Online technology and promotion tools in SMEs
-
DOIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.21511/im.16(3).2020.08
-
Article InfoVolume 16 2020, Issue #3, pp. 85-97
- Cited by
- 1298 Views
-
323 Downloads
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
Online technologies are currently the most dynamically developing industry, both in product creation and promotion. The study focuses on their incorporation into the SME (small and medium enterprises) segment, which comprises the most economically stable element of any European economy. This paper aims to identify and evaluate dependency in the area of online technologies and promotion tools use in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) related to company age and export involvement. Most research on SMEs focuses on external influences and factors, while this article reflects the internal environment of business entities, which is the source of this study’s originality. The hypotheses were validated by an empirical study of a sample of 743 respondents (companies and entrepreneurs, including family businesses). The research method was a combination of CATI and CASI, and the research tool was a structured questionnaire. To analyze the survey results, the Chi-square test of independence was applied. The key finding was validation of the dependence between the use of the online tools for manufacturing and promotion and the export focus of companies. Companies operating on foreign markets use a wider range of online tools for their business than companies focused on the domestic market. On the other hand, the presumed significant differences in the use of online tools between young businesses and companies long-term established on the market were not confirmed.
Acknowledgment
The authors are thankful to the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic, University of Technology in Brno and University of Finance and Administration in Prague, Project No.: “TL02000434 Rodinné podniky: generátory hodnoty a určování hodnoty v procesu nástupnictví” for financial support to carry out this research.
- Keywords
-
JEL Classification (Paper profile tab)M10, O00, M31
-
References38
-
Tables4
-
Figures0
-
- Table 1. Online technology use and Company age
- Table 2. Online technology use and Export involvement
- Table 3. Young business and Online promotion tools use
- Table 4. Exporters and Online promotion tools use
-
- Ainin, S., Parveen, F., Moghavvemi, S., Jaafar, N. I., & Shuib, N. L. M. (2015). Factors influencing the use of social media by SMEs and its performance outcomes. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 115(3), 570-588.
- AMSP ČR. (2018a). 39th Survey “Využívání online technologií pro podnikání” (Online Technology Use for Business).
- AMSP ČR. (2018b). 66th Survey “Digitální garáž – pomáháme Česku růst” (Digital Garage – Helping Czechia to Grow”.
- Balcerzak, P. A., & Pietrzak, B. M. (2017). Digital Economy in Visegrad Countries. Multiple-criteria Decision Analysis at Regional Level in The Years 2012 and 2015. Journal of Competitiveness, 9(2), 5-18.
- Břečková, P., & Havlíček, K. (2016). Inovace a jejich financování v malé a střední firmě. Praha: Vysoká škola finanční a správní, EUPRESS.
- Brink, T. (2017). B2B SME management of antecedents to the application of social media. Industrial Marketing Management, 64, 57-65.
- Burgess, S., Sellitto, C., Cox, C., Buultjens, J., & Bingley, S. (2017). An Innovation Diffusion Approach to Examining the Adoption of Social Media by Small Businesses: an Australian Case Study. Pacific Asia Journal of the Association for Information Systems, 9(3), 1-23.
- Centobelli, P., Cerchione, R., Esposito, E., & Raffa, M. (2016). Digital Marketing in Small and Medium Enterprises: The Impact of Web-Based Technologies. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities (SYSSARM 2015), 5-6, pp. 1473-1476.
- Cesaroni, F. M., & Consoli, D. (2015). The Adoption and use of Social Media by Micro and Small Enterprises. In Proceedings of the 2nd European Conference on Social Media (ECSM 2015) (pp. 65-72).
- Dahiya, R., & Gayatri, G. (2018). A Research Paper on Digital Marketing Communication and Consumer Buying Decision Process: An Empirical Study in the Indian Passenger Car Market. Journal of Global Marketing, 31(2), 73-95.
- Foroudi, P., Gupta, S., Nazarian, A., & Duda, M. (2017). Digital technology and marketing management capability: achieving growth in SMEs. Qualitative Market Research, 20(2), 230-246
- Gupta, A., Sr., Bakshi, S., & Dogra, N. (2018). Engaging consumers in the digital era: An analysis of official tourism Facebook pages in India. Tourism, 66(1), 63-77
- Hänninen, N., & Karjaluoto, H. (2017). The effect of marketing communication on business relationship loyalty. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 35(4), 458-472.
- He, X. Y., & Negahban, A. (2017). The Effects of Consumer Engagement Behavior on the Growth of Social Media Brand Community: Evidence from an SME. International Journal of E-Business Research, 13(1), 25-43.
- Hindls, R., Hronová, S., & Novák, I. (2000). Metody statistické analýzy pro ekonomy [The Methods of Statistical Analysis for the Economists] (2nd ed.). Praha: Management Press. (In Czech)
- IMD World Competitiveness Center. (2019). The IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2019 results.
- Johanson, J., & Vahlne, J.-E. (1977). The Internationalization Process of the Firm – A Model of Knowledge Development and Increasing Foreign Market Commitments. Journal of International Business Studies, 8, 23-32.
- Khatwani, G., & Srivastava, P. R. (2018). Impact of Information Technology on Information Search Channel Selection for Consumers. Journal of Organizational and End User Computing, 30(3), 63-80.
- Kuchta, M., & Miklosik, A. (2016). Refining Digital Marketing Taxonomies: Advertising Platforms and Digital Metrics. Marketing Identity: Brands we love, PT I, 175-185.
- McCann, M., & Barlow, A. (2015). Use and measurement of social media for SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 22(2), 273-287.
- Moeuf, A., Pellerin, R., Lamouri, S., Tamayo-Giraldo, S., & Barbaray, R. (2018). The industrial management of SMEs in the era of Industry 4.0. International Journal of Production Research, 56(3), 1118-1136.
- MPO. (2018). Zpráva o vývoji MSP a jejich podpoře v roce 2017 [Report on SME Development and Support in 2017]. (In Czech).
- Odoom, R., Anning-Dorson, T., & Acheampong, G. (2017). Antecedents of social media usage and performance benefits in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 30(3), 383-399
- Oviatt, B. M., & McDougall, P. P. (1997). Challenges for Internationalization Process Theory: The Case of International New Ventures. Management International Review, 37(2), 85-99.
- Papa, A., Santoro, G., Tirabeni, L., & Monge, F. (2018). Social media as tool for facilitating knowledge creation and innovation in small and medium enterprises. Baltic Journal of Management, 13(3), 329-344.
- Petrů, N., Havlíček, K., & Tomášková, A. (2018). Comparison of Marketing Vitality of Family and Non Family Companies doing business in the Czech Republic. Economics and Sociology, 11(2), 138-156.
- Petrů, N., Tomášková, A., & Krošláková, M. (2019). Diversification of Export Territories of Family Businesses as a Tool of their Further Development. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 17(3), 306-322.
- Scuotto, V., Del Giudice, M., della Peruta, M. R., & Tarba, S. (2017). The performance implications of leveraging internal innovation through social media networks: An empirical verification of the smart fashion industry. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 120, 184-194.
- Stankovska, I., Josimovski, S., & Edwards, C. (2016). Digital channels diminish SME barriers: the case of the UK. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istrazivanja, 29(1), 217-232.
- Straker, K., & Wrigley, C. (2016). Emotionally engaging customers in the digital age: the case study of “Burberry love”. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 20(3), 276-299.
- Styvén, M. E., & Wallström, Å. (2019). Benefits and barriers for the use of digital channels among small tourism companies. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 19(1), 27-46.
- Taiminen, H. M., & Karjaluoto, H. (2015). The usage of digital marketing channels in SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 22(4), 633-651.
- Ungerman, O., Dedkova, J., & Gurinova, K. (2018). The Impact of Marketing Innovation on the Competitiveness of Enterprises in the Context of Industry 4.0. Journal of Competitiveness, 10(2), 132-148.
- Verhoef, P. C., Kannan, P. K., & Inman, J. J. (2015). From Multi-Channel Retailing to Omni-Channel Retailing Introduction to the Special Issue on Multi-Channel Retailing. Journal of Retailing, 91(2), 174-181.
- Walaitis, B. K., Ivankovic, J., & Avdic, A. (2017). Internet Tools in Communication Development Role of Small and Medium Enterprises in Croatia. In Proceedings of 20th International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development. Book Series: International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development (pp. 683-692).
- Wang, W. Y. C., Pauleen, D. J., & Zhang, T. T. (2016). How social media applications affect B2B communication and improve business performance in SMEs. Industrial Marketing Management, 54, 4-14.
- Wassenberg, N., & Mau, N. (2016). The Relevance of Social Media – Introduction and Basic Knowledge for Small and Medium Sized Companies. In Innovation Management and Education Excellence Vision 2020: From Regional Development Sustainability to Global Economic Growth, vols. I-VI, Proceedings Paper, Conference: 27th International Business Information Management Association Conference, Milan, Italy, May 04-05, 2016 (pp. 1815-1823).
- Ziliani, C., & Ieva, M. (2014). Innovation in Brand Promotion: Reacting to the Economic Crisis with Digital Channels and Customer Insight. In National Brands and Private Labels in Retailing. Book Series: Springer Proceedings in Business and Economics (pp. 151-159).
-
An assessment of informal SMEs’ potential in an African economy – theoretical and conceptual framework
Public and Municipal Finance Volume 7, 2018 Issue #2 pp. 1-13 Views: 3436 Downloads: 467 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯInformal Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play a key role in their respective economies over the world particularly in the African continent. This paper reviews various theories on SMEs towards understanding the potential of the informal sector in the context of African countries. The paper uses a theoretical approach for the purpose of assessing the challenges that have affected the development of the informal SMEs sector over the years in both the developing and developed world. Economically developing countries in Africa pose unique challenges to informal SMEs development compared to the developed countries. The paper reviews the theories that define the rise to informality in Africa by identifying the key determinants for the emergence of informal SMEs. A conceptual framework for assessing informal SME’s potential for Africa is developed. The conceptual framework is based on the Fishbone diagram developed by Kaoru Ishikawa (1986). This paper discusses the intricacies of the applicability of the proposed conceptual framework to assess the potential of the informal SMEs in Africa and the way forward for the formalization debate.
-
Impact of transport infrastructure on firm performance: case study of Cuu long delta area, Vietnam
Phi Vinh Tuong
,
Dang Thai Binh ,
Nguyen Dinh Hoa
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/ppm.17(2).2019.04
Problems and Perspectives in Management Volume 17, 2019 Issue #2 pp. 51-62 Views: 1629 Downloads: 1246 TO CITE АНОТАЦІЯTransport infrastructure plays an important role in promoting the socio-economic development in most countries. In particular, the development of road infrastructure is the basis for promoting enterprises development through expanding market access, lowering logistics cost and inputs cost, etc. The focal point of this paper is to estimate the impact of road infrastructure on firm performance through an empirical research in Cuu Long delta area, Vietnam. By applying the econometric models, the results from this study show that the positive relationship between road infrastructure and firm performance in Cuu Long delta area, and that the level of impact is different across business sectors.
-
Hospitality in the image of small family accommodation businesses
Maciej Dębski ,
Łukasz Sułkowski
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.21511/im.15(1).2019.02
Small and micro businesses form the largest group of entities offering services to tourists in tourist destinations. A majority of them are family businesses accommodation facilities. The study tests the hypothesis that the family nature of a business offering accommodation services can be a source of real competitive advantage being of significance for a certain group of clients. The advantage can be shaped by creating an image based on the owner’s involvement and hospitality. As the literature research indicated, in the case of the businesses described, it is relatively easy to develop a bond between the facility’s manager and their clients. The deliberations were extended by an empirical study conducted on a group of young people from Poland and Ukraine. Its results have indicated that accommodation services are significant elements of the satisfaction among the clients surveyed, and that in the group surveyed, the key reason for a trip is the intention to “experience and learn” and not comfort. It has also been confirmed that the determinants of accommodation services related to broadly defined hospitality are significant, however, not key in the group analyzed.
