Influence of social media on the effectiveness of business operations of the youth operated small and medium enterprises in the municipal council of Nakuru
Abstract
Social media has revolutionalized business the world over; albeit at different levels in different parts of the world. The contribution of Facebook, Twitter, Linked In and Google+ among other social media platforms, despite being new in the business world, cannot be gainsaid. If well harnessed, they can spur economic development and contributes significantly to the realization of kenya's Vision 2030 objectives. The economic pillar of Vision 2030 envisages promotion of micro economic enterprises as a way of turning Kenya into a middle level income country thus, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) fall under this bracket. It is then imperative that the influence of this new technology on the effectiveness of business operation be understood.
This study sought to establish the influence of the knowledge of use of social media, the attitude to the use of social media and the level of use of social media have on the effectiveness of business operation. The study adopted descriptive survey design where both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. The descriptive approach was meant to provide details on the what, the which and the what percentage of the study variables. Inferential statistics aimed at determining whether independent variables predicted the dependent variable (to test the null hypotheses on the relationship between the independent variables and dependent variable).
The study was interested in youth operated SMEs in the municipal council of Nakuru. The accessible population consisted 132 youth SMEs within the Central Business District. It was stratified into three groups; the SMEs that rendered services , those that sold products and those that render both products and services. A sample of 97 SMEs was randomly selected after determining appropriate ratios for each stratum. The tool for collecting data was a questionnaire. To validate the tool, the researcher sought the help of an expert. The questionnaire was administered twice to a group selected for pilot testing of the instrument with a lapse of two weeks between the two administrations. This was done to determine the reliability of the instrument.
Data was analyzed using geometric mean and regression analysis. The study revealed that the three independent variables; knowledge of the use of social media, attitude to the same and the level of use of social media to varying degrees, that is, 26.6%, 9.6% and 8.9% respectively influenced the dependent variable; effectiveness of business operations of the youth operated SMEs.
From the findings of the study, it was evident that social media has played a very significant role in the performance of the youth operated SMEs. Having positively influenced business operations,' social media promised to offer many exciting, new opportunities for businesses to connect with their customers. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended that businesses should rethink their future strategies and shift most of their marketing efforts towards engaging with customers.
Publisher
University of Nairobi, Kenya
Collections
- Faculty of Education (FEd) [5964]