The Impact Of Marketing Innovation On The Performance Of Small And Medium Enterprises In Nigeria

The intensity of global market competition has created dynamic and fast-changing business environment which has affected all enterprises including small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs have, therefore, realized the need to explore, exploit and deploy marketing innovation and innovative strategies in order to stay competitive in the changing business environment. In both developed and developing countries across the world, SMEs form an important fragment of the local economic system. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the impact of marketing innovation on the performance of SMEs in Nigeria. The study was guided by an epistemological research philosophy adopting a positivist research paradigm. The research design was cross-sectional survey design using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The target population for this study was 782 registered SMEs by and the sample size was 120 respondents derived using Fisher's formulae. This study used a self-administered, closed, and open-ended questionnaire to obtain quantitative data. The used descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, median and proportions using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 and Microsoft Excel. Regression analysis and correlation analysis were used to determine the direction and strength of the relationship between the independent and the dependent variables. The study results revealed that whereas marketing innovation had a positive and significant influence on performance of SMEs in Nigeria. Study concluded that in this ever-changing technology, adoption of various innovations by SMEs is a key component of enhancing their performance. Therefore, enterprise owners need to be proactive in adopting different innovations since they all are linked positively to the performance of enterprises.