Republic of the Philippines

CARLOS HILADO MEMORIAL STATE COLLEGE

Talisay City, Negros Occidental

Title: Online Marketing Strategies for Small Retail Businesses to Increase Sales
Revenues

Name of Proponents: (Names of the group member)

Campus: Fortune Towne

Research Type: Qualitative Research using Valid Research design

Focused Agenda: Business and Management (Entrepreneurship)

INTRODUCTION

Technology advancements provide small business owners with the ability to

assess data and apply the information to increase production (Keegan &
Rowley,2017). Online marketing, according to Dolan, Conduit, Fahy, and Goodman
(2017), has boosted content and transformed the way people and organizations
connect. Small retail business executives must ensure that their operations are
aligned with technological improvements to grasp and understand the potential
benefits of internet marketing. Failure to realize the advantages of internet marketing
could result in a loss of productivity, money, and communication (Cheng & Liu,
2017).

To maintain a competitive advantage and improve revenue and

communication, small retail business executives must prepare to meet client needs
while also implementing creative technological techniques (Cheng & Liu, 2017). In
this study, I looked into the ways that small retail store owners utilize to apply online
marketing to enhance derivative sales.

Objectives/Problem Statements

Some retail leaders in small businesses struggle to apply social media

marketing techniques for advertising, employee recruitment, and communication to
improve income (Schaupp & Belanger, 2014). In 2015, 31.8 percent of small retail
enterprises had websites to leverage online marketing, but 67.4 percent were unable
to capitalize on chances presented by online marketing, resulting in a loss of
opportunities in online markets (Cesaroni & Consoli, 2015). The general business
problem was that small retail firm executives were having problems adopting online
marketing to improve customer communication and enhance derived sales. The
specific business issue was that certain small retail firm leaders lacked strategies for
implementing online marketing to enhance derived sales.

Framework

The diffusion of innovation theory, as first stated by Rogers in 1962, served as

the conceptual basis for this study. Rogers (2003) described how innovation is
conveyed to members of a social system through time through specific routes. The
social system, invention, communication channels, and time are the four
components of the dissemination of the innovation process (Rogers, 2003).
According to Dearing (2009), the process of diffusion innovation begins slowly and
gradually accelerates positive communication.

The application of diffusion of innovation theory in conjunction with a

multidisciplinary approach resulted in a deep and diverse knowledge of diffusion
dynamics (Frattini, Bianchi, Massis, & Sikimic, 2014). The resilience of this theory
stems from the numerous disciplines and fields of diffusion studies, and the theory's
nature suggests that leaders decide which innovations will be embraced (Dearing,
2009). As a novel mode of communication, information travels through social
networks (Rogers, 2003). When business leaders execute an online marketing plan,
they develop a social structure that allows for constant contact with employees,
stakeholders, and customers.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The qualitative method was appropriate for engaging corporate leaders in

semi-structured interviews with open-ended inquiries. A qualitative researcher
attempts to comprehend the viewpoints of people or a situation by 42 investigating
their experiences to give relevant data (Ruel, 2017). The qualitative method is used
by researchers to better comprehend the experiences of the community or
employees (McCusker & Gunaydin, 2015). The goal of qualitative research is to
analyze a new topic of study to identify and theorize significant concerns (Jamshed,
2014). The qualitative research approach was most suited for conveying why
business leaders employ internet marketing methods in this study. My research of
their online marketing business strategies will allow the researcher to investigate the
application of the innovation process to small retail firms.

Quality, data saturation, and content validity are all required for valid research
(Fusch & Ness, 2015). Saturation occurs when no new data is uncovered that is
relevant to the sample population (Saunders et al., 2017). When the emergence of
fresh themes becomes obsolete, data saturation occurs (Yin, 2014). Member
checking is a strategy used to verify authenticity and trustworthiness that involves
asking all participants to confirm previously provided data (Birt, Scott, Cavers,
Campbell, & Walter, 2016). In this study, the researcher will ensure data saturation
by obtaining information from small retail enterprises' interviews, public business
records, websites, and social media webpages to investigate the tactics they employ
to conduct online marketing until no new data or additional themes emerged.

This study's main demographic consists of four company leaders from four
small retail firms in Negros Occidental. The demographic is suited for this study
since certain business leaders are aware of the difficulties associated with online
marketing. Because the participants in this study had applicable knowledge and
experience on how to apply internet marketing techniques in a small business, the
population was aligned with the main research issue.

Consent forms will be used by researchers to maintain confidentiality and to

defend the rights of participants (Swanson & Betensky, 2015). To obtain informed
consent, the following information must be provided: (a) the objective of the study,
(b) how the research may benefit the business, (c) the methods for conducting the
study, and (d) the nature of the study. The informed consent procedure includes
explanations of (a) the risks and advantages of participating in the study, (b)
compensation, (c) confidentiality, (d) contact information for requesting additional
study information, and (e) participant rights (Sanjari, Bahramnezhad, Fomani,
Shoghi, & Cheraghi, 2014). The E-mail informed consent forms will be distributed to
participants. If they accepted to participate, the participants replied "I consent" to the
e-mail with the informed consent form. Withdrawing from research involvement
requires notification from research participants. Participants might opt out by alerting
the researcher either verbally (by phone) or in writing (through e-mail). If a participant
chooses to withdraw, the researcher will promptly return any submitted documents
and delete any recorded data.

References:

Keegan, B., & Rowley, J. (2017). Evaluation and Decision-Making in Social Media
Marketing. Management Decision, 55, 15-31. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-10-2015-
0450

Dolan, R., Conduit, J., Fahy, J., & Goodman, S. (2017). Social media:
Communication strategies, engagement, and future research directions. International
Journal of Wine Business Research, 29(1), 1-19. doi:10.1108/IJWBR-04-2016-0013

Cheng, J., & Liu, S. (2017). A study of innovative product marketing strategies for
technological SMEs. Journal of Interdisciplinary Mathematics, 20, 319-337.
doi:10.1080/09720502.2016.1258837

Schaupp, L., & Belanger, F. (2014). The value of social media for small businesses.
Journal of Information Systems, 28, 187-207. doi:10.2308/isys-50674

Cesaroni, F. M., & Consoli, D. (2015). Are small businesses really able to take
advantage of social media? Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management, 13, 257-
268. Retrieved from www.ejkm.com

Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of innovations (5th ed.). New York, NY: Free Press.

Frattini, F., Bianchi, M., Massis, A., & Sikimic, U. (2014). The role of early adopters in
the diffusion of new products: Differences between platform and non-platform
innovations. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 31, 466-488.
doi:10.1111/jpim.12108

Dearing, J. W. (2009). Applying diffusion of innovation theory to intervention

development. Research on Social Work Practice, 19, 503–518.
doi:10.1177/1049731509335569

Ruel, S. (2017). Qualitative methods in business research. Qualitative Research in

Organizations and Management: An International Journal, 12, 87-88.
doi:10.1108/QROM-08-2016-1410

McCusker, K., & Gunaydin, S. (2015). Research using qualitative, quantitative, or

mixed methods and choice based on the research. Perfusion, 30, 537-542.
doi:10.1177/0267659114559116

Jamshed, S. (2014). Qualitative research method-interviewing and observation.

Journal of Basic and Clinical Pharmacy, 5, 87-88. doi:10.4103/0976-0105.141942

Fusch, P., & Ness, L. (2015). Are we there yet? Data saturation in qualitative
research. The Qualitative Report, 20, 1408-1416. Retrieved from www.nova.edu

Birt, L., Scott, S., Cavers, D., Campbell, C., & Walter, F. (2016). Member checking: A
tool to enhance trustworthiness or merely a nod to validation? Qualitative Health
Research, 26, 1802-1811. doi:10.1177/1049732316654870

Yin, R. (2014). Case study research: Design and methods (5th ed.). Thousand Oaks,
CA:

Sage Swanson, D., & Betensky, R. (2015). Research participant compensation: A

matter of statistical inference as well as ethics. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 45,
265-269. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2015.08.014
Sanjari, M., Bahramnezhad, F., Fomani, F., Shoghi, M., & Cheraghi, M. (2014).
Ethical challenges of researchers in qualitative studies: The necessity to develop a
specific guideline. Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine, 7(14), 1-9.
Retrieved from www.jmehm.turns.ac.ir