The diffusion of innovation in the era of social networks: a case study of VIMML’s adoption process

This inquiry aims to study the adoption process of a new social application in\nthe Swedish market. By examining the case study of VIMML, a startup that\nlaunched the first Swedish anonymous social network in the cities of Karlstad,\nGothenburg, Stockholm and Malmö, the thesis focuses on the user behavior in\nthe decision process of downloading a new social application. The research is\ndeeply contextualized in the theoretical framework of the diffusion of innovation\nand attempt to understand which are the new factors that the digital era brings\nto the well-known model of innovation decision process theorized by Rogers\n(2003). Drawing specific attention to the social network market, this model is\napplied to the VIMML’s case study and, with the cooperation of the startup,\nempirical findings are used to endorse the theory. As the result of the research,\nthe model used in the theory is subjected to some changes when applied to\nVIMML. Moreover, the thesis merges these new characteristics of the model\nwith the findings of the most recent studies regarding the needs satisfaction that\naffect the adoption process of a social network. Thanks to a qualitative and\nquantitative research the results are validated for the case of the social platform\nVIMML and the generalization to the market of social networks is left to future\nresearches. The inquiry concludes with some managerial implications for the\nstartup.