A Facebook Page is a cost-effective tool that businesses use to link with clients and users, share information, and promote their brand on Facebook. It’s a public profile that allows businesses to engage with their audience, share updates, and even sell products. A Facebook page for a business offers several benefits, including a public profile, a professional appearance, two-way communication, building relationships, customer service, promoting products and services, advertising, driving traffic, analyzing performance, page insights, ease of use, accessibility, etc.

Facebook page-based business, or Facebook commerce (F-commerce), is a mode of business that primarily conducts retail transactions on a social networking platform. At present, the volume of F-commerce in Bangladesh (BD) is very appreciable; it is worth approximately Tk 312 crore. Again, more than 3,00,000 stores/shops in BD are operating through Facebook pages. Fifty percent of these store owners are women.

Bangladesh is a developing and populous country. Now, the government of this country is very much encouraging and creating a platform for online page-based businesses. The internet revolution plays a significant role in Facebook page-based businesses. Now, several established business owners have opened online portals because the operating and marketing costs of a Facebook page-based business are comparatively lower than those of a traditional business.

The fundamental objective of this research is to analyze the prospects and problems of F-Commerce and Facebook page-based business in BD. The prime objectives of this research are:

Creating a Facebook page for any business is an excellent way to engage with current and potential customers. It allows traders to target specific audiences and advertise to them cost-effectively. An accomplished business Facebook page can even be used to build a brand within a specific Facebook community.

Additionally, the rise of mobile technology and app development, artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, virtual and augmented reality, blockchain and cryptocurrency, cybersecurity and data protection, remote work and virtual teams, and the gig economy are all shaping the future of entrepreneurship and the digital age (1).

Accurate technology can help entrepreneurs automate their businesses and make their operations more efficient. Automating a business can help traders free up time to focus on more important tasks. It can also help reduce operational costs. Modern technology can also help boost our business efficiencies.

Direct engagement is the number one benefit of a Facebook business page. Social media platforms are designed to make interaction easy, and that’s true for both personal and business goals. It fosters stronger relationships with your potential customers to bring them along the customer journey (2).

F-Commerce refers to e-commerce on Facebook pages. It is a mode of the so-called Social Commerce that uses social networks to sell a wide range of products without requiring a large investment.

The main benefit of F-commerce is its low cost. The Facebook platform is beneficial for new and small companies that do not have enough budget to maintain another type of digital support. The Facebook page of a business recommends using this mechanism to sell daily necessities such as books, clothes, beauty products, homemade food, accessories (such as bags and suitcases), home furnishings, or children’s products (3).

A Facebook page for a business allows two-way communication between traders and their customers. Traders can use the messaging service to interact directly with their customers. Customer reviews and comments can be a valuable way to collect feedback and identify areas for improvement (4).

The small business owner or employee is expected to be well-versed in the never-ending to-do list and the sustained difficulties of managing growing workflows.

The upside is that there are many technology solutions designed specifically to assist small businesses, such as automating tasks and streamlining workflows. From communication management tools to specialized software for finance, marketing, and more, these solutions can help entrepreneurs stay organized, save time, and grow their businesses simultaneously (5).

In this research, the author collected data from 450 respondents across BD. The author used intentional random sampling for samples selection. The author collected data via face-to-face interviews from the respondents. The author uses a 1–5 Likert-scale questionnaire for data collection. The author performed data analysis using the Correlation R-test, regression analysis, independent t-test, validity test, and goodness-of-fit test. Respondents are asked to complete the questionnaire. The respondents filled out a questionnaire about their experience with a Facebook page-based business.

All questionnaires were automated. The testing process was completed when the participants finished their answers.

The research method used in this study is a quantitative descriptive method.

Table 1 presents the demographic data for the respondents, showing that urban respondents are more accustomed to Facebook page-based businesses than rural respondents. This table also showed that undergraduate-level students mostly use Facebook page-based business. In this research, male respondents participated than females.

Table 1 also shows that unmarried respondents are more engaged with F-commerce than married people. This table also showed that most of the respondents are housewives and businessmen. This table also showed that the maximum amount of the businessmen earned (11,000–25,000) BDT. This table also showed that most businessmen used the cash-on-delivery payment method.

Table 2 shows that people in the tech industry are the largest group of respondents for Facebook page-based businesses.

Standard Deviation (SD) is a widely used method for testing data variability. SD expresses how much variation there is from the average (mean). The mean of 4.78 indicates that most respondents agree on that variable. The SD value of 7.90 indicates low stability of ideas for the specific variable.

Here, the maximum mean range is 3.5–5.0, indicating a positive attitude of the respondents. The high SD hints at disagreement among the answers.

There are some limitations to achieving the research objective. In this research, the author considered some selected Facebook page-based businesses as a sample. Moreover, in this research, the author used face-to-face interviews, questionnaire surveys, and a literature review, but excluded the case study method.

Here, the researcher divides respondents by residential status, occupation, education level, and marital status. Here, the researcher found that urban people are more likely than rural people to use Facebook page-based businesses. Here, the researcher divides respondents into three education levels: undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate. The researcher also showed that men are more engaged in Facebook-based businesses than women. The researcher divided the respondents into three groups: students, businessmen, and housewives. Here, the researcher found that Facebook page-based businessmen use various payment systems, including cash on delivery, online payment systems, Rocket, M-cash, Bkash, and others (Table 1).

Here, the researcher distributed respondents by business. The researcher found that the main businesses of the respondents are fashion, the Tech industry, online over the counter (OTC), medicine shop, website development, app development, Graphic development, graphic design, technical support, social good company, training institute, etc. (Table 2).

Here, the researcher showed that the maximum number of respondents agreed that the Perceived Ease of Use of a Facebook page-based business is very high. The researcher also found that there is high disagreement among the answers to the questions regarding the Perceived Ease of Use of a Facebook page-based business (Table 3).

The study also showed that most respondents reported that the perceived usefulness of Facebook page-based businesses is very high (Table 4). Here, the author also found that the purchase intention through Facebook is very high (Table 5).

In this study, the author found that the majority of respondents had a positive attitude towards a Facebook page-based business (Table 6). The researcher also found that most respondents agreed that the perceived benefits of a Facebook page-based business are very high (Table 7). Most of the respondents found that the storage coverage, speed, availability, compatibility, and trialability of a Facebook page-based business are satisfactory (Table 8).

A majority of respondents agreed that it is a very prudent idea to use and purchase through F-commerce and Facebook page-based businesses (Table 9). Most respondents expressed satisfaction with the Facebook page and F-commerce (Table 10).

In this research, most respondents agreed that Facebook is the best social platform for choosing products, selecting a payment method, receiving confirmation, and canceling orders (Table 11).

The above study shows a connection between perceived ease of use and respondents’ attitudes toward Facebook page-based businesses. In this research, the Beta value (r = 0.99819958) indicates a robust positive correlation between attitude and perceived ease of use. Again, in this research, the R Square indicated that 0.996402405 of the total variance in attitude is explained by perceived ease of use, so the null hypothesis that there is no significant relationship between perceived ease of use and customers’ attitudes toward a Facebook page-based business is accepted (Table 13).

Association is a concept, but correlation is a measure of association, and mathematical tools are provided to measure the magnitude of the association. So, customers’ ease of use of a Facebook page-based business can’t affect their attitude towards it (Table 12).

Again, in this research, the author found no significant association between perceived usefulness and respondents’ attitudes toward a Facebook page-based business. So, if the customers do not get enough usefulness through the Facebook page-based business, it affects the attitude of respondents (Table 15)

The author also found that there is no significant relationship between customers’ attitudes toward Facebook page-based businesses and their intention to use them. However, the beta value (r = 0.999442235) in the table indicates a strong positive correlation between attitude and the intention to use Facebook page-based businesses. These two statements contradict each other, suggesting that customers’ attitudes and their intention to use Facebook page-based businesses are strongly positively correlated, but customers’ level of aggressiveness or politeness does not influence their intention to use Facebook page-based businesses for F-Commerce transactions (Table 16).

In this research, the author also found an important link between age and customers’ intention to use a Facebook page-based business. Younger customers indeed have a positive intention to use Facebook page-based businesses in BD (Table 18).

This research also shows that there is no significant association between computer literacy and customers’ intention to use Facebook page-based businesses, which is false. Therefore, respondents’ computer skills affect their intention to use a business Facebook page for F-Commerce transactions (Table 20).

The research also expresses that there is no significant connection between customer satisfaction and their attitude towards Facebook page-based businesses. So, if customers are less satisfied with Facebook page-based business services, they may use F-commerce less (Table 22).

This research found that businesses with Facebook pages exert a positive social influence. The study also shows that social impact and customer intention have no significant relationship. So, if the social impact of a Facebook page-based business is reduced, it cannot decrease customers’ intention toward the Facebook page of a business (Table 24).

The research also found a significant association between gender and customers’ attitudes toward Facebook page-based businesses (Table 26).

The research also found no significant link between employment status and attitude toward Facebook page-based business (Table 27).

The research also shows that residential status and customers’ attitudes towards businesses on Facebook pages are significantly related. Urban residents have a more positive attitude towards Facebook page-based businesses because such systems are less common in rural areas of BD. The research also establishes a significant relationship between education level and the type of Facebook page-based business in BD (Table 28).

The research found no significant correlation between marital status and attitude towards Facebook page-based businesses. Married and unmarried people have the same level of attitude towards Facebook page-based businesses (Table 29).

The researcher found that a remarkable association exists between education level and the type of Facebook page-based business. Respondents at the graduate level and below are mostly engaged in fashion, tech, online OTC, and website development. Graduate-level respondents are mainly interested in training and social good companies. Postgraduate-level respondents primarily engage with website development and graphic design (Table 30).

For validity test purposes, the author shows that content validity proves that half of the customers rated the Facebook page of a business as essential for performing F-commerce related transactions (Table 31). Convergent validity shows that making a profit through Facebook page-based businesses and the number of views of Facebook page-based businesses are positively related (Table 32).

In this research, the discriminant validity is negative. To assess discriminant validity, the author selected two criteria: the customer’s intelligence level and the type of Facebook-based business. Here, the author used the Pearson r-test, which yields a negative value (−0.52). Therefore, the intelligence level is negatively related to the type of Facebook page-based business (Table 33).

To address the limitations of Facebook page-based businesses, the government and the private sector in BD should implement effective measures. Additionally, our policymakers should take certain steps and establish guidelines to help make F-commerce more successful. The main guidelines are:

This research aims to identify the proportion of Facebook page-based business owners who use Facebook as their primary means of doing business. In this study, the author attempts to identify the factors that affect the prospects and problems of F-commerce, which is conducted through the social network platform Facebook. This study also identifies some social and cultural factors that enhance the success of F-commerce transactions. Additionally, this research reveals notable impediments, including intense competition, delivery barriers, customer and supplier interactions, and the use of imported materials, that hinder the growth of Facebook page-based businesses in BD.

The positive effect of operating a Facebook-based business in BD is that these businesses can run in any situation because they are inherently organized and maintain a broad network of friends.

This research clearly outlines the features, usefulness, ease of use, social impact, financial benefits, and types of businesses in the field of Facebook page-based businesses. The research also analyzes how various characteristics of people, such as age, gender, education level, and locality, can influence the intention to use Facebook page-based businesses or to become a Facebook page business owner. Currently, virtual social networks are playing a prominent role in online business in BD. There are some crucial problems faced by online businesspeople in BD, such as delivery issues and issues with imported materials, which can be easily reduced if the government and other organizations collaborate to support Facebook page-based business owners.

The discussion section concludes that the author has identified some recommendations for implementing this study.

The authors report no conflict of interest concerning the materials or methods used in this study or the findings specified in this paper.