Abstract: Africa stands at an extraordinary inflection point in its economic and technological trajectory. With the world's youngest population – median age of 19 years compared to the global average of 30 – and mobile phone penetration exceeding 80% in many countries, the continent is experiencing a digital marketing renaissance that is fundamentally reshaping how businesses engage with consumers, how governments deliver services and how markets function (Han et al., 2023). This transformation is not merely an adoption of Western digital practices; rather, it represents a unique evolution where necessity breeds innovation, leapfrogging traditional infrastructure limitations to create distinctly African solutions to African challenges.The confluence of widespread mobile connectivity, youthful demographics and entrepreneurial dynamism has created fertile ground for marketing technology adoption across the continent. Mobile money transactions in Sub-Saharan Africa exceeded $701bn in 2022, demonstrating the region's leadership in financial technology innovation (Takyi, 2024). E-commerce adoption, while still nascent compared to developed markets, is growing exponentially, with platforms adapting to local payment preferences, logistics challenges and consumer behaviors (da Costa, 2022). Digital marketing investments by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are yielding measurable performance improvements, with studies documenting substantial increases in sales and customer engagement following the adoption of digital channels (Deku et al., 2024).However, this digital transformation unfolds against a backdrop of persistent challenges. Infrastructure gaps, regulatory uncertainties, cybersecurity concerns and digital literacy deficits create friction in technology adoption pathways (Sagala and Őri, 2024). Trust remains a critical mediating factor in consumer acceptance of digital transactions, particularly in contexts where corruption and service quality inconsistencies have historically eroded confidence in formal institutions (Han et al., 2023). The interplay between technological capability, institutional trust and consumer behavior creates a complex ecosystem that demands nuanced scholarly investigation.This special issue of the AJEMS brings together six empirical studies that illuminate different facets of marketing technology adoption and impact across African contexts. These papers span multiple countries – Nigeria, Somalia, Ghana, Egypt and South Africa – and examine diverse technologies including self-service systems, mobile wallets, e-commerce platforms, immersive virtual reality applications, hotel automation and smartphone branding strategies. Collectively, they advance our theoretical understanding of technology acceptance in developing markets while offering practical insights for managers, policymakers and entrepreneurs navigating Africa's digital transformation.What emerges from these studies is a portrait of African consumers who are simultaneously pragmatic and aspirational – seeking technologies that solve immediate problems while also enhancing their social status and quality of life. These studies reveal that trust, perceived usefulness and ease of use remain foundational to technology adoption, but these factors operate through culturally specific mechanisms. Corruption mitigation emerges as a unique driver of self-service technology acceptance in Nigeria. At the same time, lifestyle compatibility proves crucial for mobile wallet adoption in Somalia, and hedonic value significantly influences online shopping behavior in Ghana.As we navigate through these six contributions, we explore how they collectively advance three critical conversations in the marketing technology literature: (1) the contextual adaptation of technology acceptance models to African institutional environments, (2) the role of trust and institutional quality in mediating technology adoption and (3) the sectoral diversity of digital transformation across B2C, B2B and service industries. Each paper makes a distinctive contribution while reinforcing common themes that speak to the broader dynamics of marketing technology diffusion in emerging markets.The six papers in this special issue are organized thematically to facilitate a coherent narrative about marketing technology adoption across different sectors and consumer segments in Africa. We begin with foundational technologies – self-service systems and mobile payments – that address basic transactional needs while building digital literacy and trust. We then progress to consumer-facing e-commerce platforms that leverage these foundational technologies to enable new shopping behaviors. Next, we explore cutting-edge immersive technologies that represent the frontier of marketing innovation, followed by an examination of automation in the hospitality sector, which demonstrates the integration of technology in service delivery. Finally, we conclude with an examination of brand relationship dynamics in the smartphone industry, illustrating how technology products themselves become objects of emotional attachment and loyalty.This progression from foundational to frontier technologies and from transactional to relational outcomes mirrors the actual evolution of digital marketing ecosystems in African markets. It also reflects increasing levels of consumer sophistication and the maturity of technological infrastructure required for successful implementation.We begin this special issue with Anka and Shamim's (2026) groundbreaking study on the adoption of self-service technology (SST) in Nigerian fuel stations. In this context, technology adoption intersects with institutional challenges in particularly revealing ways. This paper deserves the opening position because it tackles a fundamental question that underlies all subsequent discussions of marketing technology in Africa: How do technologies gain acceptance in environments where institutional trust is compromised?Nigeria's fuel distribution sector has long been plagued by corruption, including fuel adulteration, meter manipulation and inconsistent service delivery. These practices have eroded consumer confidence and created transactional friction. Anka and Shamim's (2026) study demonstrates that SSTs – automated fuel dispensing systems that reduce human intermediation – are valued not merely for their convenience but for their capacity to mitigate corruption. Using PLS-SEM analysis of data from 233 Nigerian consumers, the authors reveal that willingness to use SST positively correlates with customer trust, corruption mitigation and customer intimacy.The study's most compelling finding is the mediating role of corruption mitigation in the relationship between SST willingness and customer intimacy. This suggests that technology adoption in African contexts cannot be understood solely in terms of functional attributes (ease of use and usefulness) but must also consider institutional quality factors. When consumers perceive that technology reduces opportunities for corruption, they develop stronger trust, which in turn enhances their emotional connection with the service provider. This finding extends TAM by incorporating institutional governance variables – a theoretical contribution with implications far beyond the fuel sector.From a practical standpoint, this study offers fuel station operators and policymakers a roadmap for technology-enabled service improvement. By positioning SSTs as anti-corruption mechanisms rather than merely efficiency tools, marketers can tap into consumer frustrations with existing systems and position technology as a solution to institutional failures. This framing may accelerate adoption rates and enhance brand differentiation in competitive markets.The Nigerian fuel station context also provides an ideal starting point for this special issue because it represents a high-frequency, high-stakes transaction environment where trust deficits have direct economic consequences. If SSTs can succeed in building trust in this challenging context, the findings offer optimism for technology adoption in other sectors facing similar institutional challenges across Africa.Moreover, this paper introduces the concept of “customer intimacy” as an outcome variable, moving beyond simple adoption intentions to explore the more profound relational consequences of technology use. This sets the stage for subsequent papers in the collection, which examine how technologies shape not only transactions but also relationships, emotions and identities.Following naturally from the discussion of foundational trust-building technologies, Mukhtar and Barre's (2026) study examines the adoption of mobile wallets in Somalia. In this context, mobile money has become the de facto financial infrastructure due to limited banking penetration and ongoing institutional challenges. This paper occupies the second position because it extends the conversation on trust and technology acceptance into the mobile financial services domain, which represents perhaps Africa's most significant contribution to global fintech innovation.Somalia presents a particularly instructive case for research on mobile wallets. With a fragmented formal banking infrastructure and a population accustomed to mobile money for remittances, the country has leapfrogged traditional payment systems. However, as Mukhtar and Barre (2026) demonstrate through their analysis of 321 respondents using PLS-SEM and SPSS, adoption is not automatic even in environments where mobile payments are ubiquitous. Their multidisciplinary model, which integrates the TAM and UTAUT frameworks, reveals that attitude, lifestyle compatibility, perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness directly influence adoption intentions. Meanwhile, facilitating conditions, Internet quality, security and trust operate through attitude as a mediator.The finding that lifestyle compatibility emerges as a significant direct predictor of adoption intention is particularly noteworthy. In the Somali context, where mobile wallets must integrate with existing social practices around money management, gift-giving and family support, technology adoption is not merely a rational calculation of utility but a question of cultural fit. This aligns with emerging research on technology adoption in collectivist societies, where individual decisions are embedded in social networks and obligations (Solomon and Allen, 2023).Equally important is the finding that security and trust do not directly influence adoption intention but work through attitude formation. This suggests that Somali consumers have developed pragmatic attitudes toward mobile money – accepting certain security risks as inherent to the technology while valuing its lifestyle benefits. This risk-benefit calculus differs from patterns observed in developed markets, where security concerns often directly inhibit adoption. The resilience of Somali mobile money adoption despite security concerns speaks to the compelling value proposition these services offer in contexts with limited alternatives.From a managerial perspective, this research suggests that mobile wallet providers in Somalia and similar markets should prioritize lifestyle integration and ease of use in their marketing communications over security messaging. While security infrastructure must be robust, marketing efforts should focus on demonstrating how mobile wallets seamlessly fit into daily routines, social obligations and aspirational lifestyles.This paper also makes an important methodological contribution by proposing and validating additional constructs beyond the original TAM and/or UTAUT models. The inclusion of lifestyle compatibility and Internet connection quality reflects the researchers' sensitivity to local contextual factors that standard technology adoption models may overlook. 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Author: Robert A. Opoku
Institution: Red Deer Polytechnic
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W7124973756