The effect of E-marketing on the marketing performance of Small Business Business Enterprise: A comparative study between between Egypt and the the U !
"ATE# E$-%&" "ATE# E$-%&"A'( A'( Bradford Bradford University University School School of #anagement #anagement
School address : EMM Lane, Bradford, We West st Yorkshire BD9 4JL, UK. Mailin address : !4 Laisteride Lane, Bradford, BD" #$%, West West Yorkshire Yorkshire,, UK. %ele&hone : '44 ()*"+"+4"))a/ : '44 ()*#!"4 04-+-E1ail : h!o!a!elgohary)bradford!ac!uk elgohary*+)yahoo!com S2&er3isor na1e : Dr. Mfan5 %r2e1an %r2e1an S2&er3isor e61ail : #!Tr : #!Trueman) ueman)Bradford!a Bradford!ac!uk c!uk
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16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
Abstract:-
Small Business Enterprises SBE!s" play a ma#or role in the $orld economy% and their contri&ution to economic and employment 'ro$th is $idely reco'ni(ed) Based on the SBE role as an economic en'ine to dri*e 'lo&al de*elopment% this research see+s to understand the practices and acti*ities o, these enterprises in terms o, electronic marketing (Achieving marketing objectives and functions through the use of electronic communication technology), marketing performance and the effectiveness of industrial and trade SBE’s n order to do this a comparative study is made bet!een SBE’s in Egypt (developing) and the "# (developed)
.he main aim o, this $or+ is to identi,y lin+s &et$een the conceptual ,rame$or+ and empirical analysis in this ,ield &ecause they appear to &e hi'hly inte'rated% and i, re*ie$ed separately may present distorted results) A triangulation approach !ill be used in $hich /uantitati*e and /ualitati*e data $ill &e collected throu'h structured mailed $uestionnaires and semi%structured intervie!s to address di,,erent le*els o, in*esti'ation% test the hypotheses and address the central research /uestions) ey words: E-Mar+etin'% Small Business Enterprises% Mar+etin' per,ormance%
E'ypt% ) #. ntrod2ction:6
Small Business Enterprises SBE!s" do play a ma#or role in the $orld economy% and they are reco'ni(ed as one o, the main contri&utors to economic% de*elopment and employment 'ro$th) Accordin' to Mulhern 13" 4 o, all European companies are small and medium si(ed SME" and ,rom 153-13 it pro*ided 664 o, the employment in Europe) .hat is also true in ess De*elopin' ountries D8s" since small &usinesses do represent a hi'h percenta'e o, the total num&er o, enterprises) 9n the other hand% the re*olution in in,ormation technolo'y ." and communications chan'ed the $ay people conduct &usiness today) n recent years% increasin' num&ers o, &usinesses ha*e &een usin' the nternet and other electronic media in their mar+etin' e,,orts% 'i*in' the chance ,or Electronic mar+etin' as a ne$ mar+etin' phenomenon and philosophy" to 'ro$ in a *ery dramatic and dynamic $ay) :rom the researcher point o, *ie$% implementin' E-mar+etin' &y small &usiness enterprise can chan'e the shape and nature o, SBE8s &usiness all o*er the $orld) Because the rapid proli,eration o, the nternet% the ;orld ;ide ;e& ;;;" and electronic communication has created a ,ast 'ro$in' ne$ electronic channels ,or mar+etin') :or that% the internet and other electronic media are playin' no$ a *ery important role in conductin' mar+etin' acti*ities due to its uni/ue characteristics as a mar+et and as a medium) Dependin' on that the researcher is see+in' to add to the &ody o, +no$led'e &y in*esti'atin' and understandin' the practices and acti*ities o, small &usiness enterprises throu'h conductin' a research a&out the e,,ect o, implementin' E-mar+etin' on
!
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
mar+etin' per,ormance o, industrial and trade SBE!s% it is a comparati*e study &et$een the E'yptian and British SBE8s to 'ain a &etter understandin' o, the SBE8s role in de*elopin' countries since they are less $ell represented in the literature) #.# Backro2nd:6 ,!,!, Small Business Enterprises:-
Despite o, the po$er,ul position held &y small &usinesses% de,inin' it has al$ays &een di,,icult and there is a little a'reement on $hat de,ines a small &usiness &ecause the term co*ers a *ariety o, ,irms) As a result small &usinesses ha*e &een de,ined in a perple
.o! of employees
&ther criteria
nder 100 nder 30
Australia &anada
nder 20 nder 300 in m,' and 30 in ser*ices @one
ess than > 3 million annual sales Annual turno*er or 'lo&al &alance less than 10 million euros ? ndependence @one ess than > 3 million annual sales
'ndia
nder 30 nder 200 in la&our intensi*e *urkey 10 to Source: El-Gohary 2006" eico *hailand
.otal in*estmentnot e
:rom ta&le 1 it is noticed that the num&er o, employees is the most o,ten used element in determinin' the cate'ory o, SBE!s in most countries) :urthermore%) t also noticed that there is a lac+ o, a'reement on $hat de,ines a small &usiness% ,or that a standard de,inition ,or Small Business Enterprises is needed) Accordin'ly and due to the a&sence o, an E'yptian o,,icial de,inition ,or SBE8s% the researcher $ill depend on the ,ollo$in' de,inition ,or SBE8s ,or the purpose o, conductin' the research studyC a small &usiness enterprise is that enterprise that employs ,rom ten to ,orty-nine employees) ,!,!/ E-#arketing:-
Electronic mar+etin' E-mar+etin'" can &e *ie$ed as a ne$ modern &usiness practice associated $ith &uyin' and sellin' 'oods% ser*ices% in,ormation and ideas *ia the
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
nternet and other electronic means) A re*ie$ o, rele*ant literature re*ealed that de,initions o, electronic mar+etin' *ary accordin' to each author!s point o, *ie$% &ac+'round and speciali(ation) ;hile Smith and ha,,ey 2003" de,ines it asC Achie*in' mar+etin' o&#ecti*es throu'h applyin' di'ital technolo'ies, Strauss and :rost 2001" de,ine it asC .he use o, electronic data and applications ,or plannin' and e
Gi*en the ,act that a ,irm sur*i*al depends on its capacity to create *alue% and *alue is de,ined &y customers Day% 10"% mar+etin' ma+es a ,undamental contri&ution to lon'-term &usiness success) But despite o, the importance o, measurin' &usiness per,ormance there is a little research on the measures used to e*aluate mar+etin' per,ormance and e,,ecti*eness) 9n the other hand% $hen loo+in' to the mar+etin' per,ormance and success measures it is noticed that there are many measures) ecently% in an attempt to or'ani(e per,ormance measures o++ina+i and Am&ler 1" ha*e summari(ed it and esta&lished si< cate'ories ,or mar+etin' per,ormance and success measures $hich areC :inancial measures F ompetiti*e mar+et measures F onsumer &eha*iour measures F onsumer intermediate measures F Direct costumer measures F nno*ati*eness measures) ,!,!0!, E-#arketing 1erformance #easures:-
Standardised measures ,or E-mar+etin' per,ormance are &oth needed and necessary) .he discussion o, most o, the researchers has centred on the ,ollo$in' measures &eside the traditional mar+etin' per,ormance measures"C .ra,,icF isit duration F on*ersion rate *isit to purchase" F atalo'ue si(e F Sales *alue F @um&er o, transactions F @um&er o, users as measured &y the num&er o, re'istered user accounts") n conductin' the proposed research the researcher $ill depend on &oth traditional mar+etin' and E-mar+etin' per,ormance measures) @amelyC :inancial measures F ompetiti*e mar+et measures F onsumer &eha*iour measures FE-mar+etin' measures such asC on*ersion rate F .ra,,ic F isit duration F @um&er o, transactions F @um&er o, users") !. %he Literat2re e3ie5:6
.he researcher had identi,ied a $ide ran'e o, the literature re*ie$ in its $ider &road sense $hich includeC ournals% Academic Boo+s% theses and dissertations% short articles% E-data&ases% con,erence papers%I") .he literature time period starts ,rom 10 to presence) .he research studies in*esti'ated and co*ered a $ide ran' o, E-mar+etin' areas% such asC nternet-mar+etin' F E-mail mar+etin' F ntranet mar+etin' F SMS 4
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
mar+etin' F E
The concept of E-Marketing in SBE’s
The use of internet by SBE’s
%he literat2re of e6 1arketin in SBE=s
The internet as a distribution channel for SBE’s
B2B in SBE’s
SBE’s Competencies
irtual Market
Export performance
2igure ,: .he literature o, e-mar+etin' in SBE8s Source: El-Gohary 2006") !.# The research %ap:-
-
-
By re*ie$in' this literature it8s noticed thatCAlmost all o, the researches on E-mar+etin' in SBE8s had &een conducted in Europe % @orthern reland% the epu&lic o, reland% Austria and S$it(erland"% Australia and @e$ Jealand) 9nly 2 studies $ere conducted in de*elopin' countries) .he literature $as concentrated on some research areas% and up to the +no$led'e o, the researcher" there is no sin'le research on the SBE8s E- Mar+etin' Ker,ormance or in SBE8s mar+etin' in E'ypt)
&bviously this
is a ma#or 'ap in the contemporary research on SBE8s E-Mar+etin' .here,ore a contri&ution to the literature is needed) . esearch ;ro
As a conclusion o, the literature sur*ey% the ,undamental pro&lem moti*atin' this research study is the ur'ent need to understand the relationship &et$een usin' Emar+etin' &y the E'yptian and British small &usiness enterprises and the mar+etin' per,ormance o, these enterprises) As $ell as the e,,ect that E-mar+etin' has on mar+etin' acti*ities ,or small &usiness enterprises) .he study attempts to ha*e ,ull-scale research that is statistically si'ni,icant that could ans$er the ,ollo$in' main /uestionC $hat are the relationship &et$een usin' E-mar+etin' and the mar+etin' per,ormance o, the E'yptian and British small &usiness enterprises)
0
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary 4. esearch >
.he main o&#ecti*es o, this research is toC de*elop a theoretical model to understand and interpret the use o, the E-mar+etin' &y small &usiness enterprises in the and E'ypt% e
n the li'ht 1rocess o, the pre*ious discussion and the literature re*ie$% the ,ollo$in' hypotheses ha*e &een constructed) Both the conceptual ,rame$or+ and empirical study Electronicare lin+ed to test these hypothesesC-
#arketing
Hypothesis 1"C *he 3dentification level of e%marketing of the:- used by SBE’s is significantly related to the firm’s- 'esearch marketing1roblem performance) Hypothesis 2"C *he form of e%marketing - 'esearch ob4ectivesused by SBE’s is not significantly related to the Small Business
firm’s marketing performance -'esearch 3mportance Hypotheses L"C 'mplementing E%marketing by the SBE’s is dependent on the SBE internal related factors
Enterprises
The 'esearch -. Aontri<2tion %o %he A2rrent Kno5lede:6 5uestions6 #odel and "ypotheses +e make a living by !hat !e get, but !e make a life by !hat !e giveSir inston &hurchill 'esearch Strategy
.he primary &ene,it o, this study is as a contri&ution to +no$led'e in the areas o, 7ata6 andto the limited small &usiness enterprises and E-mar+etin') .he research $ill #ethod contri&utes 'esearch 'esearch #ethods #ethodological num&er o, empirical researches on mar+etin' 'oods% ser*ices% ideas and in,ormation #ethodology triangulation dependin' on the nternet and other electronic mar+etin' means) Moreo*er% it contri&utes 'esearch 7esign to the limited num&er o, empirical e*idences to e
7escriptive Statistics6 orrelation6 hi .he research process $ill &e conducted throu'h ,i*e &asic sta'es as illustrated in Entering 7ata to S1SS S9uare6 3ndependent :i'ure2" these sta'es 7ata areC denti,ication o, the research samples pro&lem and o&#ecti*es% .he t-test Analysis de*elopment o, the research ,rame$or+% esearch methodolo'y% uantitati*e and 1urification 1rocess /ualitati*e data analysis% and Discussion and conclusion) ontent Analysis
3nterpretations and 7iscussion of ey 2indings onclusion and 'ecommendations
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
2igure /. .he research process Source: El-Gohary 2006")
.he researcher had done his &est to arran'e the or'anisation o, the study in such a $ay that it allo$s the readers to ,ollo$ the process easily and smoothly)
"
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary *!, 'esearch #ethodology:-
:rom the researcher point o, *ie$% 'enerally there is no optimal research methodolo'y or method) Because each methodolo'y or method ha*e some dra$&ac+s or limitations% &ut a researcher must employ the most appropriate research methodolo'y and methods to his research in the li'ht o, his research /uestions% aims and &y ta+in' into consideration the methodolo'ies and methods employed in other studies in the ,ield) Based on that% $hen determinin' the most suita&le methodolo'y ,or the research the researcher ta+e into consideration the research /uestions and aims as $ell as the methodolo'ies used in the contemporary E-mar+etin' research) .o in*esti'ate the methodolo'ies and methods used in contemporary E-mar+etin' research% the researcher constructed a representati*e un-pro&a&ility sample ,rom the literature) :rom this sample it $as ,ound that the ma#ority o, researchers in the literature depended on uantitati*e methodolo'y $ith a percenta'e o, LL)L4 o, the sample si(e and as illustrated in ,i'ure LC 27)64 o, the researchers applied ualitati*e methodolo'y% 5)64 applied .rian'ulation methodolo'y% 24 conducted onceptual and theoretical studies and 1)34 9ne researcher" conducted iterature e*ie$) .a&le 2 illustrate a classi,ication ,or this literature accordin' to the methodolo'y employed") e'ardin' the research strate'ies adopted &y the researchers it $as ,ound that the ma#ority o, researchers depended on Sur*ey strate'y $ith a percenta'e o, 1)7 4 and as illustrated in ,i'ure C 15)5 4 o, the researchers applied ase Study strate'y% 6 4 applied E
5)64
1)34
33.3%
!uantitati"e Quantitative Theoretical Conceptual
Qualitative !ualitati"e Triangulation Triangulation #iterature re"ie$ Literature review
Table /
lassi,ication ,or some o, the literature accordin' to the methodolo'y employed 27)64 29%
#ethodology$iterature/uantitative:la*iNn and GuinalOu 2006"% in et) al) 2006"% uhlmeier and
ni'ht 2003"% ;on' 2003"% :la*iNn et al)2003"% ymperopoulos and haniota+is 2003"% Mcole and amsey 200"%im and im 200"% ee-elley et al)200"% Merisa*o and aulas :i'ure LC esearch Methodolo'ies in E-mar+etin' 200")/ualitative .aylor and En'landused 2006"% Hac+ney et al) 2006"% Kar+ 2003"% a'rosen 2003"% yan and al*erde 2003"% SourceC El-Gohary 2006");arna&y and Pip 2003"% o$ley 200 a"% Smith% ) 200"% Dar&y et al) 200L"% Martin and Matlay 200L"% Siddi/ui et) al) 200L") *riangulation ;eischedel et al 2003"% hristodoulides and hernatony 200"% :illis et al 200"% Pan' et al) 200L"% haston and Man'les 200L"% Adam et al 2002"% apoulas 2002") &onceptual and theoretical studiesDe er*enoael et al 2006"% Sheth and Sharma 2003"% Sandeep and Sin'h 2003"% Mcole 200"% Smith and Manna 200"% Smith% A 200 a% & "% ul*i$at% et al 200"%o$ley 200 &"% ind'reen et al 200") Source: El-Gohary 2006") +
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
1)34
1)74
24
Survey Case study Exporatory Experi!ent Conceptua
L4
64
"iterature
15)54
review
:i'ure C esearch strate'ies used in E-Mar+etin' SourceC El-Gohary 2006")
64
2)64
4
Questionnaire Interviews Observation Focus groups 60)4
2igure . 0esearch ethods used in E%marketing By El-Gohary re*ie$in' the methodolo'ies in the Source: 2006")
literature it $as ,ound that most o, the studies conducted ha*e some criti/ue points re'ardin' the methodolo'ies and methods used in it% ,or e
9
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
- .he research $as conducted in European countries% 2 o, these countries do not spea+ En'lish and ha*e a di,,erent culture $hich mi'ht a,,ect the relia&ility o, the study) Especially that many o, the /uestions $ere desi'ned ,or academics rather to small hotels) - Dependin' on the telephone in data collection ha*e some dra$&ac+s% one o, it is the dan'er that respondents mi'ht ans$er the /uestion in the $ay that they &elie*e the researchers $ould li+e to hear socially desira&le ans$er") - .hey didn8t pro*ide any *alid ar'uments ,or choosin' the countries in*esti'ated% especially that there are other ,amous tourism European countries li+eC Greece% taly and :rance) @ot only the compara&ility o, those countries is /uestiona&le% &ut also applica&ility o, the ,indin's to other countries can8t &e 'uaranteed) .he same point o, criti/ue is *alid on the methodolo'y applied &y Mcole and amsey 200"= they didn8t pro*ide any *alid ar'uments ,or choosin' the L countries in*esti'ated in their study) Q .he main point o, criti/ue on the methodolo'y applied &yC amsey and Mcole 2003"= Hinson and Sorensen 2006"= haston and Man'les 200L"= @' 2003" is the ac+ o, applica&ility and 'eneralisation o, the ,indin's to the population at lar'e) Q :or Koon and S$atman 17" the ma#or points o, criti/ue is that they depend on a multiple-case desi'n% Althou'h these desi'ns are desira&le $hen the intent o, the research is description% theory &uildin'% or theory testin' and it allo$s a cross-case analysis and the e
#)
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
in,ormation and ans$er the !H9;! and R;HP8 /uestions ,or e
.he lo'ic o, trian'ulation is &ased on the premise thatC no sin'le method e*er ade/uately sol*es the pro&lem Den(in% 175C 25" and usin' only one method is more *ulnera&le to error lin+ed to that particular method Katton% 10C 155"= ,or that the use o, di,,erent methods in studyin' the same phenomenon should lead to a 'reater *alidity and relia&ility than a sin'le methodolo'ical approach% &ecause any &ias inherent in a particular method $ould &e neutralised $hen in con#unction $ith other methods) Beside that% each techni/ue has its ad*anta'es and disad*anta'es% stren'thens and $ea+nesses% ,or that com&inin' the methods $ill &e help,ul and use,ul to &ene,it ,rom the ad*anta'es and stren'thens and a*oid the disad*anta'es and $ea+nesses) So% althou'h trian'ulation entails a commitment to 'reater amounts o, e,,ort% time and money% it has the ad*anta'e o, remo*in' the &ias that is o,ten associated $ith the use o, a sin'le techni/ue) :or that the researcher $ill use trian'ulation to increase the *alidity and credi&ility o, the research conclusion% to &e more con,ident a&out the ,indin's% to increase the a&ility o, 'enerali(ation% to ans$er the research /uestions and to meet the research o&#ecti*es e,,ecti*ely and pro,essionally) Especially that accordin' to the +no$led'e o, the researcher there is no pre*ious studies $ere conducted in the ,ield o, Emar+etin' practices in SBE8s in E'ypt% also there is lac+ in scienti,ic studies in this ,iled in 'eneral) :or that the researcherC &elie*es that com&inin' o, methods in this research is indispensa&le% and $ill depend on a com&ined research approach &ased on sur*ey and case study analysis) *!/ 7ata ollection and Analysis :-
.he &ac+&one o, this research is to esta&lish and sustain a clear lin+ &et$een conceptual ,rame$or+ and empirical analysis) .he main importance o, this consideration comes ,rom the &elie, that unless the conceptual ,rame$or+ and empirical study are hi'hly inte'rated% each one o, them indi*idually $ould present a partitioned and distorted ima'e o, the research points) :or that this study $ill depend onC onceptual ,rame$or+C dependin' mostly on the secondary data) Empirical study C dependin' mostly on the primary data) A com&ined research strate'y &ased on sur*ey and case study strate'ies $ill &e carried out in the research &y usin' structured mailed /uestionnaires and inter*ie$s as a primary data collection methods).hen% many statistical analysis techni/ues $ill &e used to analyse the data and test the research hypotheses)
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16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
HAS.9@% ) MA@GES% .) 200L" elationship mar+etin' in online &usiness-to-&usiness mar+etsC A pilot in*esti'ation o, small manu,acturin' ,irms) European 3ournal of arketing, " 3F6": 73L - 77L 9@S% )% BHAS% D) KE.ES% M) 200L" Enhancin' SM.Es! &usiness per,ormance throu'h the nternet and e-learnin' plat,orms) Education 4 *raining, 40 5F": 5L - DABP% )% 9@ES% ) A MADA@% G) 200L" E-commerce mar+etin'C ,ad or ,ictionV Mana'ement competency in masterin' emer'in' technolo'y) An international case analysis in the AE) 5ogistics 'nformation anagement, #- 2": 106 - 11L) DAP% G)S) 10"% Mar+et-Dri*en Strate'yC Krocesses ,or reatin' alue% .he :ree Kress% @e$ Por+% @P) DE EE@9AE% )% S99KAMA@E@% D)% EMS% ) HAS;9.H% A) 2006") E
#!
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
Mc9E% K) AMSEP% E) 200" nternet-ena&led technolo'y in +no$led'e-intensi*e &usiness ser*icesC A comparison o, @orthern reland% the epu&lic o, reland and @e$ Jealand) arketing 'ntelligence 1amp, !! (7": 761 - 77) McG9;A@% K)% D@% M)% AE@% )% D9GA@% ) @T9@% S) 2001" De*elopin' competencies in the entrepreneurial small ,irm ,or use o, the nternet in the mana'ement o, customer relationships) 3ournal of European 'ndustrial *raining, !0 2FLF": 126 - 1L6) MHE@% A) 13" .he SME sector in EuropeC A &road perspecti*e) 3ournal of Small Business anagement, L", 5L -57) @G% E) 2003" An empirical ,rame$or+ de*eloped ,or selectin' B2B e-&usiness modelsC the case o, Australian a'ri&usiness ,irms) 3ournal of Business 1amp, !) %&'(): 2*+ - 22( 9A% )A) 200"% YB2B ,or saleY% arketing anagement % # 3"C 5-) KA..9@% M) 10" /ualitative evaluation and research methods ondonC Sa'e Ku&lications) K99@% S)% S;A.MA@% K)M)) 17"% Small &usiness use o, the nternet - :indin's ,rom Australian case studies% 'nternational arketing 0evie! % #4 3"C L53-02) K99@% S)% S;A.MA@% K)M)) 1"% YA lon'itudinal study o, e
;A.S9@% ) and EEE.% ) 16" YDo Small Businesses Ha*e Hi'h :ailure ates% E*idence :rom Australian etailers)Y 3ournal of Small Business anagement )4"C 3-62 ;[email protected]@% H)) 2000"% Y;hat is the nternet8s impact on direct mar+etin' today and tomorro$VY% 3ournal of 'nteractive arketing % #4 L"C7-5)
#
16th EDAMBA Summer Academy 2007
Hatem El-Gohary
;H.E% G)) 17" Ynternational online mar+etin' o, ,oods to S consumersY% 'nternational arketing 0evie!% #4 3"CL76-5)
#4
