Submissions

Author Guidelines

I-MARKED (International Journal of Marketing Studies and Environments of Digital Business) welcomes original empirical research articles and rigorous conceptual papers addressing marketing sciences, digital business environments, and emerging technological ecosystems. All submitted manuscripts must comply with the following structural, technical, and stylistic requirements.

1. General Requirements

• Language: Manuscripts must be written in clear, concise, and standard academic English using either American or British English consistently throughout the manuscript.
• Length: Full manuscripts should contain 5,000–8,000 words, including the abstract, references, tables, and figures.
• Font and Spacing: Manuscripts should be prepared using Times New Roman, 11 pt, with 1.15 line spacing and standard paragraph indentation of 0.75 cm.
• File Format: Manuscripts should be submitted in an editable Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) format.

2. Manuscript Structure and Section Specifications

A. Title Page

• Title: The title should be concise, specific, informative, and no more than 15 words. It should use Title Case, 16–18 pt bold font, and center alignment.
• Author Names and Affiliations: Provide the full names of all authors without academic degrees or professional titles. Author names should be presented in 11 pt bold font. Institutional affiliations should include the Department, Faculty, University or Institution, and Country.
• Corresponding Author: Clearly identify the corresponding author and provide a valid email address and official ORCID iD.

B. Abstract and Keywords

• Abstract: The abstract should consist of a single, unstructured paragraph of 200–250 words, written in the active voice and without citations. The abstract should clearly address the following elements:
  • Purpose/Objective: The core marketing or digital business problem investigated.
  • Methodology/Approach: The research design, sampling technique, sample size, measurement approach, and analytical methods used, such as PLS-SEM, CB-SEM, or experimental design.
  • Key Findings: The principal empirical findings and relevant statistical results.
  • Theoretical and Practical Implications: The contribution of the findings to academic knowledge and their practical relevance for marketing professionals and digital business practitioners.
  • Originality/Value: The study's distinctive contribution, novelty, or advancement of existing knowledge.
• Keywords: Provide 3–5 keywords or key phrases representing the core subject matter of the manuscript. Keywords should be separated by semicolons (;).
• JEL Classification Codes: Authors should provide 2–4 JEL classification codes relevant to the manuscript. Examples include M30; M31; M37; O33. Authors may consult the official Journal of Economic Literature (JEL) Classification System for appropriate codes.

3. Main Body Organization

1. INTRODUCTION (800–1,200 words)

The Introduction should establish the contemporary industry and research context and explain the academic and practical significance of the topic. It should synthesize relevant and recent international literature, identify a clear empirical or theoretical research gap, demonstrate the study's novelty, and conclude with specific and measurable research objectives or research questions.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW AND HYPOTHESES DEVELOPMENT (1,200–2,000 words)

This section should establish the theoretical foundation of the study using relevant formal frameworks, such as the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), or Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Authors should develop clear and logical arguments explaining the relationships among the constructs or variables before presenting formal and testable hypotheses (H1, H2, H3, etc.) or conceptual propositions, where appropriate.

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY (800–1,200 words)

The Methodology section must provide sufficient detail to enable scientific evaluation and reproducibility. It should describe the research design, target population, sampling procedure, sample size and characteristics, measurement scales or instruments, operational definitions of variables, data collection procedures and timeline, ethical considerations where applicable, and statistical or analytical techniques employed.

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION (1,500–2,500 words)

Results: Present the empirical findings systematically and objectively. Where applicable, the analysis should include measurement model assessments, such as convergent and discriminant validity, and structural model assessments, including path coefficients, R², f², p-values, confidence intervals, or other relevant statistical indicators. Findings should be supported by clear and appropriately labeled tables and figures.

Discussion: Interpret the findings in relation to the research objectives, theoretical framework, and existing literature. The discussion should explain areas of agreement or divergence with previous studies and provide a clear account of the study's theoretical contributions and practical or managerial implications for digital businesses and marketing practitioners.

5. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS (500–800 words)

The Conclusion should summarize the principal findings and answer the research objectives or questions. It should clearly state the theoretical and managerial implications, acknowledge relevant methodological and contextual limitations objectively, and propose focused directions for future research.

4. Mandatory End-Matter Declarations

The following declarations must be included before the Reference list:

• Acknowledgments (Optional): Authors may acknowledge individuals, institutions, or organizations that provided non-authorial academic, institutional, logistical, financial, or technical support.

• Funding Statement: Authors must disclose all sources of research funding. If no specific funding was received, authors should include the following statement:

  "This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors."

• Author Contributions: Authors must clearly describe individual contributions using the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy). Examples include Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Validation, Formal Analysis, Investigation, Resources, Data Curation, Writing – Original Draft, Writing – Review & Editing, Visualization, Supervision, Project Administration, and Funding Acquisition.
• Conflict of Interest: Authors must explicitly disclose any potential financial, personal, professional, or other competing interests that could influence the research or its interpretation. If no conflict exists, authors should provide an appropriate declaration stating that there are no conflicts of interest.

5. Tables, Figures, and Mathematical Formulas

• Tables: Tables must be created using the Microsoft Word table function and must not be inserted as images. Tables should be numbered consecutively (e.g., Table 1, Table 2, Table 3) and accompanied by concise, descriptive, bold captions positioned above the table. Avoid the use of vertical borders.
• Figures and Diagrams: Figures and diagrams must be of high quality, with a minimum resolution of 300 DPI. They should be numbered consecutively (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3) and accompanied by descriptive captions positioned below the figure.
• Equations: Mathematical equations should be prepared using the standard Microsoft Equation Editor or MathType. Equations must be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals in parentheses and aligned to the right margin, for example (1), (2), (3).

6. Citations and Reference Style

• Citation Style: All in-text citations and reference entries must strictly follow the APA 7th Edition style.
• Reference Management: Authors are strongly encouraged to use reference management software such as Mendeley, Zotero, or EndNote to ensure consistency and accuracy in citations and references.
• Currency of Literature: At least 80% of the cited references should consist of primary empirical research articles published in reputable peer-reviewed journals within the last five years, except where older seminal works are necessary to establish foundational theories or concepts.
• Digital Object Identifier (DOI): Authors must provide active and clickable Crossref DOI links for all references for which a DOI is available. DOI links should be presented in the standard format, for example: https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxx.