Benefits of Social Media Marketing for Small and Medium Enterprises

This project plan, submitted as part of Assessment 1.1, investigates the advantages of social media marketing for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). The background and problem statement highlight the increasing importance of social media in marketing, particularly for reaching target consumers and boosting sales. The plan outlines the research methodology, which involves a systematic literature review using secondary data from digital libraries like Sage and ScienceDirect, focusing on keywords such as 'social media marketing' and 'online marketing.' The research aims to answer the question: 'What are the benefits of using social media as a marketing method for SMEs?' The plan also includes a short literature review supporting the importance of social media marketing and a Gantt chart outlining the project timeline, including literature review, data collection, analysis, writing, and revisions.

Title: The benefits of using social media as a marketing method for SMEs.
Background and problem statement.
Social Media Marketing on Facebook and other social media sites are becoming increasingly
more popular. These new markets allow businesses to reach more customers with minimal effort. It
allows marketing to be targeted towards the ideal consumer base; thus, in theory, increasing sales
(Voorveld, Muntinga, & Bronner, 2018). Conducting business in cyberspace is inherently different
than standard business. There are aspects of the cyber business that a marketing manager must
understand. According to Appel, Grewal, & Stephen (2020), the introduction of social media sites as a
platform for marketing and sales had a major impact on the business environment and has changed the
way marketing agencies conduct business as well as the job description for marketing managers. They
must remain within the law, use dispute resolution methods, and understand the regulations and how
they apply to their business, among others. The business environment has had to adapt to its new
surroundings, and that means that marketing managers need to adapt as well. Keeping up with the
new/updated legislation as well as keeping fresh on the older regulations is more important than ever.
Social Media has changed the world of e-commerce (Arora & Sanni, 2019).
Many businesses have taken to social marketing already. However, SMEs are still lagging in
terms of their efforts to utilize social media platforms. This research will serve to outline the benefits
that SMEs stand to gain by using social media as a marketing method.
Data source(s) and research methodology.
The research will employ qualitative methods using a systematic literature review approach.
Secondary data obtained from the existing literature will be used to answer the research questions.
Digital libraries such as Sage and ScienceDirect will be searched using keywords such as “social
media marketing” and “online marketing.” The search will be filtered to obtain only the literature that
applies to the current research. Then, the abstract screening will be used to narrow down and obtain
the literature relevant to answering the research questions. Literature will be analyzed and categorized
according to the identified differences and similarities using tables, charts, and graphs.
Research question(s).
What are the benefits of using social media as a marketing method for SMEs?
Short literature review.
According to Voorveld et al. (2018), some courts have ruled that the existing legislation
applies to e-commerce the same way it would have applied to traditional commerce. However, Arora
and Sanni (2019) indicate that the legislation has begun being updated where required, as it is now
obvious that this marketing platform is here to stay (Appel et al., 2020).
References
Appel, G., Grewal, L., & Stephen, A. T. (2020). The future of social media in marketing. Journal of
the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(1), 79–95. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-019-00695-1
Arora, A. S., & Sanni, S. A. (2019). Ten Years of ‘Social Media Marketing’ Research in the Journal
of Promotion Management: Research Synthesis, Emerging Themes, and New Directions.
Journal of Promotion Management, 25(4), 476–499.
https://doi.org/10.1080/10496491.2018.1448322
Voorveld, H. A. M., Muntinga, D. G., & Bronner, F. (2018). Engagement with Social Media and
Social Media Advertising: The Differentiating Role of Platform Type. Journal of Advertising,
47(1), 38–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/00913367.2017.1405754

Gantt chart
Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10 Week 11 Week 12
Identify literature and identify RQs
Gain Feedback in class
Submit Assessment 1.1
Revise the project proposal
Submit Assessment 1.2
Literature Review
Data Collection
Data Analysis
Writing the Research Methodology
Evaluate the Findings
Revising the Literature Review
Discussions and Results
Abstract, Introduction, Conclusions
Submit Assessment 2