1.
Te diffusion process for small businesses is a learning process.
Small businesses who are potential users have to become aware of the technology and then to
attempt to evaluate it. Consequently they may use the technology on a trial basis. Te learning
process takes place at this stage. Information about the technology has to be disseminated, and
as it is adopted by other small frms, or by the small company on an experimental basis the
information becomes more reliable. Te importance of accumulated knowledge and expertise
is an important factor determining whether frms are likely to adopt new technology or to act
as sources of innovation (Gurisatti, Soli and Tattara, 1997). ‘Bugs’ will be overcome, which
will in turn reduce the risk of adopting the technology. Te concept of the individual small
business learning curve can be extended to a network group of small frms where experience
with a new technology increases as each successive small company adopts the new technology.
As a result, the distribution of small businesses adopting a technology might be expected to
yield a normal curve.