IMPACT OF MARKETING STRATEGIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISES
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IMPACT OF MARKETING STRATEGIES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF SMALL SCALE ENTERPRISES
ABSTRACT
The study looks at how marketing techniques affect the success of small-scale businesses in the Shomolu Local Government Area of Lagos State.
The cross-sectional survey research design was used in the study. A self-structured questionnaire was utilised to collect information from respondents. The 50 respondents for this study were selected using a basic random sampling procedure. The hypotheses were tested using a chi-square statistical analysis.
The study discovered that current, consumer-based marketing methods increase the success of small businesses. It was then proposed that small-business owners conduct research on marketing tactics.Chapter one
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study.
The difficulty of small-scale enterprise marketing is truly a product of our time; it is the result of sophisticated communities’ timeliness standards and the manner in which such communities organise their resources to achieve the standard.
Marketing is as old as commerce, but the marketing of small-scale products as it is practiced today has had a significant impact on a huge sector of the economy due to the essential position and function that small and medium-sized businesses play.
Despite this recognised position of SMEs, the deployment of various marketing methods to capitalise on excess capacity and satisfied appetites remains a pipe dream.
Small-Scale Enterprises’ ideal marketing plans should include a large enough market to justify the cost of attracting people to buy. The persuasion of the client should be at the heart of a complex of actions that extends from the conception of the product to a point beyond its sale where every effort is made to maintain the customer’s goodwill towards the product and its well-known producer.
To cover this spectrum of activities and expand the success rate and performance of the success rate and performance of the economy through small and medium-sized enterprises,
marketing strategy can be defined as adjusting the entire activity of a business to the needs of the customer or potential customer and giving such product (Small Scale Product) an advantage over its competitors.
This is a description of attitude inside SMEs that requires absolute customer orientation, the development of market intelligence relevant to present and future customer needs, the dissemination of the intelligence across departments, and the organization’s overall responsiveness to it. (Crawer 2004).
The efficient small business marketing plan encompasses all actions taken by the fun and its personnel that may have an impact on customer attitudes towards the fun and the items or services it provides.
The allocation and use of resources to develop new products, product design, production efficiency, packaging, advertising credit, branding, the method of personal selling distribution, ability to deliver, and after-sales services all have an impact on the success of marketing for SMEs today.
According to Lowly (2005), marketing blurs the line between mailing and selling because both affect customer attitudes. While marketing is a comprehensive relationship with the market, selling is specifically concerned with influencing customer attitudes so that they favour a specific product or service.
According to him, initial investment decisions should be founded on marketing, as should the ongoing profitability of those decisions.
Most developing countries, including Nigeria, are undergoing reforms that will expose their economies to greater international competition, while domestic factor markets are insufficiently developed to ensure the successful adoption of SMEs to this new competitive environment.
Unlike large firms, SMEs are at a disadvantage and require efficient and effective marketing strategies in order to survive and increase profitability.
The relevance of SMEs to long-term economic stability stems from their size and structure, which, when well marketed, allow them the flexibility and ability to weather economic downturns.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) play a significant role in promoting income stability, growth, and development, as well as employment.
Modern economics operates as a complex network of firms in which a firm’s competitive position is partly determined by the efficiency of its suppliers. As a result, SMEs’ competitiveness has an impact on the economy’s overall competitiveness.
Furthermore, implementing the finest marketing plan for SMEs increased the efficiency of domestic marketplaces and made efficient use of scarce resources such as capital, facilitating long-term economic growth.
Despite this advantage, SMEs have restricted access to financial markets, both locally and internationally, due in part to higher risk informational hurdles and the higher cost of intermediation for smaller enterprises.
As a result, SMEs frequently are unable to obtain long-term financing in the form of term debt and equity; thus, SMEs in Nigeria must understand the complexity, modernity, and intensity of modern marketing strategy,
which is essentially to maintain the maximum profitability of capital equipment in buyers markets that are saturated under conditions of intense competition.
Effective marketing strategies that help small businesses to stand out from the crowd must include a combination of design, packaging, branding, advertising, and pricing policies, as well as the creation of an image of a distinct product.
1.2 Statement of Problem
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face numerous challenges, including limited access to loans and subsidies, debt equity, a scarcity of trained labour, and a general incapacity to compete. They are limited in their technological ability to use marketing information to obtain a competitive advantage.
The reduced presence of SMEs in public contracts and subcontracts is typically due to onerous bidding procedures and a lack of information, which discourages participation in this market.
Large enterprises’ inefficient distribution routes and restrictions impose significant limitations on SMEs’ marketing efforts. Other issues include worldwide rivalry, taxation and tariffs, legal problem management skills and training, and institutional limits, which make it critical for SMEs to implement effective and efficient marketing strategies.
1.3 Goal of the Study
The goal of their research is to identify the best marketing tactics for small-scale businesses, with the following precise goal.
i. Identify the present marketing practices for SMEs operations.
ii. Develop a practical marketing plan for SMEs that provides a competitive advantage and long-term profitability.
iii. Identify the barriers to SME viability and the implementation of a good marketing strategy.
iv. Develop methods and guidelines for sustainable marketing strategies for Nigerian SMEs.
1.4 Research Questions.
The study responds to the following question.
i. To what extent have current marketing strategies influenced the performance of SMEs?
ii. What marketing methods ensure that SMEs have a competitive advantage?
iii. What limits and hurdles do SMEs confront in their drive for increased profitability?
1.5 Research Hypotheses.
1. Null Hypothesis: Current marketing practices have not enhanced the performance of SMEs in Lagos.
Alternate Hypothesis: Existing marketing practices have boosted the performance of SMEs in Lagos.
2. Null Hypothesis: A positioning marketing strategy does not provide profitability and competitive advantage for SMEs.
Alternate Hypothesis: A positioning marketing strategy ensures profitability and competitive advantage for SMEs.
3. Null Hypothesis: The current environment in Lagos does not impose limits or problems on the effective marketing of SME products.
Alternate Hypothesis: The current climate in Lagos creates limits and hurdles for the effective marketing of SME products.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The study focuses solely on marketing methods for small-scale enterprises in Lagos state, using Shomolu Local Government Area as a case study.
The study intends to cover certain selected small-scale enterprises in this area with product market. A specific product or series of related products that can meet a certain set of needs and desires for all persons inside an organisation who are willing and able to acquire the products.
Strategic marketing entails planning, objectives, control units, establishing goals for target markets, and translating such strategies into short-term results using implementation and evaluation techniques.
Positioning Strategy: The mix of product distribution channel, price, and promotion techniques chosen by management to place a firm against its primary competitors in terms of target market needs and wants.
1.7 Definition of Terms
Small Scale Enterprises are company units or organisations with less than 50 employees on their payroll. Such an organisation also employs low-tech industrial processes.
Marketing is the conduct of business operations involving the direct flow of goods and services from the producer to the consumer or users in order to satisfy customers and achieve the company’s goals.
1.8 Significance of the Study
The research will aid in identifying some of the problems that small and medium-sized enterprises experience while selling their products. It would also assist SME practitioners in developing marketing strategies that would lead to improved product performance and better profitability.
Similarly, this type of study will allow SME operators to better understand their customers’ needs and preferences, as well as how to best serve them.
Furthermore, SMEs functioning in the era of globalisation will brace themselves for competition provided by imported items and discover ways to remain relevant in the market.
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