From traditional to digital: Marketing implications for business strategy in the emerging market

The research aims to investigate the relationship between digital marketing capabilities (DMCs) and business performance in Jordan, with customer engagement as a mediator, consumer trust as a reinforcing mechanism, and government digital support as a moderator. Jordanian small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) have also seen a significant adoption of digital technologies, but there are challenges in achieving tangible results from digital investments (World Bank, 2024). Drawing on the diffusion of innovations theory (DOI), the technology acceptance model (TAM), and the resource-based view (RBV), a quasi-empirical model using logically simulated data (n = 420) calibrated to national statistics was tested through structural equation modelling (SEM). DMCs significantly improve business performance directly (β = 0.42) and indirectly through customer engagement (β = 0.58). Consumer trust amplifies engagement outcomes (β = 0.31), and government support positively moderates the DMC-business performance relationship (β = 0.18). Digital transformation in Jordan must be complemented by the right capabilities of the firms, consumer confidence, and institutional support. The study provides a novel and multi-tiered framework useful in emerging markets (Gharios & Abu Khalaf, 2024) and provides practical implications for managers and policymakers who wish to use digital capabilities to gain a sustainable competitive advantage.