Overview
This series explains why Georgian small firms often remained offline despite widespread internet access and stated interest in e-commerce. Across randomized tests, it separates capability, expected demand, urgency, readiness, and organizational capacity. A broad training offer did not measurably raise average digital engagement, while a conditional buyer and two-week deadline increased short-run online selling by about 26 percentage points among selected eligible firms; a sixfold larger offer did not clearly add more. The initial demand advantage was not clearly durable by 2025, as controls adopted over time and outcomes changed. A Liberia comparison shows why targeted market-specific information may behave differently in another setting. The practical conclusion is conditional: diagnose the adoption stage and bottleneck instead of treating training or incentives as universal solutions.
Learning outcomes
- Internet access did not translate into reliable digital transactions for many Georgian small firms.
- The broad training offer produced no measurable average improvement in digital engagement under the tested conditions.
- A conditional buyer and two-week deadline increased short-run online selling, especially among firms nearer to readiness.
- A sixfold larger order did not clearly outperform the smaller offer.
- A first online transaction is activation, not proof of lasting market access or firm growth.
Keywords
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PlansFAQ
Why did Georgian small firms remain offline despite internet access?
Internet access did not by itself remove the skills, demand, urgency, and organizational capacity needed to complete and sustain a digital transaction.
Did training increase online adoption among Georgian small firms?
No measurable average increase followed assignment to the tested broad training offer in either the 2021 follow-up or the 2025 measures.
What did the Georgian conditional buyer offer change?
It increased the short-run probability that the team could find a firm online and place an order by about 26 percentage points among 283 eligible firms.
Did the Georgian demand intervention create lasting digital-market participation?
It did not establish a durable average increase by 2025; the control group adopted over time, while the short-run test captured activation rather than repeat participation.