| dc.description.abstract | Information technology has influenced the way in which business is conducted globally,
resulting in, for example, a faster turnaround of products and production, smart products, and 24
hours of shopping around the world. Some small business owners in Nairobi have embraced use
of social media platforms to enable them improve their customer experience and advertise their
products and services on a relatively low budget. As a result, those SMEs with online presence
and on social media, have managed to enhance their competitiveness over their counterparts who
have not mapped their business on social media. Unfortunately, many small businesses online do
not see the importance of using social media for their business. The purpose of this study was to
establish how social media strategy has helped to enhance competitiveness among online SMEs
in Nairobi to grow their business and use social media to engage consumers. A survey is
conducted that engages with the small business owner, and accompanied by an analysis of the
business‘s views on social media usage and performance. The results of the survey reveal that a
number of small business owners are still ignorant of using social media to boost their business
and assist them acquire competitiveness over fellow SMEs on social media. The study concludes
with a discussion of the lessons learned from the research.
The research tries to find how social media can be used as a strategy for enhancing
competitiveness among online SMEs in Nairobi County, Kenya. The research is based on the
assumption that we are in a ―knowledge economy‖ with exposure to ICT technology in terms of
mobile phones with internet and computers. The most important asset in the new economy is
knowledge, which is what businesses sell online and customers buy. The products are more
knowledgeable and the customer demands are sophisticated. Businesses still need to invest a lot
of time to exploit social media and be ahead of their competitors. The findings from the SMEs
replies to the questionnaire reflect the need for further investigation on how SMEs can achieve
understanding of the knowledge economy and the effect social media on it. The majority of
participants agree that to a large extent they rely on technology to run their businesses such as
using email accounts for communication and social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter
for sourcing of new clients, and some admitted to have internet access. | en |
